House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2019, with 47% of the vote.
National Defence October 25th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, it is the Prime Minister who wants to cut defence spending, both military and civilian. He said in his letter “here can be no expectation that the defence budget will grow in the next few years”. Conservatives have previously promised 2% annual increases in the National Defence budget and now they have broken their word to the Canadian Forces.
Could the Prime Minister explain why he has lost confidence in the Minister of National Defence carrying out his duties?
National Defence October 25th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, here is something new: a letter from the Conservative Prime Minister to the Minister of National Defence demanding the military be cut. This letter talks about reducing military and civilian personnel at National Defence and has the Prime Minister openly scolding the Minister of National Defence for his inadequacy.
Will the minister heed the Prime Minister's request and implement cuts that could result in fewer regular force personnel?
Search and Rescue October 24th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, the Swedish Maritime Administration is replacing its fleet of search and rescue helicopters from the same manufacturer of the Cormorants used by the Canadian Forces for search and rescue in Canada.
This group is the authority for maritime and aeronautical search and rescue services in Sweden where, like in Canada, rescue helicopters are on standby for search and rescue operations both at sea and over land. There the comparison ends.
Sweden is only one-twentieth the size of Canada and its population is less than a third of ours. Yet they have five primary SAR stations with helicopters, while we only have four. They are on duty 24/7, all year, and must have a helicopter in the air within 15 minutes after they have been alerted. In Canada, the response standard is 30 minutes from 8 o'clock to 4 o'clock on weekdays and two hours at all other times.
In June, a specific motion to adopt a 30-minute response standard, 24/7, year-round, was before the House and the Conservatives, every one of them, voted against it.
National Defence October 23rd, 2012
Mr. Speaker, the government has had plenty of time to make service to our veterans a priority, but it failed, as injured and ill Canadian Forces members are too often falling through the cracks and have to wait too long to get the benefits, services and treatment they deserve.
DND threatening court action against Master Corporal Kevin Clark, a soldier suffering from PTSD, after he missed two days of work six years ago is only one example.
Announcements and photo ops can only take us so far. Why does the government have to be told by the Auditor General to do the right thing?
National Defence October 23rd, 2012
Mr. Speaker, today we have learned from the Auditor General that the Conservatives have let down ill and injured Canadian Forces members and veterans trying to receive the services and benefits they deserve.
The process for accessing services is too complex, requires too much paperwork and is lengthy and challenging to navigate. CF members, veterans and even departmental staff find the process complex.
Why will the government not make the delivery of services to our veterans and military a priority?
Ethics October 18th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, on the one hand we have $18,000 in free flights; a campaign manager the Conservatives call incompetent; and a minister claiming he is not responsible because he is new.
On the other hand we have Reg Bowers, the scapegoat, rewarded with a plum patronage appointment by the Prime Minister; the minister's brother-in-law negotiating questionable agreements after the fact; and potential campaign overspending of 21% by a minister who won by only 79 votes.
Would the minister admit that his campaign broke the law?
Ethics October 17th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, we have an old refrain here, “Conservative Party stepping in to scapegoat a supposedly inexperienced official agent”. He proved unable to competently run a local election campaign within the rules, but Reg Bowers was still so well regarded by the Prime Minister that he was awarded with a plum appointment to the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board. He is qualified, apparently, to help direct the billion dollar oil industry but not competent to keep a local riding campaign on budget.
Why did the Conservatives reward someone for breaking all the rules with a plum patronage post?
Ethics October 17th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, no amount of bafflegab can erase the unethical financing scheme that helped elect the member for Labrador in the last election: $24,000 worth of flights for $7,000 is clearly not fair market value, and apparently this deal was brokered by the member's brother-in-law months after the election was over. All they could afford to pay was $7,000 after all their misspending.
I want to know what the government is doing to hold the minister to account for his rule-breaking election campaign.
National Defence October 16th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, it could be none, or none he is prepared to admit.
The minister said that no Canadian Forces members would be involved in combat operations, but on the weekend a CF spokesperson said that members were “permitted to be in Kandahar province and to serve in combat roles”.
Why did the minister mislead the House in 2010? Why can we not trust the minister and the Prime Minister at their word? Why will Conservatives not respect the motion passed by this House of Commons?
National Defence October 16th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, in November 2010, the Minister of National Defence told the House, “there will be no combat role for our military in Kandahar past July 2011”. The Prime Minister said that military activity would be limited to guarding the embassy at Kabul.
We now know Canadian soldiers have been sent to combat operations in Kandahar. Yesterday in the House the Minister of National Defence referred to the mission as “professional development”. Are there any other combat operations disguised as professional development about which the minister would like to inform the House?