The Office of the Coordinator for 2010 Olympics and G8 Security

The Office of the Coordinator for 2010 Olympics and G8 Security was established in October 2007.

The Office of the Coordinator is responsible for coordinating the federal response to the security tasks of hosting the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Vancouver-Whistler, British Columbia, and the 2010 G8 Summit in Huntsville, Ontario.

The Office of the Coordinator serves as a task force with the goal of ensuring a whole-of-government approach to the immense challenges of securing two major international events within a relatively short time frame. The Office reports to the Prime Minister through the National Security Advisor.

The Office of the Coordinator works closely with the various departments and agencies involved in the security efforts and serves as a central point of contact between provincial and federal agencies, as well as international partners.

Key tasks of the Office include:

• Coordinate with relevant federal departments and agencies on all aspects of security planning, and ensure such planning is integrated with provincial and municipal organizations;
• Ensure that comprehensive exercise programs are in place to test security plans and interoperability, and prove operational readiness;
• Establish a framework to provide for a coordinated approach to communications relating to security plans;
• Identify funding requirements among the various federal departments and agencies;
• Provide advice and recommendations to ministers, the Cabinet and the Prime Minister on issues regarding security for the 2010 Games and G8 Summit; and
• Coordinate ongoing bilateral discussions between Canadian departments and international partners, notably the U.S.

Further Reading

The Role and Structure of the Privy Council Office (November 2008)

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