Journey to the center of the mirth

May 30, 2024

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By Nick Taylor-Vaisey

Presented by MOWI

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Thanks for reading Ottawa Playbook. Let's get into it.

In today's edition:

→ A military who's who strutted around an airport-adjacent convention center.

→ First in Playbook: A pandemic vaccine contract inked with AstraZeneca.

→ Our latest evidence that Canada's access-to-information system is borked.

DRIVING THE DAY

STALL-A-PALOOZA — It kinda felt like Folkfest down at the EY Centre. Long lines, food trucks, outdoor porta potties, even a folk singer strumming away at lunchtime.

Until you saw the tanks, drones, guns, next-level swag, golf shirts and power suits, and endless firm handshakes. All the tools to fight a world of wars.

Welcome to CANSEC 2024, where high-priced booths outdo each other for the flashiest military toys, meeting spaces and plushest temporary carpeting (a godsend for company reps standing for hours at a time — the more luxurious, the better for their feet).

The protesters who gathered Wednesday morning use different words to describe all the drones, tanks, armored vehicles, warships, airplanes and various gadgets for sale.

Outside, police protected a perimeter. Inside, delegates discussed deals.

— Biggest delegations: Nobody sent more delegates than the Ukrainians, who outnumbered even the American presence on the show floor. The third-largest group came from Czechia, followed by Italy and Germany. Fifteen NATO members sent contingents.

An Israeli delegation also circulated.

— Give the people what they want: General Dynamics hired the veteran-owned Arrowhead Coffee Company to serve up espresso. The kiosk lured a steady stream of caffeine-hunters who, as they waited for their hit, took a long look at the company's wares.

— Why we're all here: Deals don't typically get done at trade shows, says STEVE PATRICK, vice president of Bombardier Defense.

The "drawn-out" world of government procurement works too slowly for overnight deals, Patrick tells Playbook. But trade shows are useful places to make announcements and gather together "key stakeholders" who aren't often in the same space.

Patrick tells Playbook the company flies its flag at CANSEC in part to lure customers.

Bombardier is pushing the Global 6500 business jet that recently lost out to Boeing for the chance to build a "multi-mission" aircraft for the Canadian military. The company hopes to have better luck with a bid for an airborne early warning airplane contract.

→ New vocab: Patrick described the array of top-tier exhibitors as "competimates" — rivals for some billion-dollar contracts, collaborators on others.

— Speaking of which: Boeing showed off a trailer tricked out as a mock-up of the E-7 aircraft that could also be in the running for the AEW job. (Full disclosure: Playbook took a turn behind the yoke.)

— Journey to the center of the mirth: The continent's biggest gathering of this kind constantly risks collapsing into a logistical nightmare.

More than 12,000 registrants cram into the space over two days. The convention center is reachable only via small roads. Traffic jams on all sides are a guarantee. It's easier for out-of-towners who fly in and hop on a shuttle.

→ Shuttle buses: Ah. the workhorses of a day-long effort to get delegates to CANSEC. They temporarily stopped running as protests forced road closures.

— Next up: Public Services and Procurement Minister JEAN-YVES DUCLOS delivers a Thursday morning keynote. Lt.-Gen. FRANCES ALLEN, the vice chief of the defense staff, takes the stage at the lunch hour.

The Royal Canadian Air Force will make an 11 a.m. announcement alongside MDA Space and Telesat.

— Top tip for Day 2: Pack a lunch. The midday food truck lines are long.

A message from MOWI:

MOWI and the coastal safe salmon farming sector drive economic and job growth across Canada and in First Nations communities, while honouring their commitments to responsible, sustainable, environmental stewardship. Currently, government is considering the terms of licences salmon farmers need to continue operations. Any further uncertainty in the sector will mean more declines in production, job losses, and less interest from global investors. We need certainty. That means a minimum of a 6-year licence.

For your radar

A health worker prepares a dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine from a vial.

