OTTAWA—The RCMP say they have identified a “mistake” that allowed two protesters to get within feet of Prime Minister Stephen Harper at an event in Vancouver on Monday, but are declining to explain what that mistake was.

Corrective action has already been taken, according to RCMP spokeswoman Cpl. Lucy Shorey, and a review into the incident is still ongoing. Despite assurances that similar incidents will not happen in the future, Shorey said the “mistake” still had to do with security measures and could not comment further.

“By telling you exactly what happened, in my opinion, would be discussing security measures,” Shorey said Wednesday. “I think we’ve said what we have to say, and we’re going to have to leave it at that.”

At a Vancouver Board of Trade meeting with Harper Monday morning, two protesters dressed in black waltzed passed Harper’s dedicated RCMP protective detail and stood behind the prime minister. They carried signs that read “Climate Justice Now” and “Conservatives Take Climate Change Seriously” — the latter with the words crossed out. They were quickly removed from the stage.

Shorey said that after consulting with Vancouver police the force decided charges would not be in the public interest. In a prepared statement, Shorey noted that protecting the prime minister and other VIPs requires a “measured approach,” balancing the duty to protect against the public’s right for “free speech and access to public officials in a democratic society.”

At least one Conservative senator disagrees with the decision to not pursue charges. Bob Runciman, the former solicitor general of Ontario, said the RCMP should face some “pointed questions” about how the protesters slipped by.

“I think there’s a whole series of questions I would trust the minister’s office and the leadership of the RCMP are asking with respect to what occurred here,” Runciman said Wednesday.

“I think it’s a very serious action, and if someone can do this with impunity, it could encourage others with less benign motives to try the same thing.”

Runciman intends to bring forward legislation early this year to “beef up” deterrents for similar protests, but said it was too early to elaborate on the specifics of his planned private members bill.

The Prime Minister’s Office is declining to comment on the matter.

Of all the potential threats that may face the elite group of Mounties who protect the prime minister, boredom may be the most dangerous of all.

That may have what caused the officers around Harper to let their guard down, one security expert told the Star. He said that attending hundreds of events with the prime minister where nothing happens can breed a dangerous complacency.

“You always have to be alert in those situations, as boring as the job is,” he said. “There’s a tendency to become complacent, let your guard down.”

The expert said while the focus is often on protecting VIPs against the large-scale, co-ordinated threats — such as an attack on a motorcade — the simplest acts are often the ones that successfully breach security.

“It just shows how simple it is and the reason you always have to be on guard,” said the expert, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

“You always have to challenge and not be afraid to challenge any individual approaching the prime minister . . . . The consequences of not doing the challenge could be a matter of life and death.”

The prime minister is protected by rings of security at public events. The outer ring is usually manned by members of local RCMP detachment or municipal police force. The inner ring surrounding the prime minister — the last line of defence — is always members of the protective detail.

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

“Nobody should get by there, so there is definitely a slip-up,” the source said.

With files from Bruce Campion-Smith

Read more about: