Once again, the federal government was blind-sided into blowing million in Canadian tax dollars..Spartan Bioscience Inc. received a $16.6 million cash advance for rush orders of COVID-19 test kits never delivered before it filed for bankruptcy protection April 6, says Blacklock’s Reporter..The Department of Health in internal emails rated the failed contractor as “solid” even after its COVID-19 test kits failed clinical trials..“In terms of the go-forward we are in good shape,” Travis Gordon, a senior policy advisor to the health department, wrote the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) May 2, 2020..“The overall assessment process remains solid, so there’s not a need to be concerned.”.The email was sent a day after Spartan kits failed trials at the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg. Tests were conducted weeks after Spartan was awarded a $273,928 federal research grant and $149,048,550 contract for test kits..The PMO agreed the Spartan contract “remains solid. Spartan executives earlier “had a couple of good meetings” with the PMO, wrote staff..“(Health Canada) still supports the technology and Spartan is correcting the issue the issue with (Health Canada) oversight,” wrote Sabrina Kim, then-director of communications. “The overall assessment remains solid, so there’s not a need to be concerned about other devices which have shown good results in the field.”. Feds blow millions on failed COVID test kit company .Spartan bankruptcy court filings indicate the Ottawa-based company owed creditors $73 million including $16,595,410 from the health department and $8,838,000 owed to the Business Development Bank. The firm laid off sixty employees, the equivalent of 70% of its workforce..Spartan had been touted by cabinet as an innovation leader when it was awarded millions in grants and rush orders for Covid test kits..“Spartan’s made-in-Canada kits will enable us to test many more Canadians over and above the millions of tests that we have already ordered,” Public Works Minister Anita Anand told reporters March 31, 2020..Anand’s deputy minister Bill Matthews in April 14 testimony at the Commons government operations committee confirmed Spartan did not deliver any kits under the federal order. “To date they have not delivered any tests to the federal government,” said Matthews..Mike D’Amour is the British Columbia Bureau Chief for the Western Standard..,.mdamour@westernstandardonline.com
