Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - June 8, 1976, Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnic free miss tuesday june a 1976 11 but Orion fiasco tarnishes Liberal party s image by Petek Thomson free press correspondent Ottawa one hardly has to look at the liberals stand ing in the Gallup poll to see that nothing seems to be going right for the Trudeau administration. The run of bad Luck or in creasing unpopularity has been continuing for six months or More. The most prominent exam ple at the moment is the col lapse of the government s Long Range patrol aircraft Purchase agreement with the Lockheed corp. It has been Clear for some weeks now that there was a fundamental dishonesty i n trying to handle a billion Dol Lar Deal while convincing the people the government was in fact exercising restraint in its spending programs. Furthermore i f it was known that Lockheed would have to arrange interim financing of some s300 million then such a commitment should have been obtained in writing and the interest costs counted in to the total project costs before the Purchase of 18 Orion aircraft was approved by Treasury Board or by Cabinet. The new question and one which has created an open rift in the Cabinet is whether defence minister James i Chardson or Supply and ser vices minister a. P. Goyer. Or both arc primarily to Hiame or indeed whether the whole government and Treasury Board Are responsible Lor mismanaging the affair. Just How bad things can look for the government be came evident this week when or. Goyer publicly blamed one of his officials for not passing on word that lock heed was to be involved in finding interim financing. Or. Goyer s comments had the effect of drawing opposition fire. He has been accused of Fin Gering Public servants and or. Richardson with responsibility for the fiasco. Or. Richardson w Hose businessman s image had been somewhat tarnished by the Lockheed affair was Al most defended by the official opposition As it went after the new target. At mid week it appeared the opposition would be con tent to get or. Goyer s Scalp and the Supply and services minister was not getting much support from or tru Deau or other Cabinet Collea gues. The impression gained by most observers was that the government would be pre pared to let or. Goyer hang if that would end the lock heed fiasco. The Depths to which a government can sink while no one is going to de fend or. Goyer s affixing of blame on others it seems highly possible that the min ister was being made a Scapegoat. A careful review of state ments made at the time the Lockheed Purchase was announced last nov. 27, reveals no suggestion of interim financing by Lockheed nor in deed of an additional million in costs resulting from interest charges. In fact it has been suggested that the Cabinet meeting which approved the Lockheed Deal approved a costing arrangement that did not in clude million for interest costs. According to some officials and nip Leader de Broad Bent it was not until mid december that the extra slut million requirement was counted into the total project Cost and was approved by Treasury Board. If that is the Case then the whole government not just or. Goyer should be blamed for the Lockheed mess. The significant Point in the larger View is that the government is at such Low ebb that open discord and per haps cover up of inadequacies in its judgment have become the necessity of the Day. It is not just the Lockheed affair that darkens a some what dreary image of the government. It seems to be encountering severe difficulty every Way it runs apparently As a result of being completely out of touch with the will of the people. The capital punishment abolition Bill now before parliament is government legis lation. It is in severe danger of being Defeated. The gun control Law. The other important part of the government s peace and Security legislation has bogged Down in committee in the face of extreme objections from various pressure groups. Government House Leader Mitchell Sharp has already Given up any Effort to get the gun control Bill Back from committee before the sum Mer recess on june 30. It has been put Over until fall and there is some speculation it will die on the order paper when the pm rent ses Sion of parliament finally ends Likely in october. The peace and Security Pac Kage was supposed to be a major inspiring thrust for the government this Spring. It has turned out to be anything but an inspiring thrust. It has fallen Flat on its face there Are other areas too where Public and parliamentary resistance has defected the government from its Cho sen course. The senates still dealing great gift for Dat handsome instruments from the prestigious Sheaffer White Dot series. At no extra Cost buy any instrument in either the 727 or 506 series and we will engrave the initials of your Choice on the instrument at no charge. Offer expires june 26th. Choose from the 727 Gold electroplated series or the 506 Chrome series. May be purchased As a set or individually. 727 series ballpoint mechanical 506 series Fountain pen. A. 6.00 a. Mechanical Pencil. 6.00 a. To be guaranteed delivery by june 19th All orders must be received by june 12th. Taking care of business Willson retail stores Polo Park shopping centre.774-1941 240 Portage Avenue .943-0516 384 Portage Avenue .942-6349 Garden City shopping centre.3394274 unkindly with the legislation which would formally put the Canadian edition of time Magazine out of business. According to various officials one of the Brilliant thrusts of the government during the current pan of the session was to have been a food policy. That thrust never even got advanced far enough to be announced. The Issue is Dor Mant the government apparently incapable of coming up with anything constructive. Even the bits and pieces of food policy or agriculture policy which the government has promoted Are running into difficulties inherent in any Supply management costly sur plus disposal programs and irate producers. Agriculture minister Eugene Whelan supposedly the Farmers Friend can now watch periodic marches on parliament Hill by Dairy Farmers who were lured into surplus production and Are now paying the Price. Even in areas where the government has made reasonably sensible moves As in its Energy program it has made few friends. While there have been any number of setbacks for the government there have been few if any offsetting gains. The anti inflation program has produced any number of specific complaints from numerous groups. The constitutionality of the Federal anti inflation program is being tested in the supreme court. Finance minister Donald Macdonald s budget was of necessity an uninspiring document. It was not the kind of vehicle to Herald a new and brighter period for canadians nor the kind of document that could commence the process of restoring govern ment fortunes. While the Economy is Reco vering from last year s races Siori it will be months before the government can Point to declining unemployment statistics As a measure of its management competence. 11 has been a. Bad period for the government acid even Liberal concede that the next six months Don t look any More promising. The restraint program has effectively prevented the gov e r n m e n t from introducing any sparkling new program that might divert attention from its other troubles. Liberal party Mentor Sena Tor Keith Davey suggests and perhaps believes that the present Low ebb in govern ment popularity is but a pass ing Phenomena and results from the government being too far ahead of Public Opin Ion. 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