House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2000, with 71% of the vote.
National Defence November 19th, 1997
You bet, Mr. Speaker.
When I was in Bosnia recently, I met with General Ramsay, a British army officer who was in charge of the sector that the Canadian troops are serving in. He had the highest praise for the capability, the professionalism and the performance of the Canadian troops in Bosnia and their humanitarian work. I think that is more indicative of what the British army thinks.
In terms of Lieutenant-General Pike, it seems he does not think that women can reflect—
Military Procurement November 19th, 1997
These purchases, Mr. Speaker, have been around for some period of time and certainly there has been every opportunity for the opposition to ensure that discussions were held and questions were in fact put on all these issues.
These matters are a point of making sure that we get the kind of equipment, the kind of tools that our Canadian forces need to be able to do their job.
National Defence November 18th, 1997
Mr. Speaker, I think we are hearing a lot of scare mongering here, in particular with these figures that do not have a basis in fact.
We are going through implementation of cuts. As we go through them we consult with the unions involved and with the personnel involved. We are doing this in a fair and reasonable fashion as in fact we have done with all cuts in terms of the public service, because that is the proper way our employees should be treated.
National Defence November 18th, 1997
Mr. Speaker, we are, as are other government operations and departments, going through the results of program review. Deficit reduction is required. Decisions on cuts in government spending were made two or three years ago and we are in the throes of implementing them.
Yes, there are changes. There are cuts in jobs. I cannot confirm those figures however. The cuts that are being made are being done in a fair and reasonable fashion. People are being treated fairly and humanely in terms of departure incentives from the defence department.
National Defence November 6th, 1997
Mr. Speaker, I do not understand the audacity of the party that fouled up the previous deal on helicopters to stand up and say all these things.
Let me tell you, Mr. Speaker, there are going to be a lot of jobs in all parts of this country when this helicopter deal is finalized. That is something we are insisting upon in the bidding process. We want jobs created in this country.
Search And Rescue Helicopters November 6th, 1997
Mr. Speaker, we do not fly dangerous helicopters. There is no doubt that these helicopters are getting toward the end of their lives. There is no doubt that they need to be replaced and will be replaced soon.
If the Conservatives had not botched this up previously, there might have been a helicopter long before this. We are going to get good value for the Canadian taxpayer. We are going to buy helicopters that are off the shelf type and not the developing kind of helicopter, a proposition that would have cost us a lot more money.
Even with the penalty that had to be paid to cancel the previous sad deal, we still will be saving taxpayers' money.
Search And Rescue Helicopters November 6th, 1997
Mr. Speaker, I heard the word helicopter so I jumped up. I did not hear much of anything else other than something to the effect that he was not part of the previous Conservative government prior to our taking office in 1993. Thank goodness for that. He is most fortunate because they really botched up the helicopter job when they were in power.
National Defence November 6th, 1997
Mr. Speaker, there has been no determination as to when the announcement will be made. No decision has yet been made.
When the decision is made it will be done on the basis of what is the best value for the Canadian taxpayers and what meets our operational needs. It indeed will not be the Cadillac version that the Tory government was trying to push down our throats. It will be a more modest version of a helicopter. Without saying which one it is, it is going to be a lot cheaper than what the Tories would have foisted on us.
Canadian Armed Forces November 6th, 1997
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member cannot assume who got it and who did not get it. He does not know. He is guessing.
It is in accordance with a general provision for people in the public service. It was also provided for the people in the Canadian forces. I might add that in terms of the rank and file, there have been two increases to close the gap between public service and Canadian forces personnel this year, one on April 1 and one on October 1. We are also working on another economic increase which will certainly give the rank and file of the Canadian forces a very deserved increase in pay.
Canadian Armed Forces November 6th, 1997
Mr. Speaker, again the research from the Reform Party is not very good. It was over a year ago that this performance pay was allowed. It was allowed in accordance with a Treasury Board decision. It reinstated performance pay for people at executive levels throughout the public service and included the RCMP and the Canadian forces.
I cannot comment specifically on who got it and who did not get it because that is not in accordance with the Privacy Act. Individuals within the forces as within all the public service have a right to privacy in this case.