Questions raised about army tent contract headed to Trudeau cabinet

The Trudeau government will soon be asked to decide on a $400 million project to supply the military with new, mobile headquarters tents, but questions have been raised about one of the competitors, which recently hired a former officer who helped draw up requirements for new equipment in the army.

Former lieutenant-colonel Greg Burton was the director of land requirements until November of last year and, says National Defence, his responsibilities included a role in the development of the specifications for the headquarters shelter system project, a claim Burton disputes. One month after his departure, he became the senior director of strategic business development at DEW Engineering, which is among four bidders on the program.

The one-year post-employment restriction says former officers with the rank of lieutenant-colonel and above may not “accept employment with an external entity or individual with which the person had significant official dealings at any time during the last year of their DND employment of (Canadian Armed Forces) service,'' or give advice to a new employer using information that is not publicly available.