VAdm Norman - Supply Ship contract: Legal fight

[The Bread Guy]

Why has the second person not be named? ...

That is a good question - draws the eye a bit, doesn't it?

 

[FSTO]

That is a good question - draws the eye a bit, doesn't it?

Would that be "The Wolf"?

Love the Pulp Fiction reference though!

 

[The Bread Guy]

Would that be "The Wolf"?

Love the Pulp Fiction reference though!

If Harv Keitel was involved in ship acquisition, I think a lot more would have been done a lot more quickly  ;D

 

[Rifleman62]

IMHO if the second person is known but has not been unmasked or charged it would be for a Liberal Party reason, not a security breach or whatever to the nation. Is this person a Liberal MP protecting jobs in their area or Liberal Party connected? VCDS charged but not a connected person may be an interesting legal argument.

Just speculation and curiosity.

 

[Kirkhill]

IMHO if the second person is known but has not been unmasked or charged it would be for a Liberal Party reason, not a security breach or whatever to the nation. Is this person a Liberal MP protecting jobs in their area or Liberal Party connected? VCDS charged but not a connected person may be an interesting legal argument.

Just speculation and curiosity.

I understand the inclination but I think the thought is a bit premature.  Right now all we have is a big black hole that has the potential to suck the story line off its current course.

 

[Colin Parkinson]

Your lack of faith in the Liberal party ethics is disturbing, but well founded.  :Jedi:

 

[Kirkhill]

From John Ivison:

John Ivison: If this is the case against Mark Norman, it’s awfully thin gruel


John Ivison | April 27, 2017 2:50 PM ET

It is not yet clear whether charges will be levelled against one of the country’s top military officers, who RCMP investigators believe broke the law by passing sensitive information to the chief executive of a firm chosen to build a supply ship for the navy.

But, based on the information contained in documents the RCMP filed to obtain a search warrant for Vice-Admiral Mark Norman’s electronic devices, the decision to prosecute would be folly and likely end up in another embarrassment for the Horsemen.

I’m not a lawyer but I have seen this movie before. The RCMP sensibly decided not to lay charges against Nigel Wright, Stephen Harper’s former chief of staff, at the time of the Mike Duffy affair because they decided that criminal intent would be difficult to prove beyond reasonable doubt. Specifically, on a breach of trust charge prompted by Wright’s decision to pay $90,000 of Duffy’s expenses, investigators did not believe that Wright received a personal or “tangible” benefit or that they would be able to prove “mens rea” — intention of wrongdoing.

“The evidence in fact shows that Mr. Wright thought it in the public interest to repay the $90K,” wrote former RCMP superintendent Biage Carrese in a 2014 report, obtained by the Globe and Mail through an access to information request.

The RCMP did pursue Duffy and received a bloody nose from the judge, who cleared the senator of all 31 criminal charges, deeming his transactions “unorthodox” but not criminal.

The Duffy affair is instructive because it suggests that a successful prosecution in the murky world of politics, in the absence of demonstrable bribery or corruption, is an exceptionally hard task.

A review of the documentation now publicly available in the Norman case suggests that not only is there so far no indication he prospered in any personal or tangible way, he had no criminal intent and believed he was acting in the public interest.

His lawyer, Marie Henein, has released a statement that denies the vice-admiral did anything wrong and that he has been caught in a “bureaucratic cross-fire.”

My suggestion is that the cross-fire is entirely political, as Liberal ministers from the Maritimes caved to pressure from New Brunswick’s powerful Irving family, owners of the Halifax shipyard, to delay signing off on a contract that had been investigated thoroughly under the Conservatives.

To recap — the government operated two Auxiliary Oiler Replenishment supply ships between 1960 and 2016, when both were decommissioned earlier than expected. This left the navy without a vessel of its own to resupply warships at sea.

The replacement ships were not scheduled to be in service until 2020, so the Conservatives signed a letter of intent with the Chantier Davie shipyard in Levis, Que., to negotiate an interim AOR ship — a retrofit that would cost around $670 million. As part of the agreement, Davie would be paid $89 million in reimbursed costs, if the contract were not awarded.

On Oct. 7, 2015, the commercial ship, Asterix, arrived at the Levis yard.

On Nov. 20, CBC reporter James Cudmore, now an adviser in the office of defence minister Harjit Sajjan, published an article stating the government had delayed deciding on the deal for at least two months to do more due diligence — a potentially massive blow for the Davie yard but also for Norman’s hopes of the navy getting a supply ship to fill its capability gap.

