Senate Committee To Call On Vice Admiral Norman, Sajjan And Vance To Testify About Norman Affair

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Punita V
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On Tuesday the Senate’s national security and defence voted to call Vice Admiral Mark Norman and Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan to testify about the legal case against the former.  Senators voted 7 to 5 in favour of the motion that was put forth by Conservative Senator Jean-Guy Dagenais. Dagenais’s motion had called for the committee to report on the circumstances that led the RCMP to lay the criminal charge against Norman.

Norman had been charged with breach of trust after the RCMP alleged he had promoted a plan by Davie Ship building to convert a commercial ship, the Asterix, into a naval refuelling and supply vessel. The police has also alleged that Norman tipped off Davie in the fall of 2015 that the Liberal government was considering delaying the project which had been set in motion by the previous Conservative government.

The case against Norman broke down on May 8 because of new evidence. The naval officer has insisted that he had done nothing wrong.

On Tuesday it was noted that the committee would be authorized to call defence minister Sajjan as well as the Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Jon Vance and other witnesses. The witness list is yet to be finalized. It is unclear what other witnesses could be requested to testify. The committee would submit its report by no later than June 20, 2019.

 

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