House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2021, with 49% of the vote.
National Defence November 22nd, 2016
Mr. Speaker, I am very proud to be able to announce today that we will be launching an open competition to finally replace our fighter fleet, a file that has been mismanaged for the last 10 years. In addition, we will be investing in our military to make sure we have an interim fleet that will fulfill this capability gap.
Our government is committed to investing in our Canadian Armed Forces, and that is exactly what we are doing.
National Defence November 21st, 2016
Mr. Speaker, as I stated earlier, when our troops deploy into areas where there is malaria we need to make sure that they are fully covered. We are looking at all aspects of this issue. The chief of the defence staff has asked the surgeon general to look at this. We will make sure that we make all of the right decisions so that our troops are well looked after on operations.
National Defence November 21st, 2016
Mr. Speaker, there is a capability gap with our fighter jets. There is also a capability gap with our navy. If the Conservatives had looked at and focused on the military, we would actually have joint supply ships right now and not have to look at fixing things in the interim. Therefore, we are focused on replacing our fighter jets. We will be making a decision on the process going forward because we are committed to replacing our fighter jets.
National Defence November 21st, 2016
Mr. Speaker, I find that quite ironic, considering the previous government was into sole-sourcing the F-35. It should have looked at this problem a long time ago. It should have replaced our aging fleet.
Over the summer we have done a considerable amount of work with my colleagues in the various departments. The officials have done a lot of work. We are getting all of the necessary information and we will make a decision on replacing the fighters and will pick a process that will meet the needs of Canada.
Foreign Affairs November 16th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, I would like to inform the hon. member that the allies whom I consult with for the counter-ISIL meetings are the same allies I work with on United Nations peace operations, because all the conflicts actually are interlinked. I am making sure that we all work together and not just look at one region of the world. They are interlinked, and we need to be able to coordinate these efforts. That is a level of conversation that we are having, and I am happy to be able to explain in further detail in a short time. I will be happy to explain in person to the hon. member the analysis that is going to be ongoing.
Foreign Affairs November 16th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is right. In terms of the complexity of the threats and weapons systems out there, when we are looking at the threats we need to take our time to make sure that we have all of the necessary information, and allow the military to do its analysis as well, and also that we do a whole-of-government analysis. When we feel confident with the information, we will dutifully inform the House and Canadians of where we are going, and why we will be doing it as well.
The Environment November 15th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, I am aware of the situation and I have asked the department for additional briefings on it. When I have additional information, I will provide it for the member.
National Defence November 15th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, we take the health and well-being of our Canadian Armed Forces members extremely seriously. Malaria is a life-threatening disease present in many areas of the world to which our members may deploy during their career.
The type of medication members of our Canadian Forces use must be left to the medical experts. Individuals are carefully assessed and screened by health services to ensure they have all the necessary information to make an evidence-based decision for their anti-malarial medication.
National Defence November 15th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, as I stated before, our troops are in the advise and assist function, but they have robust rules of engagement to protect themselves. In many cases, they need to protect not only themselves but their coalition partners and civilians. This is imperative. They have a duty to do so. I am proud of the work they are doing in fulfilling their mission in an honourable manner.
When we conduct any operations around the world, we make sure they have the right capability, the right equipment, and robust rules of engagement to carry out their mission.
National Defence November 15th, 2016
Mr. Speaker, regardless of where we send our troops in the world, regardless of operations, we are going to make sure they have a robust engagement, and we can be proud of their work.
On the information the member opposite is talking about in terms of the rules of engagement, our soldiers have a duty to protect civilians at times. Our troops are fulfilling this mission within the appropriate advise and assist mandate. Our Chief of the Defence Staff was at committee today. I have a tech brief that will be presented tomorrow. Also, we have journalists right now reporting on this in theatre. That is open and transparent in what we are providing.