In the end, the government decided to proceed with the project, faced with the prospect of paying $89 million if it cancelled.

But the inquiry into how word had leaked out was already in train.

The committee meeting at which that decision to delay was made was covered by the rule on “cabinet confidence,” meaning it should not have been made public.

The investigation by RCMP corporal Matthieu Boulanger is detailed in the search warrant application that was made public this week when the documents were unsealed thanks to an application made by Postmedia and other media organizations.

Boulanger says in the documents he does not know who talked to Cudmore but he established a clear link between Norman and Spencer Fraser, CEO of Project Resolve, the firm selected to refit the supply ship at the Davie yard.

Scott Brison, the Treasury Board secretary, told Boulanger in an interview that “it made our jobs more difficult,” adding he could not remember a similar breach of Cabinet confidence. “The rendering of this (classified information) into the public did an awful lot to limit our ability to really do what (the committee) intended to do, and that is more due diligence on this.”

For a parliamentarian with nearly 20 years experience, that seems remarkable. Perhaps he should eat more oily fish. More likely, the Liberals were nervous about favouring a Halifax shipyard over one in Quebec.

It does seem clear from emails received by Fraser that Norman was sharing information with him regarding the government’s concerns around the AOR contract.

Before the Cudmore article was published, Norman was briefed by John Mack, then director-general of procurement services at National Defence, giving him an update of a teleconference in which Mack participated.

Emails received by Fraser appear to suggest Norman contacted him to advise of the potential delay.

The email, which Fraser then circulated to his superiors as coming “from Mark,” stated that “a cynical view could be folks manipulating the new government and trying to kill it (the Davie deal).”

The “folks” referred to are undoubtedly representatives of Davie’s rival, Irving Shipbuilding, whose co-chief executive James D. Irving wrote on Nov. 17, 2015, to Sajjan and procurement minister, Judy Foote, requesting his company’s proposal for a similar vessel be considered by the Liberals.

Boulanger considers the email “from Mark” the smoking gun that justifies charges of breach of trust by a public officer and wrongful communication of information, in violation of the Security of Information Act.

“The content of the email demonstrates that, despite being protected by cabinet confidence, Norman shared information subject to cabinet confidence … with Fraser,” he wrote. The allegation is that Norman tried to influence decision-makers to adopt his preferred outcome.

And that, essentially, is it.

Boulanger states that Norman’s conduct represented “a serious and marked departure from the standards expected of an individual in the official’s position of public trust.”

This may be true. Some of the emails purported to come from Norman, or paraphrased by Fraser to others, make hard reading, not least the request to discredit a maritime security analyst at Dalhousie University, Ken Hansen, who had publicly questioned the need for the Davie supply ship.

But, unless something more damning has been discovered on Norman’s computer, it looks like thin gruel for a criminal case.

Every journalist, lobbyist and politician in Ottawa trades on gossip, some of which leaks out from cabinet meetings.

Even if Norman did pass on sensitive information, did he benefit and was there criminal intent? Apparently not. Did he genuinely believe the navy’s capability to defend Canada would be dramatically diminished without access to a supply ship? It would seem so.

Based on the documentation available, the RCMP has taken a sledgehammer to crack a walnut, ruining the career of Canada’s second-most senior military officer in the process.

After the raid on his home in January he was abruptly removed from his post, without a public explanation.

The damage to Norman’s reputation will never be repaired but he can at least console himself with the thought of punitive damages likely coming his way, courtesy of the Canadian taxpayer.

http://news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/canadian-politics/john-ivison-if-this-is-the-case-against-mark-norman-its-awfully-thin-gruel

That could be an extremely interesting civil case, if it ever came to trial.

 

[daftandbarmy]

More importantly, has anyone prooosed the ''Thursday Toast' yet?

 

[Oldgateboatdriver]

To a bloody war and a sickly season ???  :dunno:

 

[Half Full]

More importantly, has anyone prooosed the ''Thursday Toast' yet?

Although I enjoy the old toasts...VAdm Norman would be the last person I would wish that upon.  He was the ONE and only bright light of the upper echelon here in NDHQ. 

 

[jollyjacktar]

Still irked about the alcohol at sea ban he directed.

 

[FSTO]

Still irked about the alcohol at sea ban he directed.

