Mr. Speaker, recently the defence committee has been working on a study of Canada-U.S. defence relations. We have heard from witnesses on the issues of North American security, Norad, national missile defence, interoperability, and industrial and scientific cooperation.
At a time when the Canada-U.S. relationship has suffered some severe strains, having Canadian MPs in Washington to talk with their American counterparts on security matters seems very timely and appropriate. Earlier this week I learned that the Canadian Alliance vetoed our travel to the United States scheduled for later this spring. How do we study Canada-U.S. defence relations without visiting the United States and speaking to American officials?
The actions of the Alliance are an affront to the defence committee, to the House and to our American allies who already have prepared for our visit. I hope that the Alliance will change its position on this important travel.