Liberals revive campaign pitch for centralized military procurement agency [Video]

In the face of annexation threats from the Trump administration and a Canadian public increasingly demanding the federal government buy less from the United States, the Liberals have resurrected a previous campaign pitch to create a standalone defence procurement agency.

Liberal Leader Mark Carney highlighted the pledge during a campaign stop in the Montreal area on Monday at the headquarters of Quebec-based aircraft-maker Bombardier.

He promised to modernize procurement rules and amend legislation and regulations as required to “centralize expertise from across government and streamline the way we buy equipment for the military.”

During the 2015 campaign, the Liberals pledged to modernize defence purchasing. 

Four years later, they promised to establish Defence Procurement Canada to “ensure that Canada’s biggest and most complex defence procurement projects are delivered on time and with greater transparency to Parliament.”

Risk of slowing down procurement

Carney didn’t address why previous efforts at major reforms fell by the wayside, but acknowledged …