Moi aussi.
Mainly because the issue is the drinking ashore vice the minimum amount of drinking at sea.

Back to the case at hand.

In this piece by Murray Brewster, it seems that the supporters of Irving and Liberals are coming out to defend their actions. Its going to get ugly now.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/norman-vice-admiral-rcmp-davie-search-1.4087662

 

[Colin Parkinson]

The greater the defense of the Irvings/Liberals use and slander the Admiral, the more likely this will end up in court and may drag into the next election season.

 

[Kirkhill]

Timeline Update - incorporating both previous timelines, current news and the "interim" Icebreaker project.

Jun 2011 RAdm Norman appointed DComd RCN
19 Oct 2011 Irving and Seaspan selected for NSPS
12 Jan 2012 Irving and Seaspan and the Government of Canada sign Agreements in Principle

30 Mar 2012 Government of Nova Scotia fronts Irving 300 MCAD to modernize its yards
3 Apr 2012 Seaspan awarded 5 more Coast Guard MEMTVs and 5 more Coast Guard OPVs
Aug 2012 Irving asserts a suspected security breach in letter to Davie CEO Alan Bowen, ex-Irving employee

19 Oct 2012 Seaspan ground breaking on yard expansion - 170 MCAD of privately raised money
Nov 2012 Inocea buys Chantier Davie
12 Dec 2012 Seaspan and Government of Canada sign Umbrella Agreement

7 Mar 2013 Irving gets 250 MCAD AOPS definition contract
18 Mar 2013 Seaspan get OFSV definition contract
April 2013 Jared Newcombe leaves Irving after 24 years to become COO at Davie

June 2013 VAdm Norman appointed Comd RCN
June 2013 Berlin design selected for JSS
21 Aug 2013 Irving invests 300 MCAD in yard
Sept 2013 Irving sues Newcombe for Breach of Confidence
10 Dec 2013 Irving announces the expenditure of 175 MCAD at yard

Feb 2014 Irving expands statement of claim against Newcombe to include Davie
20 Feb 2014    Protecteur fire
20 Feb 2014 Davie anticipates need for, and develops Project Resolve (per Vicefield in Esprit de Corps)
Q2 2014  Davie makes unsolicited proposal for Polar Icebreaker
29 May 2014 Government of Canada rejects Davie ice-breaker offer

Fall 2014  Government of Canada requests AOR solutions
Oct 2014 Irving submitted a proposal for an AOR to the Government http://www.irvingshipbuilding.com/BlogPage.aspx?id=613&blogid=315
Oct 2014 Davie and Seaspan submit interim AOR proposals
11 Oct 2014      Michael den Tandt reports on sole-sourcing of Sea Sparrow replacement
2014      RCMP called in to investigate leaks
27 Oct 2014 OFSV 01 First Steel Cut
6 Nov 2014 Seaspan ceremony for new yard
22 Dec 2014 PWGSC invited industry to provide AOR solutions

12 Jan 2015 AOR Industry Day held by PWGSC, DND & RCN
12 Jan 2015 "One-on-One" Industry consultations held on interim AOR
16 Jan 2015 "One-on-One" Industry consultations on interim AOR end
23 Jan 2015 Irving gets AOPS Build Contract

14 May 2015  Protecteur  decommissioned
25 May 2015 Irving issues public appeal to have its AOR proposal reconsidered
June 2015    Sole source rules adjusted by Conservative cabinet
24 Jun 2015 Davie AOR Proposal accepted
24 Jun 2015 Seaspan gets OFSV 01 Build Contract and has Keel Laying Ceremony

July 31 2015  Conservatives issue a Letter of Intent to Davie for the procurement of Resolve
July 31 2015 Government of Canada commits to 89 MCAD deposit and a decision by Nov 30 2015
2 Aug 2015  Stephen Harper dissolves Parliament
10 Aug 2015    Davie engages Hepburn to supply RAS engineering for Resolve
Sep 2015  Davie engages L3 MAPPs to supply Integrated Ship Systems
3 Sep 2015 First Steel cut on AOPS 01
Oct 2015  Davie acquires MS Asterix for conversion
Oct 7 2015 MV Asterix arrives at Davie’s Levis yard
Oct 2015    Conservatives approve plan but withhold authorization until after the election

