Yes, not very widely reported but Bill C-10 was passed last week amending the Air Canada Public Participation Act (ACCPA).
The amendment to ACCPA was apparently part of the deal negotiated with Ottawa as a condition for Air Canada's CSeries order, in addition to Quebec's agreement to drop their related lawsuit.
The government had hoped for smooth passage of Bill C-10 until it met heavy opposition from union (IAMAW). Bill C-10 effectively allows Air Canada to outsource the bulk of the airline's maintenance activities outside of the country. NDP, BLOC Quebecois and the Greens also tried to stall the bill.
Passage of Bill C-10 was the last "stumbling block" for Air Canada's CSeries deal.
However, the damage was done. Public comments from Air Canada that they were prepared to "walk away" from the CSeries and that other manufacturers were making "comparable airplanes" represent a
PR nightmare for Bombardier.
It's hard to argue that Air Canada's order was won solely on the basis of superior CSeries economics when clearly the deal was predicated on dropping lawsuits and amending legislation.
I'm sure John Leahy at Airbus and the folks at Embraer will use the Bill C-10 fiasco as another talking point when dealing with potential CSeries customers.
