Jun 17 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — The telephone call that changed Mohammad Amin’s life came in the summer of 2005, while he was working as a supervisor at a manufacturing plant in Toronto. An Afghan immigrant, he’d lived a quiet, peaceful life and was looking to get married and settle down. But Amin also had skills and expertise that were in […]
Jun 16 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — Conservative senators are throwing in the towel over a planned investigation into the failed prosecution of Vice-Admiral Mark Norman. The deputy chair, Senator Jean-Guy Dagenais, signalled in an email on Sunday that he intends to withdraw his motion and ask instead for a public meeting of the National Security and Defence committee to formally discuss […]
Jun 13 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — Craig Dalton, Canada’s new veterans ombudsman, says he fears his office has lost the trust and respect of some former soldiers and their families. He’s calling for an independent review of his mandate — one that would include the possibility of having him report independently and directly to Parliament, instead of the veterans minister.
Jun 8 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — If one thing became clear during the prime minister’s three-day overseas trip, it is that Justin Trudeau has much to learn from French President Emmanuel Macron and vice versa. As the torch-bearers for liberal, progressive democratic ideals, the two are often on the same page on issues such as gender equality and climate change. Given […]
May 29 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — A federal tender to replace Canada’s fighter jet will be formally issued by mid-July, says Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan. Sajjan told a major defence industry trade show on Wednesday that the government hopes to have bids from aerospace contractors to review by the winter of 2020. The Liberal government had been on track to present […]
May 24 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — The Department of National Defence says it has come up with a plan to allow families of fallen soldiers and veterans access to the Kandahar war memorial at the country’s top military headquarters in the Ottawa area. Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Jonathan Vance issued a long, written apology on Friday and accepted full […]
May 22 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — A number of families who lost loved ones in Afghanistan say they feel betrayed by a decision made by bureaucrats at the Department of National Defence to privately dedicate a memorial last week containing the Kandahar battlefield cenotaph. The marble and granite cenotaph structure, which stood outside of the Canadian task force headquarters throughout the […]
May 20 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — There’s a time-honoured tradition in Ottawa: when things go wrong — horribly wrong — somebody gets thrown under the bus. The collapse of the criminal case against Vice-Admiral Mark Norman saw that custom accelerated at breakneck speed this week as the Liberal government sought to put as much distance as possible between itself and the […]
May 16 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — The Liberal-dominated House of Commons defence committee has blocked a pitch by opposition MPs for a committee probe of the criminal case against Vice-Admiral Mark Norman. The Conservatives and New Democrats wanted to conduct hearings to determine how the case against the military’s former second-in-command collapsed, and what led to him being charged with breach […]
May 14 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — The House of Commons voted unanimously today to apologize to Vice-Admiral Mark Norman for his legal ordeal, just days before opposition MPs are expected to push for a full-blown House of Commons committee investigation into the handling of the controversial criminal case. Conservative MP Lisa Raitt proposed the motion, which saw the Commons recognize Norman […]
May 13 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — Vice-Admiral Mark Norman not only had the blessing of the former Conservative cabinet to deal with a Quebec shipyard, he was authorized to speak with it directly in the run-up to the signing of a $668 million leasing contract, CBC News has learned. The revelation raises further questions about the handling of the RCMP’s investigation […]
May 9 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — Three former federal cabinet ministers have confirmed they spoke to Vice-Admiral Mark Norman’s defence team about information that may have been key to the Crown’s decision to halt the criminal prosecution of the military’s former second-command. Peter MacKay, who held the justice and defence portfolios, Erin O’Toole, the former veterans affairs minister, and Jason Kenney, […]
May 8 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — The Crown’s case against Vice-Admiral Mark Norman unexpectedly began to collapse in March partly under the weight information from several former Conservative cabinet ministers and staffers, CBC News has learned. They were key players in the previous government’s $668 million deal to have the Davie Shipyard, in Levis, Que., convert and lease a supply ship […]
May 6 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — The Trump administration fired two warning shots last year over the Liberal government’s long-delayed plan to replace Canada’s CF-18 fighters, saying the procurement process discriminates against the Lockheed-Martin-built F-35 stealth jet, according to a new academic report. The study by a researcher at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute (MLI) cites leaked Pentagon letters written last summer and […]
May 3 2019 — Murray Brewster — CBC — Border Security Minister Bill Blair says he never saw an appeal for help from a disabled soon-to-be-former air force officer who is now challenging him in the upcoming federal election. An email sent by Capt. Kimberly Fawcett went to a spam folder, was deleted and was only retrieved by his staff on Thursday, Blair said. […]