Ottawa’s public safety minister says his department had no authority to conduct a national security review of a $1 billion taxpayer-backed loan used to finance the purchase of four Chinese-built ferries, even as MPs warn of espionage and cyber risks.Blacklock's Reporter says Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree told the House of Commons transport committee there was no security assessment tied to the 2025 financing deal arranged through the Canada Infrastructure Bank.“There was no security assessment,” Anandasangaree testified. “This was outside of the scope of the work our national security apparatus do. We had no authority to undertake that review.”The committee is examining the bank’s decision to provide a $1 billion loan at 1.8 % interest to support the purchase of four vessels by BC Ferries, a provincial Crown corporation. The ships are being built in China.Conservative MP Dan Albas said he was stunned no federal security screening was triggered.“The fact no security review has been done is unfathomable to me,” Albas told the committee. He warned that foreign-built vessels operating in Canadian waters could potentially gather intelligence related to critical underwater infrastructure and North American supply routes, including subsea cables..Anandasangaree responded that procurement decisions fall under provincial jurisdiction. “They have the prerogative,” he said of the British Columbia government.Conservative MP Dan Muys argued modern ferries are more than steel hulls. “These are floating IT systems with all sorts of capabilities.” He pressed the minister on whether that reality raises national security concerns. Anandasangaree reiterated the decision was made by British Columbia and that provinces are entitled to make such choices.Conservative MP Aaron Gunn took aim at the use of federal funds to subsidize infrastructure built in China, citing ongoing concerns about espionage and cyber attacks.“You think it’s reasonable to use taxpayer money to help subsidize the procurement of critically important transportation infrastructure from a regime currently engaged in espionage and cyber crimes against Canada?” Gunn asked.When pressed directly on whether Beijing has targeted Canadian institutions with cyber attacks and espionage, Anandasangaree replied, “Yes.” However, he added that Canada is currently expanding trade.Bloc Québécois MP Xavier Barsalou-Duval questioned how a federal Crown corporation could approve a billion-dollar loan without triggering national security oversight.“The Infrastructure Bank is a federal institution,” Barsalou-Duval said. “About a billion dollars was loaned. There’s no national security oversight?”.Anandasangaree answered there was “no direct link” requiring such a review. When Barsalou-Duval posed a hypothetical about investments involving countries like Iran or North Korea, the minister dismissed the scenario as absurd but did not dispute that current rules do not automatically mandate a security assessment for all Bank investments.“Honestly, Minister, I don’t think we should be entering agreements with China blindly,” Barsalou-Duval said, adding he found it troubling that arms-length Crown corporations can proceed without formal national security scrutiny.
