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McGuinty regrets law confusion

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty admits he could have done a better job of dispelling widespread confusion about police powers during the explosive G20 protests in Toronto, but insists he doesn’t owe anyone an apology.

TORONTO — Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty admits he could have done a better job of dispelling widespread confusion about police powers during the explosive G20 protests in Toronto, but insists he doesn’t owe anyone an apology.

Speaking publicly for the first time about the issue Friday, McGuinty expressed regret over the confusion surrounding a secret law that many believed had temporarily expanded police powers to stop and detain people during the global summit.

But he won’t apologize for what happened last weekend, McGuinty said.

“In hindsight, I think that we could have — and probably should have — done something to make it perfectly clear to people what we were actually talking about,” he said Friday.

McGuinty insists efforts were made “behind the scenes” to clarify the regulation that many believed allowed police to arrest anyone who came within five metres of the summit security fence and didn’t provide identification.

But that power never actually existed — and neither police nor the province set the record straight until the summit was over. In fact, both made comments about the necessity of such powers.

The temporary regulation, which was passed in secret June 2, did decree that all streets and sidewalks inside the fence were a public work until 11:59 p.m. Monday. Under the Ontario Public Works Protection Act, that allowed police to search people trying to enter that area.

Newspaper ads and notices put up on provincial and city websites “made it pretty clear” what the new rule involved, McGuinty said.

As confusion grew, government officials talked to police about what the rule actually decreed, but the information wasn’t made public “in a way that provided instant clarification,” he said.