A health worker prepares a dose of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine. | Sakchai Lalit/AP Photo

VACCINE CONTRACT — In the middle of the global race for Covid vaccines, the federal government appears to have agreed to allow AstraZeneca to vet all public announcements related to one of its contracts.

The tiny clause on "publicity" was tucked into a redacted draft version of an advance purchase agreement for up to 1.9 million AZ shots delivered through the Covax facility, a mechanism that facilitated global access to the shots.

Playbook obtained the document via an access-to-information request.

Public Services and Procurement Canada didn't respond to our questions before we sent this edition — we asked a week ago — but we'll publish their response in a future Playbook.

— AZ does it: Ottawa inked three separate deals with AstraZeneca. ANITA ANAND, then the procurement minister, secured 20 million doses directly from the company — and another 2 million via the Serum Institute of India.

Critics called Canada a vaccine hoarder, in part for drawing from the Covax supply — even if those deliveries were perfectly legit to claim for Canadian arms.

— Tick tock goes the clock: AstraZeneca required full payment in advance of delivery for the Covax doses. Canada was required to send the funds by wire transfer, in U.S. dollars, within five days of receipt of an invoice.

— Transparency check: Intense opposition pressure forced the Liberals to disclose redacted versions of eight vaccine contracts — with Sanofi, Medicago, AstraZeneca, Moderna, Pfizer, Novavax, Janssen and Gavi/Covax — to the House health committee in 2021.

NDP MP DON DAVIES posted the docs online. The Liberals took heat at the time for all the redactions. They didn't, for example, reveal the cost per dose.

The AZ agreement obtained by POLITICO was not included in those disclosures. But black ink hides most of the same details.

— Still redacted: The overall bill and the cost per dose.

— Also blacked out: Penalties for late payment; the timing and terms of delivery; clauses related to "product recall" and "defective product;" some of the intellectual property rights provisions; and everything in articles 12 and 13, even the titles of which are unseeable.

MEANWHILE, IN GENEVA — POLITICO's RORY O'NEILL is following global efforts to finalize a deal to protect the world from future pandemics — which could ensure greater contract transparency.

O'Neill reports for us: "Negotiators were unable to reach a deal in time for the World Health Organization's annual assembly this week but they will likely be given more time. One thing countries did agree on — in Article 13 of a draft text — was to endeavor to publish the terms of future pandemic contracts as soon as possible.

"The fate of the talks now hinges largely on intellectual property protection and guaranteed access to drugs and vaccines for developing countries."

Where the leaders are

— Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU is in Toronto to make a biomanufacturing announcement. Joining the PM: Premier DOUG FORD, Mayor OLIVIA CHOW and Mental Health and Addictions Minister YA'ARA SAKS.

— Deputy PM CHRYSTIA FREELAND is in Halifax. At 10 a.m. local time, she'll meet with students and researchers and tour an advanced incubator space. Freeland will also make an announcement and hold a media availability.

— Conservative Leader PIERRE POILIEVRE headlines a 6:30 p.m. fundraiser at Venu Event Space in Vaughan, Ont. FWIW, the second-floor ballroom fits 1,400.

— NDP Leader JAGMEET SINGH and NDP MP BONITA ZARRILLO will be joined by the Canadian Union of Public Employees reps for a 9:45 a.m. press conference. They'll call on the Liberal government to "end unpaid work for flight attendants and airline staff."

— Green Leader ELIZABETH MAY plans to ask a question during QP.

DULY NOTED

Francois-Philippe Champagne speaks during a press conference.

François-Philippe Champagne is on the road today. | Mindaugas Kulbis/AP

— Industry Minister FRANÇOIS-PHILIPPE CHAMPAGNE will be in Madrid for the 2024 Bilderberg meeting and meet with his Spanish counterpart, JORDI HEREU.

— Canada 2020 hosts the 2024 Economic Reconciliation Summit at the Westin Hotel. Among the speakers: AFN National Chief CINDY WOODHOUSE NEPINAK, Métis National Council President CASSIDY CARON, Chief SHARLEEN GALE, Chief CRYSTAL SMITH and Chief DYLAN WHITEDUCK. Also on the docket: Ministers DAN VANDAL, PATTY HAJDU and MAY NG.

