OTTAWA – A pair of think-tanks say the Harper government should either announce plans to scrap its glitch-plagued submarine fleet – or begin the process of replacing them before any more tax dollars are wasted.
The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and the Rideau Institute say the Victoria-class submarines, purchased second-hand from Britain in the late 1990s, are within a decade of ending their service life, and have never lived up to expectations.
A report written by defence and law academic Michael Byers and researcher Stewart Webb raises asks whether Canada, bordered on three sides by oceans, even needs submarines.
Byers says he doesn’t see a strong case for submarines, but remains open-minded and would like to see the government make a coherent case for the capability.
He says the stealth coastal surveillance aspects of subs is rapidly being overtaken by unmanned aerial vehicle technology.
The national shipbuilding strategy is silent on whether the Conservative government intends to replace the current submarine fleet, something Byers says means the decision has either been made, or the file is being horribly mismanaged.
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