Thank you all for being here.
I'm going to start with you, Ms. Gregory, just to systematically go through my questions.
We know Canada is a world leader in airborne surveillance, anti-submarine warfare and aerospace, but in May of this year, 16 Canadian aerospace and defence executives sent a letter to the Prime Minister and also to the relevant ministers at the time—Minister Champagne, Minister Anand and Minister Jaczek—asking them to allow an open CMMA competition instead of the sole-sourced procurement for the American-made P-8.
I hope you agree that Canadian aerospace and defence industries are world-renowned, and if so, do you accept the assertion from these industry leaders that the Canadian government's failure to allow our domestic sectors to even compete on this contract will do significant reputational damage on the world stage? How do you expect allied governments to invest in Canadian aerospace and defence if the Government of Canada won't even let them compete?