Debates of May 15th, 2019

Department of National Defence—Main Estimates, 2019-20

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Vancouver South, BC]

Mr. Chair, my office and I respect the independence of the Auditor General, and in fact we take the recommendations very, very seriously. The only fiasco that was created was by the previous government in bungling the replacement of the fighters a long time ago. These jets should have been replaced, but the Conservatives did not get it done.

Recruiting of our pilots was very important even before we actually made the decision in our defence policy to increase the number of fighter jets so that we can meet our NORAD and NATO commitments simultaneously. We had decided that we needed our pilots and we started recruiting immediately, including mechanics as well.

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Chair, will the minister at least admit that the whole reason they came up with this so-called interim capability gap was that they fabricated it because the Prime Minister made a campaign promise in 2015 that he would not buy the F-35, and that the government has done everything in its power since that day to make sure the F-35 was not going to be competitive in what they call an open competition? It may be open, but my question is why it is not being fair.

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Vancouver South, BC]

Mr. Chair, we are committed to having an open and transparent competition to replace all the jets. We based it on the requirements of our Canadian Armed Forces.

I also know that the Leader of the Opposition made a statement in Montreal regarding an open and transparent competition as well. Does the member disagree with his own leader?

At the same time, what is the Conservatives' plan to cost their program? The reason I ask is that even when they wanted 65 aircraft, they only left enough money for 29.

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Chair, the condemnation in the Macdonald-Laurier Institute's report on fighter jets goes into great detail on how everything the government has done in trying to procure new aircraft has been done to fit its political narrative. The government is covering a silly, asinine promise made in a campaign by the Prime Minister by applying partisan political interests as a way to buy fighter jets.

Liberals bought F-18 jets from Australia that are as old as our F-18 jets. That is not fixing the capability gap, especially when we do not have pilots to fly them.

The question was asked, and I want an answer this time from the minister. Is that contract with the Government of Australia not a cancellation clause to get rid of the Aussie jets, which the Auditor General said are a waste of money?

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Vancouver South, BC]

Mr. Chair, our plan in our defence policy, as stated, is to have an open and transparent competition to replace an entire fighter fleet and buy 88 new jets.

The Leader of the Opposition has also said that he wants to have an open and transparent competition. If he thinks our plan is asinine, which is the same as the Leader of the Opposition's, does he believe his own leader's plan is asinine?

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Chair, buying used Australian fighter jets is not a sound way of making our air force stronger. The minister often talks about how we need pilots to fly them, but under his watch, over 20% of our pilots have left the air force because of the mismanagement of the Liberal government.

We have Boeing and Lockheed Martin. Both U.S. companies are not happy about the new RFP. Letters have been sent by United States departmental officials such as Ellen Lord, and they were published in the Macdonald-Laurier report. Officials are incredibly upset with how the Liberal government has handled our relationship with the United States under the NORAD construct.

Has anyone in the minister's office or his department met with Pentagon or White House officials in the last couple of weeks to talk about the new request for proposals for our fighter jet competition?

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Vancouver South, BC]

Mr. Chair, the previous government, which the member was a part of as parliamentary secretary for national defence, had 10 years to replace the fighter fleet, and it should have, but it did not get it done.

This time, not only do we have a policy that states we need more aircraft than the Conservatives wanted, but we have the money to do it. We have started the open and transparent competition. I am very proud of the work. We are meeting those milestones. We are committed to making sure that the RFP gets out as soon as possible.

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Chair, I really encourage the minister to read the correspondence coming from the Pentagon and the joint project office for the Joint Strike Fighter, talk to representatives from Boeing and Lockheed Martin and talk to Ellen Lord, who is the Under Secretary of Defense in the U.S. administration.

If we want to start looking at something, we need to look at what the RFP is. One of the things is that we need to have a two-eyed capability, which is Canada and the United States. Right now, we have a dismal relationship because of the Liberals' mismanagement on the fighter jet file.

How can the minister guarantee two-eyed capability in Canada's next fighter jet when he has ruined our relationship with the Americans as a result of Liberal partisan policies?

