Liberals block ventilator contract access filing for three years

Three years later, and the federal government is still hiding information relating to a sole-source contract that benefitted former Liberal MP Frank Baylis.

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Rebel News' request for documents relating to the federal government's award of a ventilator contract to former Liberal MP Frank Baylis's company has been stonewalled since December 2020. 

The sole-sourced March 2020 contract for 10,000 ventilators came in at $237 million and was made with an obscure company, FTI Professional Grade, formed just one week before the contract was awarded. The subcontract manufacturer of the ventilators, however, was Baylis Medical, run by one-term Liberal MP Frank Baylis, who had not run for reelection in September 2019.

But there is more than just shameless cronyism; this is something next level. From Le Journal de Quebec:

Manufactured in Mississauga, Ontario, the ventilators, based on an identical model manufactured by Medtronic, were sold for $23,700 per unit in Ottawa for a total sum of $237 million.

That's $10,000 more than the model sold by Medtronic.

Like so much during COVID, those ventilators were not approved for use in Canada but ordered anyway.

And it seems the Public Health Agency of Canada didn't even want them. The Baylis ventilators were never used and sat collecting dust in a warehouse.

Just have a look at some of the details: 

Millions’ worth of Covid ventilators purchased through a former Liberal MP’s company were immediately warehoused as medical surplus, records show. The ventilators cost the equivalent of $23,700 apiece.

Public Health Agency figures disclosed the majority of 10,000 Baylis Medical Company ventilators it bought, more than 90 percent, were never used in any clinic or hospital. The devices were bought under a sole-sourced $237 million contract through a holding company, FTI Professional Grade Inc. of Guelph, Ont.

Some of the Baylis ventilators were sent to India, without the proper adapter to use them.

As Blacklock's Reporter notes:

Health Minister Patricia Hajdu’s department shipped 350 Baylis Medical ventilators to India that couldn’t plug into wall sockets. The department forgot to include $9 electrical adaptors, according to a briefing note.

“A delivery on May 5 included an immediate fifty ventilators as part of an initial supply of up to 350 ventilators,” said the note. “However the ventilators require a different electrical cord for use in India.”

“The ventilator manufacturer, Baylis Medical, was able to secure the power cords required for the immediate shipment of fifty ventilators with remaining ventilators subsequently being shipped with adaptors,” said the June 18 briefing note National Emergency Strategic Stockpile Management. Adaptors retail for $9 apiece.

And wouldn't you know it, despite the ongoing fiasco and conflict of interest scandal, Baylis was struck with good luck again. That's right, Baylis got another contract! This time, to service the ventilators bought from his company that no one used!

Again, Blacklock's has the details:

Cabinet in an Inquiry Of Ministry tabled in the Commons disclosed it awarded a $3.7 million contract to Baylis Medical last February 16 for “preventive maintenance” on 2,000 ventilators. The contract was divulged at the request of Conservative MP Dean Allison (Niagara West, Ont.) who asked, “What are the details with regard to government contracts with Baylis Medical?”

So now you know why we wanted to know more about this contract. So at Rebel News, we filed for access to information in December 2020 for details of not just the Baylis ventilator contracts, but all the ventilator contracts.

And all documents “regarding the acquisition of ventilators and any documents showing their current status (such as if they have been received, waiting, in use, in storage, shipped to province/health authority) from March 1, 2020 to December 14, 2020.”

Three years ago. The government was supposed to ask for an extension in January 2021 and to explain why they needed one.

This week, we got a response — but no documents. This is just a check-in to see if we actually still wanted the documents or if we were no longer curious about the Liberals' crooked cronyism.

Look at this response we got:

There are a number of ventilator contracts in the information sought.

I am just about to send 9 third party consultation letters on this file, so thought it would be a good time to check that you still seek a response to this request.

They haven't even started working on this file. Three years later, the feds are just about to start working on sending out some third-party notifications. Thanks. Really working at the speed of government and hoping we get tired of waiting.

Well, I won't. I'll keep on this file, with your help. To donate to our access filing and research fund, visit www.RebelInvestigates.com.

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