Air Safety Probe Sought

Liberal MP Joe Volpe said he will make a formal written request to Ms. Fraser in light of a Globe and Mail report showing Transport officials billed millions in expenses to the Mackenzie Valley pipeline construction project - even though the expenses were not related to the pipeline and the pipeline has yet to be approved.

Mr. Volpe, as well as Northwest Territories New Democratic MP Dennis Bevington, said Transport Minister John Baird's decision to conduct an internal investigation is insufficient.

"I don't have any confidence in that at all," Mr. Volpe said.

Both the Liberals and the NDP say they want the Auditor-General to undertake a broader probe that looks not only at the pipeline fund but at how the department is managing a continuing overhaul of the way Ottawa inspects air traffic in Canada.

Mr. Bevington said the fact that officials were billing a pipeline fund to cover routine inspection duties raises questions as to whether Transport Canada is struggling to cover its basic safety tasks.

"If you need money for inspections, put it in the budget," he said. "This comes from mismanagement of the aviation safety sector."

A spokesperson for Mr. Baird said that the minister takes the allegations seriously and that external auditors will begin a probe this week.

Members of the House of Commons transport committee have already heard testimony about a new inspection policy called the Safety Management System. Canada is the first country in the world to impose such a system, which increases the onus on industry when it comes to safety. The union representing federal aviation inspectors has warned that the new system puts Canadians at risk because it means fewer federal inspections at airports and in cockpits.

Link to original article from The Globe & Mail