Protesters surround car, smash glass following Tim Houston speech

Protesters surround Tim Houston's car, smash glass after speech

Premier Tim Houston was at Acadia University to speak to the Annapolis Valley Chamber of Commerce

Tim Houston's vehicle surrounded by protesters

What was supposed to be the start of Premier Tim Houston's speaking tour to chambers of commerce across Nova Scotia ended up with him requiring a police escort.

Houston was in Wolfville, N.S., on Wednesday where he was addressing the Annapolis Valley Chamber of Commerce at Acadia University about his vision for the province's economy.

When Houston first arrived at the university, about 50 peaceful protesters were standing outside, mostly looking to draw attention to concerns about the potential closures of libraries in the Annapolis Valley.

However, throughout Houston's speech, the crowd outside grew louder with an increasing number of people protesting about a variety of issues.

When Houston left the building, the vehicle he got into was surrounded.

At one point, people climbed on top of it, halting the vehicle. Houston remained inside for several minutes until police ultimately escorted him out of the car and back into the building. Protesters also smashed the windshield.

Houston left the campus in a marked RCMP vehicle.

A number of police cars responded to the incident at the campus, but had left the scene around 2:30 p.m. AT. The crowd was no longer at the campus.

The event Houston was scheduled to attend after the chamber of commerce event went ahead without him.

The second stop on his chamber of commerce tour is scheduled for Thursday in Yarmouth, N.S.

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Michael Gorman covers the Nova Scotia legislature for CBC, with additional focuses on health care and rural communities. Contact him with story ideas at michael.gorman@cbc.ca