Thank you, Mr. Chair and members of the committee, for the opportunity to be here with you.
In my own experience over many years in law enforcement it's always a question of preparing for the worst and hoping for the best. That's what emergency services are geared toward. They equip and train to that level, and it's no less important for the Canadian military.
In that respect the quality of equipment is critical, not only to ensure optimum opportunity for our men and women to succeed in the very dangerous missions to which they are assigned, but also to do that in a safe environment so they can come home safe and sound at the end of their missions and duties. To that end, right now we have some 20 projects ongoing where various aspects of equipment are in the process of going through the system. They are all geared to ensure we do what we have said we will do in terms of the Canada First defence strategy. The wear and tear on equipment is obviously quite considerable.
That to me is a very important and critical aspect of our preparedness and readiness. It also ensures we do what we are supposed to do in providing our men and women the tools they need to do the job as safely as possible.