Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Public Works.
Barely two years after the EH-101 helicopter contract was cancelled, the Minister of National Defence is said to be on the verge of recommending to cabinet the purchase of at least 47 new helicopters, 32 of them equipped for antisubmarine warfare.
How can the minister justify the fact that the government is about to acquire 47 new helicopters at a cost of $2.6 billion, when it is still negotiating the compensation to be paid for cancelling the current contract with Agusta, a firm which is the subject of very serious accusations of corruption and bribery in Europe?