Absolutely. I think the 2% is really an arbitrary number. It's not based on evidence. It's not evidence-based policy-making. It does not tell us the specifics of each context of national security, the defence context for each state. I think we need to be much more clear about what we're demanding from the CAF and DND and why this increase in defence spending is necessary and what division there is.
There's a bit of a one-size-fits-all approach with this number. We've said in the past that this is such a nice round number for political reasons, but it doesn't really speak to the actuality of defence needs. I think we need to stop looking at this number as an answer, when a really deep study is needed on what's actually needed for Canadian defence and how we contribute globally.
I think it also undermines how much Canada contributes in other ways that are not purely military, like when we work with NATO allies in other contexts and how much we contribute towards development and diplomacy.
I think a focus on that number alone has obscured the reality of Canada's contributions on many other levels as well.