Jason Kenney

[National Defence, May 25th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his question and I thank the brilliant work of the Royal Canadian Air Force, much of which is situated in his constituency at CFB Trenton.

I can report that since the beginning of our Operation Impact as part of the multinational coalition against this genocidal terrorist organization, Air Task Force-Iraq has conducted 953 sorties, including 620 from our CF-18 Hornet fighters, 160 refuelling sorties by our Polaris aerial refuellers, and 173 reconnaissance missions by our CF-140 Aurora modernized aircraft.

Thanks in part to the coalition air campaign, ISIS controls 25% less territory than it did last September, but we must continue in the fight.

[National Defence, May 13th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member knows the answer to that question. He was in the House and heard me answer it here on numerous occasions. I said that the government and the Canadian Armed Forces have accepted all 10 recommendations. Not just 2, but all 10.

The orders that he is referring to were issued two months ago, before the report was published. The Canadian Armed Forces have been clear: they are going to implement the recommendations in the report. We will never condone sexual harassment in the Canadian Armed Forces.

[National Defence, May 13th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member does herself and this place a disservice by asking such a misleading question, filled with inaccurate premises.

Of course, we reject any form of sexual misconduct in the Canadian Armed Forces, which is why the Chief of the Defence Staff commissioned the independent inquiry from Madam Justice Deschamps. It is why he, two months ago, appointed Major General Christine Whitecross to lead a team to address this issue. It is why the Canadian Armed Forces has accepted not two, but, once again, all 10 of the recommendations made by Madam Justice Deschamps.

It is true that the military has not been able to implement all 10 of those recommendations in the last week, but will. It will do so.

[National Defence, May 13th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, military officials received Justice Deschamps' report only last week, and they have already implemented some of the recommendations. They agreed in principle with all 10 recommendations. General Lawson appointed Major-General Christine Whitecross two months ago to lead a team to address this very important issue. Now, that is action.

[National Defence, May 13th, 2015]

Yes, Mr. Speaker.

[Foreign Affairs, May 13th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, our government has worked closely with the Government of Iraq to ensure appropriate protection for Canadian Armed Forces members participating in coalition operations against the genocidal terrorist organization of the so-called Islamic state.

The status of forces agreements, of course, are binding treaty level international commitments that often take years to develop, and we do not have years to wait to save the Iraqi people from genocide, to save those women from sexual slavery, and to work with two dozen other countries in reinforcing this critical aspect of international security. That is why we are there acting rather than sitting on the sidelines.

[Foreign Affairs, May 13th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the government has been working closely with its counterparts in Iraq.

The Prime Minister and I met with the Prime Minister of Iraq last week in Bagdad. We have very close ties, and Iraqi authorities are very grateful for the Canadian Forces' contribution to defending their country and their people.

We continue to work on a status of forces agreement.

[National Defence, May 6th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, we have made no such mistake. We have only ever posted images released by the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces for public consumption.

With respect to the matter this week, obviously an error was made, and that is regrettable. The images were removed as soon as this was brought to the attention of the Prime Minister's Office. The protocols are being reviewed to ensure that such an error does not occur in the future. The Chief of the Defence Staff has issued a statement indicating that this has not placed members of the Canadian Armed Forces in harm's way and that therefore none will be removed from the theatre.

I think it would be more responsible for the member to engage in issues like this factually, rather than with over-the-top exaggeration.

[National Defence, May 6th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, obviously all Canadians, all parliamentarians and all military personnel agree that sexual assault is completely unacceptable. That is why the Chief of the Defence Staff asked Justice Deschamps to conduct a review, that is why the Canadian Armed Forces accepted all 10 recommendations and that is why Major-General Whitecross was appointed by the Chief of the Defence Staff to implement the recommendations.

Obviously, as minister, I will be keeping a close eye on the military's progress in implementing these recommendations.

[National Defence, May 6th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, once again, of course, sexual assault of any kind, in any aspect of Canadian society, is completely deplorable and unacceptable. That is particularly true in the Canadian Armed Forces, which is why General Lawson commissioned this report by former Madam Justice Deschamps and it is why he and the military leadership have committed to implementing all 10 of its recommendations. Progress has already been made on two. I think, realistically, we cannot expect all 10 recommendations to be implemented in six days; however, General Whitecross has been charged with this mandate and is making progress.

We will ensure that the job is completed to ensure that the Canadian Armed Forces is a safe environment for women and all people to work in.