Madam Speaker, I am certainly glad to see that my hon. colleague across the way has read the red book so faithfully. We are pleased to see that.
After listening to his comments with regard to economic and social programs and all the things we should be doing today, I assure the hon. member that they will be done by this government.
With regard to the defence committee and the subject matter of today and his comments, the hon. member made several comments with regard to alternatives and suggestions as to how government should be working with and for the people and providing the opportunity for input.
The committee he is talking about actually provides opportunity for additional input. I would certainly hope the hon. member will provide that committee with the opportunity to tap into his expertise to provide that input and those suggestions. That is exactly what it is for. It is a forum to provide as many people as we possibly can in this area with an opportunity to provide their expertise and their input to assist the department in making the best possible decisions in the final analysis.
I think we should indeed be pleased that this government continues to provide the opportunity for that input. That was not always the case with previous administrations.
Is the hon. member prepared to provide the benefit of his expertise and input to this committee to assist in the long term and short term as well to make those decisions that are going to be made and recommendations that will be made back to the department of defence?