Bob Mackin
The Liberal Public Safety Minister told a committee studying a controversial federal loan to BC Ferries on Feb. 25 that his department did not conduct a national security review of the deal to buy four ferries from a Chinese state-owned shipyard.
“While Public Safety Canada does have authority to conduct security reviews of foreign direct investments under the Investment Canada Act, it does not review procurement decisions at the provincial level, such as this one,” Gary Anandasangaree told the House of Commons Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities.
“Therefore, we would not have had the authority to conduct a national security review. In this case, only after outreach from Transport Canada did Public Safety officials engage with BC Ferries. BC Ferries already made their procurement decision.”
Gary Anandasangaree. (ParlVu)
BC Ferries secrecy
The taxpayer-owned company announced the contract with China Merchants Industry Weihai Shipyards (CMI) on June 10. Unions and opposition Conservatives demanded the deal — backed by a $1 billion loan from the federal Liberal government — be scrapped due to national security concerns. Under freedom of information, BC Ferries refused to disclose to theBreaker.news the project budget, names of the shortlisted companies, the justification for CMI and the contract with CMI.
Security risks
Committee vice-chair Dan Albas (Conservative-Okanagan Lake West-South Kelowna) called the lack of security review “unfathomable.”
Albas quoted from an unclassified Transport Canada document that warned that the vessels built in China will have access to Canadian waterways and could use scanning and mapping technology to gather information about critical underwater infrastructure, including data cables.
Anandasangaree reiterated that it was B.C.’s “prerogative to undertake procurement according to their laws, according to their rules.” But vessels still need to be in line with Canadian standards.
Gunn shots
MP Dan Albas (ParlVu)
Another Conservative MP from B.C., Aaron Gunn (North Island-Powell River), forced Anandasangaree to admit he would have preferred made in Canada ferries, but he did not directly answer when asked if he regretted federal subsidies for a Chinese shipyard.
“The funding did go from the Canada Infrastructure Bank. However, the decision itself is on the Government of British Columbia,” Anandasangaree said.
Gunn also challenged him to agree or disagree that Xi Jinping is a dictator.
“What I would suggest is that we can go around the world and put tags on individual leaders,” Anandasangaree. “That is not that what I’m here to do.”
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