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Vancouver South, BC]

Mr. Chair, our relationship with the U.S. is even further enhanced because we are doing things around the world together. We are engaging with them on operations. I had many opportunities to go to the Pentagon and had many opportunities for myself and officials to discuss many things with them.

One report that is also very important is the Auditor General's report on the previous government's handling of the future fighter program. That report shows how important it was for us to take those recommendations so that we can have an open and transparent competition that is going to work. The previous government had 10 years to replace the fighter jets and it did not. We will.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

I will let the member for Hamilton East—Stoney Creek know that there are only about 11 or 12 minutes remaining in the time provided. Normally it would be 15 minutes. He has up to 10 minutes for his speech, and then maybe there will be time for one question, if he takes his full 10 minutes.

The hon. member for Hamilton East—Stoney Creek.

[Bob Bratina, Liberal, Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON]

Mr. Chair, I am thankful for the opportunity to speak today.

I am pleased to spend the time allotted to me discussing the Communications Security Establishment, also known as CSE, and the important work it does in cyber-defence and cyber-protection, as well as the cyber-work performed by the Canadian Armed Forces.

CSE is one of Canada's critical security and intelligence organizations within the national defence portfolio. It is Canada's national signals intelligence agency and serves the national interest by providing foreign intelligence to inform government decision-making. CSE also has the mandate to provide technical and operational assistance to federal law enforcement and security agencies in performing their lawful duties.

However, I am here today to focus on the second part of CSE's current mandate: cyber-defence and cyber-protection.

CSE has more than 70 years of history providing advice and guidance, including more than a decade of operational experience in defending cyber-systems of importance to the Government of Canada.

We know that good cybersecurity is critical to Canada's competitiveness, economic stability and long-term prosperity. That is why we launched the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, as promised in budget 2018. This new centre will provide Canadian citizens and businesses with a trusted place for cybersecurity advice.

Through the newly established Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, we are provided with sophisticated technical expertise to help identify, prepare for and respond to the most severe cyber-threats and attacks against computer networks and systems and the important information they contain. It also provides advice and guidance so Canadians can better protect themselves.

In the short time since its launch last fall, the cyber centre has improved operational coordination, providing better cyber-protection and more efficient responses in cases of cyber-attacks. This has improved Canada's cybersecurity overall. It has also made strides in increasing public and industry awareness and engagement on all matters of cybersecurity.

Canadians can rest assured that their government is prepared to meet the cybersecurity challenges of today and tomorrow. Reliable, secure cyber-systems are vital to Canadians' daily lives. That is why, in our last two budgets, we have taken action to strengthen Canada's cybersecurity.

In budget 2018, we committed $507.7 million over five years, starting in 2018-19, and $108.8 million per year ongoing to support Canada's first comprehensive national cyber security strategy, which includes establishing the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security.

Budget 2019 builds on these investments, proposing $144.9 million over five years, starting in 2019-20, to help better protect Canada's critical cyber-systems. For the cyber centre, this funding will support its advice and guidance to critical infrastructure owners and operators on how to better prevent and address cyber-attacks, no matter where they might originate.

Since October 1, CSE and the cyber centre have published key public reports to inform Canadians about the threats we face, including the first-ever unclassified “National Cyber Threat Assessment 2018” and the “2019 Update on Cyber Threats to Canada's Democratic Process”.

In today's dynamic security environment, CSE's efforts to educate, protect and defend Canada and Canadians against cyber-threats are more critical than ever.

Protecting Canadians includes protecting our democratic processes from threats of foreign interference. This is why the Government of Canada has created a security and intelligence threats to elections task force, in which CSE plays an integral role. This task force also includes the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Global Affairs Canada.

The security and intelligence threats to elections task force works to counter covert, clandestine or criminal activities from influencing or interfering with the electoral process in Canada. It aims to prepare the government to assess and respond to threats to our elections.

However, CSE's work is not limited to the security and intelligence threats to elections task force. It is also working closely with Elections Canada to protect its infrastructure.

CSE, through the cyber centre, has offered cybersecurity advice and guidance to all 16 recognized federal political parties. It has also published companion resource documents for both Canadians and political campaigns on its website.

