Three cruise ships rented for Olympic security
VANCOUVER — Taxpayers are shelling out an extra $21 million to put more than 5,000 RCMP and Canadian Forces Olympic security officers on three cruise ships during the 2010 Winter Games.
The total tab, not including GST, is $76 million. Province sources said one of the cruise ships has its own nine-hole golf course.
The price has swelled from the $55-million aborted deal with Cruise Connections Charter Management that fell through last year and ended up in a U.S. lawsuit.
Last night, Maureen Bader, B.C. director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, fired a torpedo at the cruise news.
“They need to find ways of cutting costs, not spending more,” she said. “It’s getting completely out of control.”
An RCMP spokeswoman said Tuesday night that extra beds were needed to house Department of National Defence personnel.
“This contract had additional bed requirements and that’s why a third ship was added,” said Cpl. Jen Allan of the RCMP’s 2010 Integrated Security Unit.
“There are two contracts within this process, one is with Holland America out of Seattle and the other is Carnival Cruise Lines out of Miami.”
Asked how many beds will be used, Allan said she couldn’t release the figure “for security reasons.”
She would only say that the original request for proposals called for 1,100 beds from Jan. 12 next year rising to 5,300 from Jan. 28 to March 2.
“We are not going to release the numbers in our signed contract,” she said. “We are not naming the ships.”
However, a Vancouver Province source in Miami said the three ships are the Carnival Elation, and Holland America’s MS Statendam and the MS Oosterdam.
The Carnival Elation is a “fantasy class” ship with room for 2,100 passengers.
It is not considered a luxury cruise ship but has a six-storey atrium, a nine-hole golf course and three swimming pools.
The MS Statendam holds 1,258 people and has “more than $2 million worth of art and artifacts beautifully displayed throughout the ship.”
The MS Oosterdam accommodates 1,848 people and boasts “a magnificent Waterford crystal globe, prominently displayed in a three-story atrium.”
The ships will tie up at Vancouver’s Ballantyne pier.
Allen said the extra costs will be covered without increasing the security unit’s $491.9-million budget.
She said the $76-million cruise ship bill will be split between the RCMP and the DND but was unable to give a breakdown.
According to an RCMP news release, “the ships will provide the same basic accommodation as would be available in an average hotel. Rooms usually dedicated to entertainment will instead be used for briefings and meeting space.”
“The use of accommodation vessels allows the (security team) to meet three key needs: proximity, simplicity and flexibility,” said assistant commissioner Bud Mercer, head of the Vancouver 2010 Integrated Security Unit.
“This is a significant milestone in our security planning and we will continue to move forward in our vision of delivering the best Winter Games ever as partners in safety, peace and celebration.”
Vancouver Province
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http://www.canada.com/Travel/Three+cruise+ships+rented+Olympic+security/1520149/story.html
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