May 19, 2023 | Local, Other Defence
Today's letters: Canada's defence procurement carries needless risks
Friday, May 19: When it comes to military spending, maybe wiser, more affordable options are available, a reader says.
Feds award over $1 billion in contracts to shipyards to repair aging frigates
*The headline has been updated to clarify that a contract has not yet been awarded to Irving Shipbuilding.
Shipyards in Quebec and B.C. have won contracts collectively worth $1 billion to repair aging warships, with another contract for a Nova Scotia facility to be completed shortly, the federal government announced today.
It's part of the government's promised $7.5 billion investment in maintaining 12 Halifax-class frigates for the Royal Canadian Navy until they are retired in the early 2040s.
The five-year, $500-million contracts for Quebec's Chantier Davie and Seaspan Victoria Shipyards Limited were officially announced during concurrent ceremonies at the facilities, both of which featured ministers from the area.
Public Services and Procurement Minister Carla Qualthrough, who represents a Vancouver-area riding, made the announcement at Seaspan's facility in Victoria (the Liberals hold no seats in the region). Families, Children and Social Development Minister Jean-Yves Duclos made the announcement at Davie's plant in Lévis, Que. He represents a riding across the St. Lawrence River in Quebec City.
“This vital, long-term work demonstrates the government's continued commitment to supporting the women and men of the Royal Canadian Navy by providing them with the equipment they need to protect Canadian interests at home and abroad,” Qualthrough said in a statement.
A similar deal with Irving Shipbuilding in Halifax is also in the works, according to Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC).
The contracts guarantee at least three frigates to repair for each facility, with work expected to begin in 2020.
In a statement, Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said the shipbuilding announcement was nothing but “cynical electioneering.”
“There are less than 100 days to the next election, and the Trudeau government is once again campaigning on the taxpayers' dime, trying to buy people's votes with their own money,” reads his statement.
“While it is good to see shipbuilding work go to Davie, today's announcement is nothing but cynical electioneering from a government that will do anything and say anything to cling to power.”
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Yesterday, approximately 70 Canadian Armed Forces members deployed to Jamaica. At the request of the Jamaican government, they will provide training to military personnel from Caribbean Community (CARICOM) nations who are set to deploy to Haiti as part of the United Nations-authorized, Kenyan-led, Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission.