MPs doubt procurement department claim there are no documents on troubled $2.2-billion aircraft purchase

Sur le même sujet

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  20 décembre 2019 | Local, Naval

  Quebec shipyard selected to be new partner under shipbuilding program - will construct six icebreakers

  DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN The Canadian government announced today that Chantier Davie has been pre-qualified to become the third strategic partner under the National Shipbuilding Strategy. The NSS's third yard will build six program icebreakers for the Canadian Coast Guard. Davie has demonstrated it meets initial requirements related to experience, capability and capacity, as defined in the Invitation to Qualify issued on August 2, the federal government noted. The NSS is to build ships for the coast guard and Royal Canadian Navy. Davie operates the largest shipyard in Canada. Chantier Davie will now move to the next stage in the selection process, the Request for Proposal and evaluation stage, according to Public Services and Procurement Canada. This will include a third-party assessment of the shipyard's infrastructure, submission of a formal proposal, and a due diligence process to ensure the shipyard is financially capable of performing the work and making any necessary upgrades to its infrastructure. This assessment is similar to the process previously undertaken in 2011 to select Irving Shipbuilding Inc. and Seaspan Shipyards as strategic partners under the NSS. Once the phase is completed, Canadian government will begin negotiations for an umbrella agreement with Davie, which is expected to be put in place in late 2020. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/quebec-shipyard-selected-to-be-new-partner-under-shipbuilding-program-will-construct-six-icebreakers

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  4 mai 2020 | Local, Terrestre

  Liberals set to break promise to buy back ‘all’ assault weapons in Canada

  The Liberal government is walking back an election promise to buy back “all" military-style assault rifles in Canada, opting instead to allow current owners to sell their weapons to the government or to keep them under a grandfathering process, federal officials say. The measure is set to anger both sides of the gun-control debate, who are already polarized over the looming ban of a number of semi-automatic weapons. The partial buyback program is the latest example of the Liberal Party of Canada promising strict gun-control measures during an election and then backing off in government. Under grandfathering, new weapons sales will be stopped, but current owners will be allowed to keep their banned weapons at home under certain conditions. The broad details of the buyback program were provided by federal officials, whom The Globe and Mail is not identifying because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. Alison de Groot, of the Canadian Sporting Arms and Ammunition Association, said a partial buyback program is “bad public policy” and doesn't make sense. “It is totally ineffective and a waste of taxpayer dollars,” she said. “Canadians will not be safer.” Nathalie Provost, who was hit by four bullets during the 1989 École Polytechnique massacre in which 14 women died, said a partial buyback is another disappointment in her 30-year battle for gun control. She said she understands the logistical difficulties of a full buyback, but blamed the situation on a series of failures by successive governments to enact strong gun-control measures. She was particularly critical of the elimination in 2012 of much of the federal long-gun registry under the previous Harper government. “I'm so angry, you can't imagine,” said Ms. Provost, who is part of a gun-control group called Poly Remembers. As previously reported by The Globe, the federal government is implementing its election promise to ban military-style assault rifles in Canada. Federal officials said the government has adopted a list of nine weapons to be prohibited in Canada, including firearms such as the AR-15, the Ruger Mini-14 and the Beretta CX4 Storm that have been used in mass shootings, in Canada or abroad Provisional list of recommended prohibited firearms Estimated numbers in Canada M16, M4, AR-10, AR-15 Sandy Hook, New Zealand, Las Vegas, Orlando Mini-14 Polytechnique 83,570 16,860 M14 Moncton Swiss Arms Classic Green 5,230 1,340 Vz58 Quebec Mosque CZ Scorpion EVO 3 11,590 1,810 Beretta CX4 Storm Dawson College SIG MCX and SIG MPX 1,510 1,000 Robinson XCR Guns above 20 mm calibre 1,830 30 Guns with muzzle energy above 10,000 joules 600 MURAT YÜKSELIR / THE GLOBE AND MAIL, SOURCE: GOVERNMENT OF CANADA The ban, which has been made through a cabinet decision, is set to be announced and take effect shortly. The government expects that banning the nine platforms and their variants will scoop up close to 1,500 different models in the country, totalling tens of thousands of individual firearms. In addition to the nine platforms, prohibitions are expected to be placed on guns with a muzzle energy exceeding 10,000 joules, which would snare .50-calibre sniper rifles, and those with calibres in excess of 20 millimetres, a rare grade of firearm that includes some grenade launchers. “Those are the only two prohibitions that make sense,” said A.J. Somerset, author of Arms: The Culture and Credo of the Gun and a former gunnery instructor with the Canadian Forces. “They seek to ban things around specifications. Going after individual models perpetuates the same failed approach." Mr. Somerset said that prohibiting specific models resembles a push in the 1990s to crack down on semi-automatic assault-style rifles under then-prime minister Jean Chrétien. Rather than passing comprehensive legislation, the government of the day sought to stamp out “military-style assault weapons” by identifying gun models through order-in-council. According to RCMP briefing notes, the orders-in-council were intended to be updated continually as new guns arrived on the Canadian market. For the most part, that never happened and gun manufacturers easily switched production to firearm models that circumvented the regulations. “As soon as they prohibit one model, other models will become popular – it's whack-a-mole,” said Alan Voth, a gun forensics consultant and retired RCMP firearms analyst. Mr. Voth said the 1990s prohibitions made Canada's classification system so convoluted that regional RCMP forensics labs would often disagree with one another over how certain firearm models should be classified. The government eventually centralized classification duties in Ottawa, in part to overcome regional discrepancies. Unlike the coming ban on specific assault-style weapons, the buyback program, and further gun-control measures being prepared by Ottawa, will need to be enacted through new legislation and are only scheduled to take effect next year. It remains unclear how much the buyback program will cost, but Ms. de Groot said the Liberals “grossly underestimated” the cost when they provided a $250-million price tag during the election. In a statement, Conservative MP Pierre Paul-Hus accused the government of using the “immediate emotion” of a recent mass shooting in Nova Scotia to “make major policy changes” such as the ban on assault weapons. The NDP and the Bloc Québécois both said they support a ban of assault weapons. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau defended the timing of the ban on Thursday, explaining his government was nearly ready to introduce the gun-control measures when Parliament suspended its regular activities in March because of the COVID-19 pandemic. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-liberals-set-to-break-promise-to-buy-back-all-assault-weapons-in/

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  14 avril 2020 | Local, Terrestre

  ANALYSIS: Cloud lifted from GDLS Saudi deal, but future business uncertain: analyst

  Canada's $14-billion deal to sell armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia is going ahead and will keep a London defence giant rolling, but some say questions remain about future business between General Dynamics Land Systems Canada (GDLS) and the desert kingdom. NORMAN DE BONO Canada's $14-billion deal to sell armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia is going ahead and will keep a London defence giant rolling, but some say questions remain about future business between General Dynamics Land Systems Canada (GDLS) and the desert kingdom. The federal government said it's lifting a moratorium on new permits for military exports to Saudi Arabia, a critical step for London since GDLS, with about 2,000 employees in London, has a nearly 40-year relationship supplying armoured vehicles to the Saudis. But Ottawa also said it's appointing an advisory panel of experts to review Canada's arms export process and to push for an international inspection for arms sales. That could threaten future business, warned analyst David Perry, vice-president of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute. The Canadian-Saudi deal, with GDLS at the centre, negotiated by the former Conservative government and inherited by the Liberal successor, had come under sharp attack, with some critics calling for it to be scrapped, amid concerns about Saudi Arabia's poor human rights record. “If I was a worker I would be tremendously relieved and happy they made the decision,” Perry said of the federal government. He stressed reviews of the contract determined there was no indication GDLS vehicles were involved in human rights violations. “This went back and forth for a few years, and the government reviewed and threatened to cancel this contract outright. I think there has been irreparable harm. If you're another country open to exports, they may be thinking twice about doing business with Canada,” said Perry. “They (Saudi Arabians) have options when it comes to sourcing. I think they may be thinking in the future about where they source (their military equipment).” Lifting the cloud from the Saudi deal comes at a critical time on the London business landscape, with the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic and the lockdowns that have brought new uncertainty for many employers. In clearing the air on the deal, the federal government also revealed it would have been on the hook for up to $14 billion if it had cancelled the contract to sell light armoured vehicles to the Saudis, a deal that dates to 2014. The review panel, however, poses a level of uncertainty in future business dealings, Perry noted. “A new export panel will offer another layer of review. I don't know how to interpret that. It depends on who is appointed to that panel,” he said. In 2018, after news broke that the Saudi government had ordered the murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the Trudeau Liberals announced a review of all Canada's existing arms sales to Saudi Arabia. Ottawa also slapped a moratorium on new export permits for shipments of military goods to Riyadh. Existing military contracts, such as the GDLS deal, were not affected by the moratorium. But in 2018 Prime Minister Justin Trudeau publicly talked about trying to find a way to end shipments of armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia. Thursday, Foreign Affairs Minister François-Philippe Champagne and Finance Minister Bill Morneau said the suspension of approval of new Saudi permits is now lifted. They cited a government review last September that found no credible evidence linking Canadian exports of military or other controlled goods to Saudi human rights violations. But the moratorium on trade with the Saudis has already affected the Canadian defence sector to the tune of about $2 billion, according to a memo sent to the foreign affairs minister from two top foreign affairs and international trade officials. “(Twenty) companies that have a history of exporting to KSA (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) suggest that approximately $2 billion in trade has been affected since August 2018. A number of Canadian exporters to KSA have suspended their business development operations . . . The open-ended nature of Canada's moratorium on new export permits, and the lack of identified conditions that would allow a resumption of permit issuance, present a high commercial risk for Canadian companies,” the memo says. Perry, who shared the memo with The Free Press, said he has heard similar concerns from the Canadian defence sector. “I have spoken to businesses that have lost business opportunities” from the moratorium on arms trade with Saudis. “This is welcome news,” he added of the lifting of restrictions, “but the government has introduced uncertainty into Canadian defence industry and exports.” Political scientist Erika Simpson at Western University also questioned the role of the panel, saying there are few details about its authority and adding that only Global Affairs has the authority to impact trade agreements. She also questioned why the contract appears to have been reduced by $1 billion in value. When the Conservatives announced it in 2014, it was worth $15 billion. Ottawa now says it is a $14-billion contract. “I think $1 billion is a lot of money. What happened to $1 billion?” asked Simpson, an associate professor of international politics. “This is good news, but I want to know where the $1 billion went.” GDLS Canada declined comment Friday. Perry also questioned the timing of the announcement. With more than three million Canadians expected to be left unemployed due to the COVID-19 crisis, Ottawa could not jeopardize thousands of jobs across Canada, he said. “As important as this is in Southwestern Ontario, it is not just Southwestern Ontario,” he said. London Liberal MP Peter Fragiskatos downplayed down the idea the review panel could dampen further GDLS business. “I don't think so. This government is behind this contract, this workforce, 100 per cent. On the contrary, I would say a review is a good thing. It will bring greater transparency to the arms program. I welcome it,” the London North Centre MP said. He also stressed the Saudi deal is only about half complete, meaning about six more years of work may remain before there needs to be a discussion about future contracts. “I am pleased to say the least. It was in the making for some time, but it is a very good result not just for the company and its workers, but for the city,” said Fragiskatos. It's too soon to draw conclusions about the future of work by GDLS for the Saudis, since that depends largely on who is at the table negotiating future deals, said Bill Pettipas, former president of GM Defence, which General Dynamics bought and renamed. Pettipas bargained several arms contracts with foreign powers, including a multi-billion dollar deal with the U.S. army to supply it with Stryker armoured vehicles. “It depends on individuals, on relationships. It will get resolved. It will normalize eventually. That relationship has been going on since the early 1980s,” said Pettipas. “Time takes care of things.” Officials with Unifor Local 27, the union for many GDLS workers in London, couldn't be reached for comment Friday. Unifor's national office declined comment. https://lfpress.com/news/local-news/analysis-cloud-lifted-from-gdls-saudi-deal-but-future-business-uncertain-analyst