PAPER TRAIL

GROUND TO A HALT — Your Playbook host casually checked in on an access-to-information request that dates back nearly six years.

— Department: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

— Status of request: Unclear.

— Official line: An auto-reply IRCC has been sending since May 1, 2023.

"The ATIP division is receiving a large volume of ATIP requests. As such, if your inquiry is related to the status of your request, you will not receive a reply. Please note, it is not necessary to send multiple inquiries, as it does not speed up the processing of your request. Your patience is highly appreciated while the responsible team processes your request."

→ Playbook translation: Curious about years of delay in our efforts to dig up those pesky documents? Don't bother asking.

— Worth noting: The Liberal government unveiled a new plan Wednesday to improve the access-to-information system.

The Canadian Press reported the effort focuses less on structural changes and more "on administrative changes aimed at making the processing of requests more efficient and timely."

MEDIA ROOM

— JOHN PAUL TASKER of CBC News reports this morning that Canadian emigration to the U.S. has hit a 10-year high.

— Ottawa terminated its housing accelerator deal with Oakville, iPolitics reported. The government has "initiated the process" to claw back C$1.2 million already sent to the town.

— Research Co's MARIO CANSECO writes about DONALD TRUMP's popularity in Canada for Glacier Media. An eye-popping finding: 27 percent of Canadians — and 36 percent aged 18-34 — believe Trump won the 2020 election.

— NAVNEET ALANG argues in The Walrus that the real threat with artificial intelligence is falling prey to the hype.

— Just how right-wing are Europe’s younger voters? POLITICO’s HANNAH COKELAERE pores over the data. The FT also has a big read on why far-right parties are winning over younger voters.

PLAYBOOKERS

Birthdays: HBD to HALLIE STACEY-SULLIVAN, the PMO's deputy director of issues management and parliamentary affairs. Former Alberta premier JASON KENNEY also celebrates.

Send birthdays to ottawaplaybook@politico.com.

Spotted: LILIAN WILSON, the one-millionth recorded visitor to the Diefenbunker in Carp.

Movers and shakers: PAUL GENEST has been named chair of the National Gallery of Canada board of trustees.

ALEJANDRO ADEM has been reappointed as president of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada for a five-year term.

Media mentions: CTV’s “Power Play” with VASSY KAPELOS was named best political news program at the 2024 Canadian Screen Awards.

Other winners: BARTLEY KIVES (best local reporter), JORGE BARRERA (best national reporter), ADRIENNE ARSENAULT (best news anchor), CTV National News with OMAR SACHEDINA (best national newscast), “APTN Investigates” (best news or information series); PAUL WORKMAN received the Gordon Sinclair Award for Broadcast Journalism.

— Globe and Mail health columnist CARLY WEEKS will be VP of communications, public affairs and stakeholder relations at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton.

A message from MOWI:

PROZONE

Don’t miss our latest policy newsletter for Pro subscribers via KYLE DUGGAN and ZI-ANN LUM: Shelling out at shellfest

In other headlines for Pros:

— US crafts G7 cyber pact to secure energy sector

— Rich countries hit totemic $100B climate finance goal, two years late.

— Biden aims to tame the ‘Wild West’ of unregulated carbon markets.

— Meta bans PR firm behind fake accounts spreading pro-Israeli content.

— EU countries agree on fixes to GDPR enforcement.

— Google faces EU privacy scrutiny over tracking users' locations.

ON THE HILL

→ Find House committees here.

→ Keep track of Senate committees here.

8:15 a.m. The House human resources committee will examine Bill C-322 clause by clause. The proposed legislation would develop a national framework to establish a school food program.

8:45 a.m. The House official languages committee will debate a motion from MARIO BEAULIEU and amendment of DARRELL SAMSON regarding the status of MP FRANCIS DROUIN on the committee.

