Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Mississauga South.
This my first speech in the 37th parliament. It is certainly a great pleasure to be back. I would like to take this opportunity, Mr. Speaker, to congratulate you on your appointment as Deputy Speaker. I hope you will relay to the Speaker my very best wishes and best regards on his election as Speaker.
I am very pleased and deeply honoured that the people of Nepean—Carleton have put their trust in me to be their voice in this important, historic and, as we have seen, often colourful institution.
Politics can be a very busy lifestyle and spouses often bear the brunt of that lifestyle. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my wife, Joan, for all her support over three municipal elections and two federal elections, all successful I might add.
I would also be remiss if I did not say a few words of thanks to my staff. They are Joan Tierney, Pat Murphy, Carrie Schroder, Liz Schlesak and Michael May.
It is a pleasure to speak on the motion that was moved by my hon. colleague from the Progressive Conservative Party.
The government has demonstrated many times its commitment to provide the Canadian forces the equipment it needs to do its job: new search and rescue helicopters; new armoured personnel carriers; new submarines; upgrades to our CF-18 fighter aircraft; and Aurora maritime patrol aircraft. That is an impressive list by any measure. It does not stop there. Acquiring new maritime helicopters to replace the venerable Sea Kings is also a key part of the capital procurement program laid out in the defence white paper.
Again the government has delivered on its promise by announcing last August that it had given the Department of National Defence approval to proceed with acquiring a suitable replacement for the Sea King. Our maritime forces must be capable of dealing with a wide variety of potential threats. They must be capable of controlling events above, on and below the surface of the sea.
Shipborne helicopters are a key component of that capability. Such aircraft are indispensable to any navy and significantly increase the surveillance, defence and attack capabilities of our frigates and destroyers.
However, maritime helicopters play a wide range of roles, including search and rescue. This is an important capability for a country that has the longest coastline and the second largest land mass in the world, not to mention extreme weather conditions. Operating from our ships, they provide us with a unique capability for offshore operations. Many sailors in distress in the frigid waters of the north Atlantic owe their lives to these helicopters and the Canadian forces crews who fly them.
Over the last few years our maritime helicopters have participated in disaster relief missions during the Manitoba floods of 1997, after the crash of Swissair flight 111 in September 1998 and in humanitarian relief operations in Somalia and elsewhere around the world.
These aircraft routinely conduct fisheries patrols and have assisted the RCMP in drug interdiction operations. They have supported operations preventing the landing of illegal immigrants by sea. They have also participated in peace support operations, notably in the Adriatic Sea between 1993 and 1996, in Haiti in 1993 and 1994, in the Persian Gulf since 1991 and in East Timor in 1999. They constitute an important part of our contribution to the defence of North America as part of our naval task groups.
Maritime helicopters are also part of our contribution to NATO's Standing Naval Force Atlantic.
For more than 35 years the Sea King helicopters have performed those duties admirably. There is no doubt that a new helicopter is needed in order to enable the Canadian forces to continue making a vital contribution both here in Canada and around the world.
The government has recognized that need and is moving forward with the acquisition of a replacement, but not at any price. Taxpayer money will be used wisely and the government will not spend any more than it needs to.
The government is committed to providing the Canadian forces with a maritime helicopter that will meet its present and future needs at the best possible price and over the full life cycle of the aircraft. However, let me be clear. We will not compromise the capability requirements for this replacement aircraft. These requirements are clearly laid out and described in the statement of operational requirements that was released last August by the Minister of National Defence.
The document was put together by the Department of National Defence. DND conducted an extensive review of its needs using contemporary scenarios, and identified operational requirements backed by rigorous statistical analysis. The statement of operational requirements is consistent with current defence policy and also reflects the changes brought about by the end of the cold war.
We do not need the kind of helicopter we needed 15 years ago or even in 1993 when we cancelled the EH-101 project. The cold war is over. We are shifting away from open ocean anti-submarine warfare to more regional, coastal or littoral operations.
We now need an aircraft that is available in sufficient numbers and has the appropriate payload, endurance and mission systems to do the job required by tomorrow's security environment. We need a helicopter that has balanced, multipurpose capabilities and will meet the needs of the Canadian forces.
With this strong and coherent statement of operational requirements, the government will be able to pursue a procurement strategy adapted to the times. Canadian taxpayers will also benefit from the strategy.
Even when counting the $478 million in cancellation fees, the cost of the new SAR helicopters and the investments made to ensure the continued airworthiness of the Labrador and Sea King helicopters, we expect to save Canadians $1.5 billion when compared with the cancelled EH-101.
We will save money because we will acquire off the shelf technologies, not developmental ones. We will save money because we will have a more competitive marketplace and the operational requirements now reflect the changes in the strategic environment. We will also save money because we will take into account both the purchase price for the helicopter and the cost of maintaining it through its life cycle.
Until we get delivery of the new maritime helicopters the Canadian forces will continue to rely on the Sea Kings to perform its missions.
Some members of the House have raised concerns over the safety of the aircraft. It is true they are not getting any younger. We all know that, but let me be clear. The government will not ask the men and women of the Canadian forces to fly unsafe aircraft. The minister has repeated that on a number of occasions.
Significant investments have been made to make sure the Sea Kings continue to operate safely and perform their various tasks until the replacement helicopters are brought into service. For example, we are spending some $50 million on engine and gearbox upgrades. To improve the operational capabilities of the helicopters, the air force is proceeding with upgrades such as cargo carrying floorboards, electronic self-defence equipment and an improved rescue hoist.
In conclusion, I again underline the government's commitment to the Canadian forces. We saw that in today's announcement of the supplementary estimates. Providing them with the equipment they need at the best possible price is at the core of the acquisition process. It will benefit both Canada and the men and women of the Canadian forces. It is worthy of the support of every member of the House.