19 Oct 2015  Election
4 Nov 2015  Liberal government sworn in
Nov 2015    Irving petitions the government to have the Resolve project reviewed
18 Nov 2015  Mensereau of Hill and Knowlton allegedly offers to feed media story of Resolve project being delayed
19 Nov 2015  Ministers apparently decide on invoking a 60 day delay on the Resolve project
20 Nov 2015    Defence Minister Sajjan visiting Irving shipyard
20 Nov 2015  James Cudmore breaks the Resolve Pause story
21 Nov 2015  Admiral Norman apparently considers offering his resignation
23 Nov 2015  Shipbuilders Association comes out in support of Irving
25 Nov 2015  Seaspan writes to government to complain about Resolve project
30 Nov 2015  Last day for cancelling Resolve contract without an 89 MCAD penalty
30 Nov 2015    Liberal government approves Resolve contract
04 Dec 2015  2012 OFSV design problem story released by Mr. Cudmore.
Dec 2015  RCMP called in to investigate leaks

12 Jan 2016  Defence Minister Sajjan hires reporter who broke the Resolve story as press secretary
19 Jan 2016  Admiral Norman on the promotions list for 2016
24 Feb 2016 Davie offers unsolicited proposal to lease four existing new Ice Breakers to the Government
10 Mar 2016 Murray Brewster breaks story of Davie's unsolicited proposal
10 Mar 2016 Davie proposal criticized by Seaspan and Irving
11 Mar 2016 Davie proposal criticized by Mayor of Halifax and Premier of Nova Scotia
11 Mar 2016 Government of Canada says it will not entertain the Davie proposal
Apr 2016 Davie CEO and ex-Irving employee Alan Bowen promoted to Global Operations at Inocea of Monaco, Davie's parent
Apr 2016 Davie COO and ex-Irving veteran promoted to CEO at Davie

13 Jun 2016  Government announces “streamlined” CSC programme – Number of ships and budget unknown
5 Aug 2016  Vice Admiral Norman appointed VCDS (Edit per G2G and milnet)

21 Oct 2016  Preserver decommissioned
27 Oct 2016    CSC design competition announced
17 Nov 2016  Government launches official solicitation for lease of “interim” ice-breakers
24 Nov 2016  National Defence Officials Sign Lifetime Gag Order Over Fighter Jets
8 Dec 2016    Government holds Industry Day for “interim” ice-breakers

9 Jan 2017  Admiral Norman’s home raided by RCMP
13 Jan 2017  General Vance signs Admiral Norman’s orders relieving him of duties
16 Jan 2017  Admiral Norman officially relieved of duties
24 Jan 2017  Defence Minister Sajjan informs press the dismissal has nothing to do with National Security
2 Feb 2017 Davie wins Icebreaker St-Laurent refit
22 Feb 2017  Liberal’s hire the reporter who broke the Sea Sparrow story
23 Nov 2017  PWGSC amends “interim” Icebreaking and Towing proposal
23 Feb 2017  Admiral Norman hires Marie Henein as his lawyer
27 Feb 2017  Government deadline for “interim” ice-breakers proposals
27 Feb 2017  Davie/Federal proposal for “interim” ice-breakers submitted (terms as per Project Resolve)
28 Feb 2017  Government awards JSS Design and Production Engineering contract to Seaspan

15 Mar 2017  Murray Brewster publishes story on progress of RCMP leak investigation
27 Mar 2017  James Cudmore promoted to Dir of Policy at DND under Minister Sajjan
5 Apr 2017  Potentially exculpatory articles appear in the press – 15 months and no charges
5 Apr 2017  RCMP discovered to be investigating Admiral Norman for breach of trust
6 Apr 2017  PSPC Minister Judy Foote takes leave of absence for family reasons
15 Apr 2017 Closing date of Davie/Federal Project Resolute offer for interim ice-breakers

22 Apr 2017 Publication ban on search warrant lifted by Ontario Superior Court judge
24 Apr 2017 PM Trudeau and CPC Wernick implicated in action over leaks

Summer 2017 Decision on CSC design projected

Edit: As per info from milnet below.
Edit 2: to add in Admiral Norman's appointments as DComd RCN, Comd RCN as well as VCDS.
Edit 3: to add information on Irving suing ex-Irving employees at Davie

 

[The Bread Guy]

Well done, Chris!  A tidbit to add ...

(...)

5 Aug 2016 Summer 2016  Admiral Norman promoted and appointed VCDS (Edit per G2G)

(...)

 

[Kirkhill]

Seen and adjusted. Thanks.

