ACTION ALERT: Demand that Industry Minister Prentice answer questions about MDA sale

January 29, 2008

Thank you to everyone who responded to yesterday morning's 'ACTION ALERT: Demand that Industry Minister Prentice answer questions about MDA sale'. As reported in the Globe and Mail on January 29, "Parliament's industry committee passed a motion yesterday inviting Industry Minister Jim Prentice to appear and explain the government's review of an asset sale by MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. to U.S. firm Alliant Techsystems Inc. At a meeting yesterday morning, the committee accepted a motion from NDP industry critic Peggy Nash to invite Mr. Prentice to appear...Mr. Prentice is expected to appear before the committee in the next four to six weeks."

As reported in this morning's Globe and Mail, "An NDP member of Parliament will table a motion today with the federal industry committee asking Industry Minister Jim Prentice to attend and answer questions about the proposed sale of MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates Ltd.'s space assets to a U.S. buyer...Ms. Nash said she does not know whether the committee will adopt her motion to call Mr. Prentice as a witness."

Richmond, B.C.-based MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd., or MDA, announced on January 8, 2008, an agreement to sell its Information Systems and Geospatial Services operations to Minneapolis-based Alliant Techsystems, or ATK, for $1.325 billion. MDA's Information Systems and Geospatial Services operations are better known as the builders of the Canadarm, the iconic remote-controlled mechanical arm used on the space shuttle, and RADARSAT, an earth observation satellite. Concerns have been raised because the US corporation seeking to purchase MDA manufactures depleted uranium shells, land mines, rocket components and cluster bombs for the US military.

According to the Parliament of Canada website, the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology will be meeting between 11:00 am and 1:00 pm EST today.

The committee is comprised of:

Chair - James Rajotte, Conservative, Rajotte.J@parl.gc.ca
Vice Chair - Paule Brunelle, Bloc Québécois, BruneP@parl.gc.ca
Vice Chair - Dan McTeague, Liberal, McTeague.D@parl.gc.ca
André Arthur, Independent, Arthur.A@parl.gc.ca
Scott Brison, Liberal, Brison.S@parl.gc.ca
Colin Carrie, Conservative, Carrie.C@parl.gc.ca
Mark Eyking, Liberal, Eyking.M@parl.gc.ca
Peggy Nash, NDP, Nash.P@parl.gc.ca
Raymond Simard, Liberal, Simard.R@parl.gc.ca
Bruce Stanton, Conservative, Stanton.B@parl.gc.ca
Dave Van Kesteren, Conservative, VanKesteren.D@parl.gc.ca
Robert Vincent, Bloc Québécois, Stanton.B@parl.gc.ca

The full list of the committee's associate members is available at http://cmte.parl.gc.ca.

Please e-mail these Members of Parliament this morning and demand that they support the motion to have Industry Minister Jim Prentice answer questions about the sale of MDA to the US weapons manufacturer ATK.