There were more than 1,000 news stories on the internet about the F-35 audit from its April 3 date of release until April 18 and thousands more “hits” on television and radio news programs, as well as emailed letters from citizens, most of whom expressed support for Mr. Ferguson as the controversy began raging, according to copies of emails and documents released by the Auditor General’s Office under the Access to Information Act.
Opposition MPs told The Hill Times on Thursday that the public’s interest was likely stirred primarily by Mr. Ferguson’s allegation that the National Defence Department withheld $10-billion worth of costs for the acquisition from Parliament, and his subsequent statement that the Cabinet of Prime Minister Stephen Harper (Calgary Southwest, Alta.) was aware the total acquisition price—including operation costs over a 20-year period—would be at least $24-billion rather than the $14.7-billion the government was saying publicly.
The documents, a total of 296 pages of inter-office emails, internal media monitoring, emails from an outside media monitor that Mr. Ferguson’s office retained and the letters from citizens, confirm that questions over the procurement, and Mr. Ferguson’s statement that DND and the Public Works Department failed to demonstrate or exercise “due diligence,” struck a chord from coast to coast.
A spokesman for Mr. Ferguson told The Hill Times that news coverage and public response to the F-35 report was greater only for two other auditor general reports to Parliament in the past 10 years—former auditor general Sheila Fraser’s report on the Liberal advertising sponsorship scandal and her 2002 report forecasting the federal long-gun registry would cost taxpayers $1-billion.
An April 18 email from Céline Bissonette, a member of the strategic communications branch in the AG’s office, to the principal auditor for the F-35 study, John Reed, summed up the wave of coverage and attention the report had received.
Mr. Reed had emailed Ms. Bissonette earlier that day asking whether the office continued to collect statistics of coverage by each chapter of a report to Parliament and added: “Would be interested to know where F-35 coverage is at.”
“I can ballpark you some figures if you give me a few days—our media tracking software trawls sources for a number of different media,” Ms. Bissonnette replied. “I’m working on sorting and cataloguing information today, but to give you an idea, stories on the internet number over 1,000. That doesn’t include radio, broadcast, print, or social media.”
Ms. Bissonnette told Mr. Reed that the outside media monitoring company, MediaMiser, had reported more than 10,000 “hits” on television and radio during the first week after Mr. Ferguson tabled the report.
Another earlier email reported 567 television news broadcasts about the report and the F-35s in the first 24 hours after Mr. Ferguson tabled the audit. That was followed almost simultaneously by a government announcement it had frozen the $9-billion acquisition envelope for the F-35 fleet, and would establish a new secretariat in the Public Works Department to manage the project to replace Canada’s existing jet fighter fleet. That plan has since come under criticism, and an independent review of cost estimates won’t be tabled in the Commons until late November. Emails from citizens to Mr. Ferguson came in both of Canada’s official languages, and from different regions across the country.
“Thanks and keep on being no one’s puppet,” one email said in a single sentence.
The names of the citizens who sent the emails were redacted under Access to Information and Privacy Act provisions.
“We were afraid that no one could replace Shelia Fraser,” said another email. “Our fears were unfounded.”
The emails were also sprinkled with angry criticism from individuals who expressed support for the F-35 acquisition, and strongly criticized Mr. Ferguson, particularly over his argument that the government should have included the future costs of operations for the F-35, which the Public Works secretariat did in its contract for the independent review of the total acquisition and operating costs.
One of the more strident emails criticizing Mr. Ferguson said: “Anyone could look on the internet could of (sic) found out that the cost was not going up its (sic) not rocket science.”
Two emails did not take sides but proposed alternate fighter jets.
“We hear a lot about the cynical electorate, but the response of the public to the AG’s report should signal to this government that the cynicism doesn't run so deep that Canadians don’t still feel outrage about being misled,” NDP MP Matthew Kellway (Beaches-East York, Ont.) said in reaction to the public reaction to Mr. Ferguson’s report and the coverage it received in the news media.
“It’s the government that’s been proven to be absolutely cynical, not the electorate,” said Mr. Kellway.
Liberal MP Gerry Byrne (Humber-St. Barbe-Baie Verte, Nfld.) said the coverage and public reaction demonstrate the level of media and personal interest in the F-35 project, and should help convince the government to continue with an inquiry into the auditor general’s report by the Commons Public Accounts Committee.
“The level of both media and personal interest by Canadians in the AG’s report on the government’s procurement of the F-35 shows just how important this issue is to mainstream taxpayers throughout Canada,” Mr. Byrne said in an email.
Mr. Byrne said he predicted a public “backlash” of the government continues with a plan to end the Public Accounts committee inquiry when Parliament resumes next week.
Original Article
Source: hill times
Author: TIM NAUMETZ
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