 

[Kirkhill]

Irving vs Davie - 11 March 2016

Federal government won’t entertain Davie Shipyard bid to build coast guard ships

By Steve Silva
Video Journalist Global News

The federal government confirmed Friday it will not entertain a bid submitted by a Quebec-based shipbuilding company last month to provide ships to the coast guard.

“The government is committed to a National Shipbuilding Strategy which adheres to an established and competitive procurement process. There are currently no requests for proposals for‎ icebreakers and multi-purpose ships for the Coast Guard,” said Judy Foote, minister of public services and procurement, in an emailed statement.

There are and will be other other opportunities for other shipyards under the strategy, she added.

Earlier in the week, The Canadian Press reported that Chantier Davie Shipyard sent a bid to the government offering to build ships.

The proposal has the potential to undercut one pillar of the national shipbuilding strategy, which delegates the construction of civilian ships to Vancouver’s Seaspan shipyard.

The concern in Nova Scotia is that this could threaten Irving Shipbuilding‘s $25 billion contract for combat ships.

“I don’t know much about the detail, but I fully expect work that has already been awarded to the yards to be done in those yards,” said Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil on Thursday.


“I think it’s outrageous for anybody to just throw in on an ad hoc basis unsolicited proposals,” said Halifax Mayor Mike Savage. “This is a big deal, and it came about in the right way. So let’s not make something that was so good be tainted by destroying a process that had so much integrity.”

He said Irving was picked fairly and that the contract should be honoured.

The first ship in the company’s deal is already under construction.

“We take very seriously a shipyard who lost a national competition, coming in and trying to threaten a really sound strategy,” said Kevin McCoy, president of Irving. “We’re not going to let somebody come in at the eleventh hour and say, ‘Well, I can do it better,’ when we know they can’t.”

In an emailed statement sent past broadcast deadline, Alex Vicefield, director of Davie, said the proposal was submitted for new classes of ships outside of the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy (NSPS).

He said there are two offshore multipurpose vessels that are 40 and 70 per cent complete and could be bought for “a very attractive price” because the original buyer went into bankruptcy. There are also small icebreakers, and a polar icebreaker available.

When asked if Davie will go after the aforementioned Irving deal, Vicefield said it was not.

“No. We don’t understand the comments purportedly made by Halifax and Nova Scotia officials,” Vicefield said in a statement. “This has nothing to do with the NSPS or contracts which Irving Shipbuilding are hoping to get in Nova Scotia related to the [Arctic/offshore patrol ship] and surface combatants. Our proposal relates to ships for the Canadian Coast Guard outside of the NSPS packages. It seems someone has been feeding false information to them.”

With files from The Canadian Press

© 2016 Shaw Media

http://globalnews.ca/news/2573440/federal-government-wont-entertain-davie-shipyard-bid-to-build-coast-guard-ships/

 

[Edward Campbell]

One lesson from this, which apparently VAdm Norman did not learn from Prince Charles, is that electronic communications are not, inherently, secure and while, in the case of the Prince of Wales infamous "tampon" remarks, it may be illegal for almost anyone to intercept e.g. telephone call, including mobile phone calls, it is not (generally) illegal to forward or quote from a person's e-mails.

Some of VAdm Norman's remarks, especially about selected and named individuals, were intemperate and will, I am about 99% sure, be used to smear him or, at least, to contain any political damage he might do in a wrongful dismissal suit.

My personal sense, at this stage of the process, is that an inexperienced government overreacted and that there is considerable tension in official Ottawa between the many who are wedded to the notion of process and a few small groups including those (in this (Liberal) government) fascinated with "deliverology" and those very few (including VAdm Norman) interested in tangible, beneficial results. The "process" people are intelligent, organized and united ... the "fews" are anything but.

 

[Kirkhill]

Off-the-books notes between vice-admiral and shipyard boss in 'legal grey zone,'

From the latest Murray Brewster article. 

"Legal grey zone".  Grey: the mixture of black and white.  And every bit of white constitutes "reasonable doubt".

All that grey is probably the reason for no charges after 18 months.

 

[jollyjacktar]

The "process" people are intelligent, organized and united ... the "fews" are anything but.

I think it's these process people that are more the problem.  Their process they defend and enforce is what is broken and makes it so difficult and disheartening to try and get anything procured in a reasonable time frame and manner.  It's unfortunate, in that they are intelligent, organized and united as it makes them hard to change direction or ways, go around or defeat.