Robert Bouchard

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Chair, I have some more specific questions for the minister. How many detainees have been transferred since 2002? How many detainees have been transferred since 2005 inclusively? How many detainees were transferred in 2005, 2006 and 2007?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Chair, I do not want to bring up bad memories for the minister, but could he talk about the situation of the detainees handed over to Afghan authorities?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to speak about the Bagotville base. I also spoke briefly about the Cold Lake base.

At present, two military bases, Cold Lake and Bagotville, have F-18s. The Cold Lake base is responsible for western Canada, as far as Winnipeg. The Bagotville base covers the remaining territory or eastern Canada. The two bases must cover roughly the same area but do not have the same number of aircraft. The Cold Lake base has 58 F-18s whereas the Bagotville base has 24.

Given that there is a training facility at Cold Lake, and that the Bagotville base is far away, would it not be better to balance out the F-18 fleet to better protect Canadian territory?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, the Commissioner of Official Languages stated that the best a unilingual francophone soldier could hope for is to be an infantry soldier at Valcartier. What can the minister say to francophones to prove that the Commissioner of Official Languages was wrong?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, is the minister satisfied with the program transformation model with regard to the French fact, and why?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, in less than one month or so, the government has insulted francophones at least four times: by paralyzing the Standing Committee on Official Languages, by decreasing the number of bilingual positions, by appointing senior officers who do not have an adequate knowledge of French and by insulting the memory of francophones who died at Vimy. We wonder if the minister has decided to establish a second front against francophones.

My question is simple. Does the minister believe that francophones have a place, a rightful place, in the Canadian army?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Chair, I have one more brief question about this. We know a report will be submitted. Can the minister assure us that the report will be made public?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I do not think the minister really answered the question. A derogation was signed by the commander of Canada's air force, and it expires in October 2007. I would have liked to have received an answer to the question. Will the derogation be renewed, and for how long? Perhaps the minister cannot answer the question. If that is the case, I will go on to my next question.

With respect to the eastern Canada firing range, we know that a study is currently underway. The minister has confirmed this. In June 2006, military officials stated that an analysis of potential sites was underway and that proposals would be presented shortly. I am sure the minister is aware of this because the correspondence was addressed to him. With regard to the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region, elected representatives are in agreement and are waiting for a proposal from the Department of Defence concerning the location of this infrastructure.

I do not want the minister to give me the same answer he gave in the fall of 2006. Can he tell us when this file will be made available and when we will have access to the report's conclusions?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Chair, still on the subject of training for Bagotville CF-18 pilots, which takes place mainly in Valcartier, will the Minister of Defence renew the derogation that expires in October 2007?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Chair, I would like to thank the minister for being with us to answer our questions.

My questions have to do with my region and my riding, first of all. As a member of the opposition, I will assume my role with respect to a number of questions that concern Quebeckers and Canadians. Before asking my first question, I would like to express to the minister my appreciation concerning his willingness to take our questions.

Unlike 4 Wing Cold Lake, 3 Wing Bagotville does not have a firing range for CF-18 training. It trains in various firing ranges in eastern Canada, especially at Valcartier. The Minister of National Defence, through the air force commander, authorized derogation for CF-18 training at Valcartier. A note from the defence minister indicates the modifications that must be made to the firing range. The work was expected to cost an estimated $2 million. This derogation for CF-18 training expires in October 2007.

Does the minister intend to authorize the work to meet the standards at Valcartier?