Pending the passage of Bill C-59, which is currently being studied in the other chamber, CSE would be able to provide more targeted advice, guidance and services to designated critical infrastructure owners upon their request. If passed, Bill C-59 would give CSE the mandate to conduct online operations to disrupt foreign threat attacks against Canadian systems. The same sophisticated cyber capabilities that CSE would employ could also be leveraged by the Canadian Armed Forces in support of military operations.

Cyberspace is becoming ever-more contested, and our adversaries are becoming more sophisticated. At the same time, our reliance on cyber is increasing. National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces recognize the importance of staying ahead of our adversaries in this environment. Cyber considerations must be built into everything the defence team does. Our government is ensuring that the women and men of the Canadian Armed Forces have the tools and equipment they need to accomplish their important missions at home and abroad.

That is why “Strong, Secure, Engaged” includes several important initiatives to strengthen Canada's cyber capabilities, notably the new cyber mission assurance program and the creation of a new cyber operator trade within the Canadian Armed Forces.

As the nature of technological threats is evolving, using Canada's cyber talent is essential to face future challenges. We are determined to maintain a modern and agile force capable of responding to the technological challenges of today and tomorrow.

With the cyber mission assurance program, National Defence is considering cyber defence on all new equipment and technologies. That means identifying and addressing cyber-associated risks to military networks and equipment before buying. Cybersecurity is top of mind when the defence team assesses its current capabilities, fleets and infrastructure. It is deliberate and attentive in safeguarding computer networks, platforms and weapons systems, and networked equipment in key infrastructure.

I want to stress that cyber mission assurance takes place at every level, from the largest procurement projects outlined in SSE to the logistics officer overseas procuring goods for deployed personnel, to individual defence team members sitting at their computers. This is a coherent and enduring program that manages cyber-threats to ensure that the Canadian Armed Forces is always in control of its actions. All of this helps to ensure that cyber-related disruptions do not interrupt military operations or the important business of security and defence.

As I mentioned, creating the cyber operator trade within the military was another important initiative in the defence policy. That includes new cyber operator roles within the reserve force that support the newly created cyber force, a specialized team of both military and civilian personnel.

This, combined with the changes that Bill C-59 proposes, would allow CSE to support cyber operations in Canadian Armed Forces missions when required and to deploy cybersecurity tools to defend Canada's critical infrastructure upon request.

CSE is proud to play a critical role in protecting Canada and Canadians from cyber-threats. Our top priorities are to protect, defend and educate in order to secure our networks from adversaries. As the reliance of Canada and Canadians on connected technology increases, so will the need for CSE and the Canadian Armed Forces and their cyber mandate.

Those are my remarks. I will use the remainder of my time, if I may, to put some questions to the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence.

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Vancouver South, BC]

Mr. Chair, I thought I would take the question because the CSE was not talked about. I want to give justice to the tremendous work that the CSE has been doing behind the scenes, especially when it comes to protecting Canadians for decades. In this new sphere of cyber, the CSE has done tremendous work when it comes to the creation of the cyber centre. It has also been working with the Minister of Democratic Institutions to protect our democracy. The CSE folks have the right expertise to take on this new threat and challenge.

I also want to thank the folks at the cyber centre.

I want to speak of one particular person, the chief of CSE, Shelly Bruce, who is one of the topmost operational persons. People will not know about her tremendous work, but I do. I want to thank her. I want her to take this up and thank all the officials at the CSE because they do not get the same recognition other people do.

I also want to take an opportunity to thank all the officials here and in the lobby for supporting me. I also want to thank all the members in the House who took part.

I especially want to thank my parliamentary secretary. It has been a privilege to work with him. He has the same heart and desire to help our women and men in the Canadian Armed Forces. He has also supported me in my third committee of the whole, which just gives me an opportunity to talk more about the great work we are doing for the Canadian Armed Forces.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

It being 10:29 p.m., pursuant to Standing Order 81(4) all votes are deemed reported. The committee will rise and I will now leave the chair.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

The House stands adjourned until tomorrow at 10 a.m. pursuant to Standing Order 24(1).

(The House adjourned at 10:30 p.m.)