A maintenance worker walks past an U.S. Air Force F-35 Lightning II fighter jet at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida on July 14, 2011.Samuel King Jr.
The Harper government is enlisting a former federal spending watchdog to add more credence to a promised rethink of which new fighter jet Canada should buy.
The Conservatives have been scrambling to rescue their reputation for sound fiscal management after it emerged that the Department of National Defence selected the $25-billion F-35 jet with only the flimsiest of justifications.
Denis Desautels is one of two independent experts Ottawa is hiring for the new government body that's taking over the job of verifying whether the F-35 jet is the best choice for Canada.
Mr. Desautels served as federal auditor-general between 1991 and 2001.
The Harper government has taken a beating in recent months for its controversial decision to pick the Lockheed Martin Lightning II without a competition.
Canada's current Auditor-General, Michael Ferguson, reported in April that his probe found National Defence gambled on the F-35 fighter jet without running a fair competition, while lacking cost certainty or any guarantee the plane could replace the current fleet of CF-18s by the end of the decade.
Kenneth Norrie, an economic historian and professor of economics at McMaster University is also taking a seat on the National Fighter Procurement Secretariat.
This is a new body set up in Public Works to take over responsibility for selecting a new fighter jet – a sign the Conservatives have lost faith in the defence department's handling of the file.
"I am very pleased that Mr. Desautels and Dr. Norrie will assist with this important work," Public Works Minister Rona Ambrose said. "Their considerable experience providing informed, independent points of view on matters of public policy is welcome and will result in additional due diligence in support of the project."
She announced that the new secretariat is up and running.
"The Secretariat will ensure that due diligence, oversight, and, transparency are applied so that the Royal Canadian Air Force acquires the fighter aircraft it needs to complete its missions at home and abroad."
The secretariat is overseen by a committee of senior public servants from Public Works, Industry Canada, National Defence as well as National Security Adviser Stephen Rigby.
Steven Chase