‘Warmest welcome’ at Manitoba, U.K. defence partnership summit

The working name of Manitoba’s newest defence-focused group is Tea and Textiles.

Carole and Tim Champion may become members. The British entrepreneurs spent Tuesday touring Boeing, StandardAero and Magellan Aerospace in Winnipeg, pondering how they could partner with the businesses.

They own Needles and Pins Aerospace, a United Kingdom-based company that makes and repairs covers and interior fabrics for aircraft. The firm holds internationally recognized quality management standards.

“I think we could bring something to the party,” Carole said post-tours.

Needles and Pins Aerospace is one of 15 U.K. companies that visited Manitoba on Monday and Tuesday.

The Manitoba-Canada Defence Alliance, which launched in September, hosted a defence summit to connect Manitoba and U.K. businesses.

Two U.K. trade associations, the British High Commissioner to Canada and a British Consul General, participated.

So did, at minimum, 45 Manitoba organizations, all levels of government and the Canadian Armed Forces.

“It’s a little bit of proof of concept for us,” said Paul Soubry, who co-leads the Manitoba-Canada Defence Alliance.

The group joins together the private sector, post-secondaries, industry associations, government and the military to draw defence spending to the province. It’s “one step removed” from government, allowing it to work faster, Soubry said.

The alliance’s inception comes as Ottawa promises to spend $81.8 billion on defence over the next five years.

It plans to host matchmaking-style summits to build defence partnerships. It chose the United Kingdom first after Margaret Egan, a dual citizen of Canada and the U.K. who owns management consulting firm Sinclair Barnes Ltd., began connecting groups between the two countries.

“I think that (this) has definitely been the warmest welcome I’ve ever had,” said Elliott Murphy, a staffer with ADS Group, which represents more than 2,000 British defence companies.

The U.K. delegation heard presentations from local businesses, the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters and officials from CFB Shilo and the Royal Canadian Air Force, including from CFB Winnipeg’s 17 Wing.

They were whisked to the Assiniboine Park Zoo and the Royal Canadian Aviation Museum of Western Canada. One session involved a question-and-answer period with a lawyer about the legalities of conducting business with the Canadian military.

The Manitoba-Canada Defence Alliance is creating working groups with participants from both Manitoba and the U.K. to foster relationships after the summit, Soubry said.

One group — Tea and Textiles — will target textiles firms. If all goes well, companies may begin trading with each other and expanding their footprints, Soubry said.

Murphy has noticed an opening for more counter-drone technology covering “critical” national infrastructure, such as the Port of Churchill.

Members have worked with Ukrainian companies on drones; the tech could be adapted for and in Canada, Murphy said. “It’s, in some ways, easier to do business and partner with Canada than it is in Europe,” he added, citing a similar language and culture.

Companies paid their own way to the keystone province, Soubry said.

Nationally, Canada and the United Kingdom have re-committed to a foreign service arrangement. The countries’ respective militaries are continuing to allow Canadian Armed Forces reserve members to voluntarily serve in the U.K. reserve while abroad.

Canada has applied to join the Joint Expeditionary Force military coalition, led by the Brits, as a full-time member.

Soubry aims to host another two or three matchmaking summits over the year. The alliance will seek firms tied to platforms the Canadian Armed Forces is buying from, he said.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com