Thanks, Mr. Chair.
I have a number of important questions for each of you. However, for reasons I'll explain in a moment, I am first going to have to move a motion that we weren't able to finish dealing with during our committee business, which we had scheduled on Tuesday.
I don't know if it's required, but I believe it is, Mr. Chair. I'll read it back into the record during this meeting.
I move that, in relation to its study on the national monument to Canada’s mission in Afghanistan, the Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs call the deputy commander of military personnel, Lieutenant-General Lise Bourgon, to appear before the committee on or before December 7, 2023, and order the production of all memoranda, briefing notes, emails, correspondence or any other records of conversations or communications—including text messages, Microsoft Teams messages, WhatsApp messages, Signal messages or other electronic messaging—with regard to the national monument to Canada’s mission in Afghanistan, transmitted since February 1, 2021, between the Department of Veterans Affairs and the office of the Minister of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Canadian Heritage and the office of the Minister of Canadian Heritage, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Privy Council Office, the Department of Canadian Heritage and the Privy Council Office, the Privy Council Office and the office of the Prime Minister, the office of the Minister of Veterans Affairs and the office of the Prime Minister, and the office of the Minister of Canadian Heritage and the office of the Prime Minister, provided that these documents shall be provided to the clerk of the committee, in both official languages and without redaction, no later than December 13, 2023.
I have given the rationale for the motion, but I'll just briefly indicate for those who are watching or are with us today—