Madam Speaker, I rise in this adjournment debate to draw attention to the deteriorating situation regarding the available troops for the numerous overseas missions and the equipment available for these soldiers.
As the member of Parliament for the riding of Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, which includes Canadian Forces Base Petawawa, I take a special interest in the women and men who serve our nation as members of Canada's armed forces.
Federal Liberal budget cuts that removed 25% of the department's budget through the 1990s have resulted in placing Canada's military in a state of crisis. This is being confirmed by many separate independent bodies, such as the Royal Canadian Military Institute, the Conference of Defence Associations and the Auditor General, to name a few.
The House of Commons Standing Committee on National Defence and Veterans Affairs, on which I serve, came to the same conclusion while the current Minister of National Defence chaired the committee.
The new Prime Minister has been quick to repeat the same spending announcements to make it seem as if new money was being provided to our military. Yet, the last federal budget provided no new additional funds to make up the budget shortfall that has been identified.
The well respect Auditor General has identified a $1.3 billion annual deficit in the operations budget of the Canadian armed forces. The Auditor General has further estimated a $30 billion deficit in equipment funding by 2012.
Canadians need to be reminded that Canada is at the bottom of the G-8 and NATO countries in defence spending. It shares the bottom with tiny Luxembourg, Iceland and those NATO nations when it comes to money spent as a percentage of our economy.
Already this defence deficit is affecting our nation in the high Arctic with other nations challenging our sovereignty and claiming Canadian territory. Without the resources to defend our vast geographic area, Canada has sent a signal to the rest of the world that surrender by default is Canada's defence policy with this Liberal government.
The Canadian Forces have been continuously borrowing from the capital equipment budget in order to make up the operational budget shortfall. The Canadian forces have been unable to pursue the equipment projects that are necessary to improve or even simply renew the current capability.
That was the point of my question to the minister, by robbing the capital budget to fund the operations budget shortfall, the gap between equipment and capability continues to widen.
In Canada's military the people must remain our number one priority. The decision to increase Canada's operational tempo, particularly on overseas missions, is reducing our military to a state of near collapse. Manpower in the regular forces has fallen by about 30% over the last decade. Soldiers in some units are serving in back to back rotations overseas, with virtually no rest at home and no time with their families.
With the increasing number of sick days being taken by soldiers, our troops are sending a not too subtle message that something must change.
I and the new Conservative Party recognize that some very difficult decisions must be made and made quickly. There will be trade-offs. The Canadian Forces need more money today if they are to continue operating in a sustainable way.
Lately, there have been too many missions with too few people. As one military spouse put it to me bluntly, “What good is danger pay if your husband does not come home?”