Debates of May 15th, 2019

Department of National Defence—Main Estimates, 2019-20

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Chair, did the minister authorize the CDS to meet with the partisan political advisers to the Prime Minister, Telford and Butts, before initiating the decision to suspend Vice-Admiral Norman?

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

Mr. Chair, as I stated a number of times before, the entire process for this case has been completely independent. This has been confirmed by the prosecution and defence as well.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Chair, is it normal for the CDS to bypass the minister to brief the PMO staff, accompanied by the now disgraced national security adviser, about Vice-Admiral Norman?

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

Mr. Chair, as I stated, the entire process has been completely independent. I am happy to read the quote, but I am probably going to get cut off, “No other factors were considered in this decision, nor was there any contact or influence from outside—

[The Assistant Deputy Chair, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Chair, does the minister believe that Vice-Admiral Norman was subjected to biased treatment by his department between November 2015 and today?

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

Mr. Chair, in our process, it is very important to remain independent, and that is exactly what we have done. It was confirmed by the prosecution and by the defence. When the circumstances have changed, we have reviewed the requirements, and now the legal fees—

[The Assistant Deputy Chair, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Chair, could the minister explain why he hired CBC reporter James Cudmore?

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

Mr. Chair, all my staff are hired on their merits, and I thank them for their tremendous work.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Chair, who recommended him?

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

Mr. Chair, as I stated, all my staff are hired on their merits.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Chair, how many other interviews had the minister conducted before giving the job to this select reporter from the CBC, who had reported on the contract interference by the former president of the Treasury Board?

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

Mr. Chair, as I stated, everyone who gets hired by my office is hired on his or her merits.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Chair, when was the minister made aware of the arrival of the August 31, 2018, letter to André Fillion regarding the U.S. defense department's concerns over Canada's future participation in the joint strike fighter program?

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

Mr. Chair, I am not aware of what the member is referring to. One thing I can say is that we are committed to ensuring we deliver the right aircraft for our Canadian Armed Forces through an open and fair competition.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Chair, I was referring to the letter to Mr. Fillion that was included in the Macdonald-Laurier report, added as an appendix. How did the minister respond to that letter or did he?

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

Mr. Chair, I am very proud to stand and say that we are committed to ensuring our Canadian Armed Forces will get all the tools they need. Through our defence policy, it has been costed. More important, it is fully funded.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Chair, did the minister or his office have any part in the development of that response letter?

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

Mr. Chair, all the questions the member is asking, I have stated that as the Minister of National Defence, my responsibility is to ensure the women and men of the Canadian Armed Forces have all the tools necessary, and that is what we are committed to doing.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Chair, was any direction given from the PMO in the development of that response letter?

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

Mr. Chair, we are committed to ensuring we have an open and transparent competition in the procurement and to ensuring we put a focus on the delivery. Our number one focus is the people in the Canadian Armed Forces.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Chair, did the minister authorize the use of code words and phrases to bypass ATIP requests in the Norman case?

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

Mr. Chair, I have answered that question many times. As I have stated before, the entire process has been completely independent, and we have been co-operative throughout the entire process.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Chair, was the minister aware of the decision to use code phrases?