Klein insists premier has police HQ inquiry report, accuses mayor of trying to suppress it

Mayoral candidate Kevin Klein came out swinging Friday.

At a campaign appearance, Klein emphatically claimed Premier Wab Kinew must have an advance copy of the final report from the public inquiry into the Winnipeg Police Service headquarters, which Kinew, through his spokeswoman, outright denied.

Klein also claimed that his main election rival, Winnipeg’s current mayor Scott Gillingham, has been trying to prevent the final report from becoming an election issue.

Klein also alleged staff in the mayor’s office have been calling provincial politicians to try to prevent the report from being discussed in the legislature.

“It seems very suspicious to me — I don’t know what’s in it — but it seems suspicious that you’ve got the mayor’s office calling everyone they can saying, ‘Let’s not get this out, let’s not get this out,’ and you’ve got the premier saying, ‘I don’t want it to interfere with the election,’” Klein claimed.

Gillingham’s spokesman, Colin Fast, called Klein’s claims lies.

“Mr. Klein is lying. No one from Scott Gillingham’s office or campaign has made any such calls, period. It’s a complete fabrication,” Fast said.

Klein, who was a minister in the prior Progressive Conservative government, cited his experience in cabinet as evidence the New Democratic Party government led by Kinew must have a draft of the report.

Klein made the comments a day after he wrote to the provincial government to request that the information be shared promptly, before Winnipeg voters go to the polls on Oct. 28.

A Thursday CBC report said the document is finished, “has been sent to the printer” and submitted to the province but isn’t expected to be publicly released until after the municipal election.

The inquiry’s co-ordinator, however, told the Free Press Thursday the report is still in progress and hasn’t been given to the government.

Kinew, in a radio appearance Friday morning, and via his spokeswoman Amy Tuckett-McGimpsey, said he has yet to see the report.

“The government has not received a copy of the WPS HQ inquiry report and has not had an opportunity to review it yet,” said a statement from Tuckett-McGimpsey.

“Additionally, we respect the election process and will allow the municipal process to unfold independently.”

Gillingham’s spokesman was less diplomatic.

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“Both Premier Kinew and the inquiry itself have confirmed the report has not even been submitted to the provincial government,” said Fast.

“But facts don’t matter to Kevin Klein, he’s interested in manufacturing headlines in a desperate attempt to distract from his floundering campaign.”

Problems related to the headquarters at 245 Smith St. have plagued the city for more than a decade. The building was completed in 2016. First expected to cost $135 million, the price soared to $214 million, including late flood damage and security upgrades.

An external audit found the project had been severely mismanaged. RCMP completed a lengthy investigation into fraud and forgery allegations related to it but no criminal charges were laid.

erik.pindera@winnipegfreepress.mb.ca

Erik Pindera
Reporter

Erik Pindera is a reporter for the Free Press, mostly focusing on crime and justice. The born-and-bred Winnipegger attended Red River College Polytechnic, wrote for the community newspaper in Kenora, Ont. and reported on television and radio in Winnipeg before joining the Free Press in 2020.  Read more about Erik.

Every piece of reporting Erik produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.