Cautious optimism is the only way to describe last week’s federal government announcement of two new Canadian Navy Joint Support Ships (JSS), and possibly a third one, at a cost of $2.6 billion.
By rights, the Peter Kiewit Offshore facilities in Marystown should be constructing those ships now. The company was the reported lead bidder of two shipyard last year, when the then $3.1 billion contract for three JSS ships was cancelled.
The federal government is looking for praise from the Armed Forces and the general public, on what a bold move it’s making to re-equip the navy. But when the contract has been delayed over and over again – these ships were originally scheduled to be in service in 2012 and now only two could be optional by 2017.
It’s a project that began in 2002. This new announcement means another two year design process, before any construction contract is actually awarded.
So ‘whoop de do’!
It’s hard not to be cynical with the federal Conservative government. It and the provincial PC government here in Newfoundland and Labrador are very good at re-announcing projects on two or three occasions to get ‘political mileage’ out of the electorate.
How can anyone have faith in a government that has bundled a much needed construction program for the Canadian Navy for almost a decade? A government commissioned report indicates Canadian vessels have reached or are nearing the end of their career lives, and Coast Guard vessels should be tied up because they’re essentially ‘rust buckets’.
The Canadian Navy is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. They need more to celebrate than the fact it has to learn to live within budgets, and reduced manpower meaning ships should in all reality be tied up.
A Navy officer overseeing vessel deployment tried to do just that this spring, only to be overruled by an embarrassed Defence Minister Peter MacKay and the federal government.
It’s a given the Army needed stepped up funding and equipment to fight the Taliban in Afghanistan over the last five years. Now, the other branches of the Armed Forces are in need of equipment – a new $9 billion fighter plane was announced for the Air Force last week as well.
However, with a government reportedly $50 billion in deficit because of the recession expenditures over two years, and a five year plan to try and return to a zero deficit status, any announcements of big construction expenditures have to be taken with a grain of salt and tempered for their own worth.
‘Hope for the best, but expect the worst’ just about sums up these announcements from a minority government looking to garner majority status from a skeptical electorate.
George Macvicar
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