The physical protection and security of the Ontario Legislature and the legislative precinct is administered by the Speaker of the Assembly, who is supported by the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly and the Office of the Assembly. One of the Speaker’s most important roles is the protection and security of the precinct so that members of provincial Parliament can safely perform their constitutional role. The Speaker delegates this authority to the Sergeant-at-Arms.
The Sergeant-at-Arms oversees the Legislative Protective Service, which is the service responsible for security services and physical protection in the legislative precinct.
The precinct includes the Legislature, several floors in the Whitney Block, and the south grounds. The legislative precinct is the area bounded by Wellesley Street to the north and Queen’s Park Cresent to the south, east, and west.
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario is a well-known tourist attraction that welcomes tens of thousands of visitors every year including VIPs, school groups, tourists, and people who are there to conduct meetings with their member of provincial Parliament.
The LPS provides core security functions to the Legislative Assembly, including:
- access control
- crowd management
- investigative services
- armed response
- patrols
- general law and security enforcement
The service has been built to be a standalone protective service, separate from government, with complete control of hiring, training, policy development, and supervision.