Mr. Speaker, the 1993 deal to purchase helicopters included an ironclad guarantee that at least 50% of the components would have been made in Canada and 10% of every EH-101 sold worldwide would have been Canadian made. This would have meant jobs for Canadians, new technology for Canadian businesses and a substantial increase in tax revenues for the Canadian government. These helicopters would have paid for themselves.
Will the minister of public works explain why Canadians have to pay extra money for his helicopters—