Poilievre calls for changes to public alert system after missing Calgary boy found dead

Conservative Party of Canada leader Pierre Poilievre speaks during a news conference at the National Press Theatre in Ottawa, Canada on June 25, 2026. Photo by Blair Gable/Postmedia

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OTTAWA — Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is calling for faster public alerts when children with special needs go missing, after an 11-year-old Calgary boy with autism was found dead following a two-week search.

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Poilievre and Conservative MP Mike Lake said in a letter to federal Emergency Management Minister Eleanor Olszewski that the search for Parker Wells may have had a happier ending if the public had been notified about his disappearance sooner.

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“Parker’s death has … exposed a serious gap in how Canada responds when vulnerable children go missing,” wrote Poilievre and Lake.

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Parker, who was autistic and non-speaking, wandered off the grounds of a specialized day home shortly before noon on July 16. Because his disappearance was not a suspected abduction, an Amber Alert only went out when authorities issued a special exemption two days later.

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A 13-day search for Parker ended tragically on Wednesday, when his remains were found inside a drainage pipe just a few kilometres away.

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“The danger existed from the moment Parker went missing. The alert system should have been able to respond from that moment,” reads the letter.

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The letter urges Olszewski to spearhead the creation of a Canada-wide framework for timely alerts when special needs or otherwise vulnerable children go missing, regardless of whether abduction or foul play is suspected.

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It also calls for better first-responder and search protocols for missing autistic and intellectually disabled children, and for greater police powers to issue timely alerts when a vulnerable child’s life may be at risk.

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Wandering is a common behaviour among children with autism and has been known to lead to traffic incidents and drownings.

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Some advocates have called for a special “Indigo Alert” system for vulnerable children who go missing after wandering off or being separated from their caregivers.

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Poilievre says the issue is personal to him as the father of a seven-year-old daughter, Valentina, who has autism and is mostly non-speaking.

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Lake, whose 30-year-old son Jaden lives with autism, told National Post that he’s had a few close calls over the years.

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“(Jaden’s) always had very visual memory. He could decided that he needs to go somewhere and, in his mind, he knows where it is,” said Lake.

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Lake said he still vividly remembers when a teenaged Jaden wandered off during a family vacation.

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“It took about 15 minutes to locate him, but in that 15 minutes there was a panic that set in,” said Lake.

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Lake said he spoke briefly with Olszewski on Thursday and that the two will be meeting again next week.

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Olszewski said in a statement that she appreciated Poilievre and Lake raising the issue and looked forward to the meeting with Lake.