Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his five-minute speech that took 20 minutes. He said something during his speech and mentioned some figures.
He said that the Quebec aerospace industry compromises 60%. He said it buys 55%. I am not sure what the number is; it is really not important. He kept saying that Quebeckers pay 25% of the income tax in Canada. Well, perhaps they should get 25% of the industrial benefits, but that would not be fair and I understand that. This government is in fact getting the job done for the Quebec aerospace industry.
He made a comment about Bell and the CH-47. When Bell makes a helicopter that will do what the Canadian Forces needs to do like the CH-47 does, then we would probably consider buying a helicopter from Bell. Until then we will buy an aircraft for the Canadian Forces that does the job.
He mentioned that we are helping out Boeing by buying an airplane at the end its lifetime. I would point out a couple of things to him. One is that during the Quebec ice storm, every single bit of heavy equipment that went to rescue Quebec during that time frame was moved by United States Air Force C-17 aircraft. He might appreciate that.
He said that we are buying the airplane at the end of its lifetime, which is frankly nonsense. The RAF is buying four more airplanes to go with the four it already has. The Royal Australian Air Force is buying four brand new airplanes as well. Does he think that the Royal Air Force is out to lunch on this, too? Does he think that the Royal Australian Air Force is out to lunch on this, too? What does my hon. colleague think of their decisions to buy an airplane that will serve for decades to come?