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The annual convention of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada kicks off Monday with Harper making surprise appearance. Prime Minister Stephen Harper paid a surprise visit to a major gathering of miners in Toronto Monday, pledging his ongoing support to the struggling mining industry.
Harper is the first sitting prime minister to attend the 82-year-old conference, a major networking event hosting nearly 30,000 people in the global mining industry through Wednesday at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.
About 60 journalists from around the world were invited to the question-and-answer format session between Harper and incoming PDAC president Rod Thomas before 400 convention delegates.
Neither the audience nor media – whose bags and equipment were checked thoroughly before entry to the conference hall by a sniffer dog — were allowed to ask questions.