The government often touts the lower immediate price tag of the Super Hornet as a primary reason that it should be sole-sourced and preferred. However, as with most other things on this file, the government has not been clear about what kind of price tag Canadians can expect to pay to fulfill this Liberal campaign promise. Boeing likes to use the old value of $57 million U.S. to buy a Super Hornet; however, Australia recently paid $120 million per plane. The most recent analysis done by Denmark showed that the purchase of fully capable fighter jets was $87 million for an F-35 versus $124 million for an F-18. We recently purchased 40 Super Hornets for a total of $10 billion, or $252 million per plane, well over triple what an F-35 is right now.
Boeing has been lobbying the American government to impose a 20% tax on top of the military sales tax, which would substantially increase the cost of these interim jets. If we're going to get serious about the question of good deals for Canadians, we have to ask why we're willing to buy a plane at double the tax and again why we would commit to a plane before we even start negotiating on price or asking for pricing from any competition.
Coupled with the fact that the Super Hornet is at the end of its life cycle and is basically an obsolete plane right now, I'd like to pose a question. How do these evolving financial realities not change the discussion on whether or not this is the best deal for Canada?
I'm going to quote a retired member of Parliament, because it sums up my argument nicely:
This is obviously costing all of us, members of the Canadian public, the taxpayers, a significant number of dollars. That is what competition is there for. It is to get the best price, to make sure the Canadian taxpayer is getting value for dollar. This party has talked about value for dollar with regard to this issue from the beginning. That is a responsibility the government has chosen to ignore.
He goes on:
The other reason is to make sure we get the best equipment available to us. Never is this more important than when we are talking about military procurement for our men and women in the air force. We want to make sure they have the best tools available. Again, without an active, open, transparent and fair competition, we do not know that.
Later he says:
It is incumbent upon all parliamentarians to make sure we do get value for dollar. It is incumbent upon all parliamentarians to ensure that the process as outlined in Treasury Board guidelines is followed. If that is not followed, then we cannot be sure that we are getting the best price for Canadian taxpayers, and we clearly are not sure.
Now, that former MP was none other than the veteran Liberal defence critic, the Hon. Bryon Wilfert, from a debate on a sole-source contract in 2010.
Taxpayers have so far been kept in the dark about the true cost of the Super Hornet purchase, about the necessity of a sole-source contract worth billions of dollars, and about the long-term impacts on Canadian industry and the military. It's the committee's responsibility to ensure that the rules of transparency, accountability, and fiscal responsibility are kept.
I hope I have your support for this essential study and I hope my colleagues on the other side vote in favour of this study, and for the sake of transparency, not push this discussion and this vote in camera, once again away from the public.
Thank you.