I would now like to deal with requirements. When it comes to the procurement process, the Americans have a performance-based approach. I personally get the impression Canada creates requirements to fit with a platform it has in mind, in other words from the moment when we want a given plane, which carries a given weight and we know there's only one on the market and that is part of our requirement, we know exactly which plane will meet our requirements and in that way we sideline the competition. That is also a message being sent to a company, sort of like the ACAN, because the company knows that it is the only one able to meet the criteria.
Why do we get the impression that when the armed forces formulate criteria, they already have a platform in mind.
What about political involvement? Can a minister specify a type of aircraft? And you, within the forces, do you have to comply with requirements to find the specific aircraft requested by a department or a minister? Could this type of situation occur? According to Mr. Ross and one other person, it is possible. Do you think political interference is possible?