9 a.m. Conservative MP JOHN BARLOW promotes his private members bill C-257, which would bolster biosecurity on farms, to the Senate’s agriculture committee.

9 a.m. The Canadian Bar Association, Ecojustice Canada and West Coast Environmental Law appear before the Senate’s energy and environment committee as it sifts through budget provisions.

10 a.m. The Senate fisheries committee hears from Northern Coalition Corporation’s Executive Director ALASTAIR O’RIELLY on fisheries and oceans management.

11 a.m. Agriculture Minister LAWRENCE MACAULAY and department officials will be at the House agriculture and agri-food committee on Main Estimates.

11 a.m. B.C.’s health officer, BONNIE HENRY, is among the witnesses to the House health committee, which will study the opioid epidemic and toxic drug crisis in Canada.

11 a.m. The House committee on science and research will hear from experts on climate charge in the Arctic during its first hour. At noon, it will go behind closed doors to discuss a report on Indigenous traditional knowledge.

11 a.m. The House transport committee will discuss the Competition Act and air travel in Canada’s northern, rural and remote communities.

11:30 a.m. The Senate banking committee hears from two panels on the budget bill, including Financial Consumer Agency of Canada’s Interim Commissioner WERNER LIEDTKE, along with Payments Canada, Fintechs Canada and Desjardins.

11:30 a.m. The Senate’s foreign affairs committee hears from Canada’s Ambassador to the European Union AILISH CAMPBELL and the European Union’s Ambassador to Canada, MELITA GABRIC.

11:45 a.m. The Senate’s legal affairs committee is scheduled to talk about the budget bill but has yet to fill out its witness list.

3:30 p.m. The House fisheries and oceans committee is studying Yukon salmon stocks and will hear from academic and local experts.

3:30 p.m. The House international trade committee will consider the 2026 USMCA review. On the roster: Canadian Steel Producers Association, Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association and Dairy Farmers of Canada.

3:30 p.m. The House public accounts committee will discuss the auditor general’s report on ArriveCAN.

In camera: The House committee on the status of women will discuss its report on the “Red Dress Alert.” The Senate’s social affairs committee huddles to mull budget provisions.

A message from MOWI:

True reconciliation in Canada must include opportunities for shared economic prosperity and advancement with First Nations. Government can support advancing reconciliation with a regulatory environment that supports First Nations opportunities and reduces Canada’s carbon footprint. A draft transition plan that enables the salmon farming sector to thrive, does both.

We cannot overstate the costs to local communities, and the provincial and national economies, if a new transition plan draft creates questions about our long-term operations. MOWI’s coastal safe salmon farming contributes over $955 million in economic activity, including more than 2,698 Canadian jobs.

MOWI’s impact reaches beyond the communities where we create jobs or our financial contributions to the economy.

Salmon farming provides Canadians and their families with high-quality, affordable, healthy, and sustainable choices at grocery stores and restaurants across the country.

We need the certainty of a minimum 6-year extension to continue to serve our families, and yours.

TRIVIA

Wednesday’s answer: “Welcome to another miracle on the prairies!” — United Conservative Party Leader DANIELLE SMITH after winning Alberta’s provincial election last year.

Props to MELISSA COTTON, TREVOR RODIE, ELLA D’SILVA, GEORGE SCHOENHOFER, NANCI WAUGH, LAURA JARVIS, ROBERT MCDOUGALL, MARC LEBLANC, AMY SCANLON BOUGHNER, JIM CAMPBELL, BOB GORDON, MARCEL MARCOTTE, JENN KEAY and GORDON RANDALL.

Today’s question: 192 years ago, a boat named “Pumper” made history. What did it do?

Send your answer to ottawaplaybook@politico.com

Writing tomorrow's Playbook: KYLE DUGGAN

Playbook wouldn’t happen without: POLITICO Canada editor Sue Allan and Luiza Ch. Savage.

Want to grab the attention of movers and shakers on Parliament Hill? Want your brand in front of a key audience of Ottawa influencers? Playbook can help. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com.

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