Mr. Chairman, there were a remarkable number of questions in a very short space. If the member could bear with me, I suspect there may be a supplementary.
The creation of cabinet committees, the staffing of cabinet committees and the chairing of cabinet committees is the prerogative of the Prime Minister. Since I have been in this role now for only nine days, I must confess I have not had an opportunity to discuss this particular matter with him or with the new Minister of National Defence. We will no doubt get to that very shortly because we understand the importance and the magnitude and the urgency of the situation.
I am at a bit of a disadvantage tonight. I really have not had an opportunity to canvass this fully with the Prime Minister or other members of cabinet.
I can tell the hon. member that a process is moving forward with respect to the procurement of the maritime helicopter. She will know that on January 29 we did post a draft pre-qualification letter and the latest specifications for the basic vehicle on the MHP website.
The deadline for industry feedback on that draft was March 15. We are now in the process of reviewing all of the comments received. We continue to dialogue with industry on this matter to ensure that when the process is formally launched, it is open, fair and transparent and not subject to challenge after the fact.