Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, our government has reiterated its commitment to the national shipbuilding strategy. The strategy includes a $2-billion small-ship construction program for competitive procurement among Davie and other Canadian shipyards other than the yards selected to build large vessels.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, the Canadian Coast Guard's icebreaking services are essential for keeping our waters safe, protecting our shoreline economy, and strengthening our economy. We are working hard to ensure the continuity of these services, and the interim icebreaking services will supplement the program.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, our government has been on this since day one. We are focusing on our partnerships.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, we are focusing on improving our government. We have invested $192 million to clean up that mess, and hired 380 employees to ensure that public servants are paid the money they are owed.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, the Harper Conservatives botched this program from the beginning. While the previous government spent $309 million on the systems, booked savings of $70 million a year, and let go of hundreds of employees in order to falsely balance its budget—

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, we did not create this mess, but we are going to fix it.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, Stephen Harper's Conservatives botched this program from day one. They rushed the software rollout and prematurely laid off hundreds of workers who ensured that public service employees were paid on time. We inherited the Conservatives' defective system, but we are determined to find a permanent solution.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to the national shipbuilding strategy. The strategy is a long-term commitment that rejuvenates our marine industry, supports Canadian innovation, and creates jobs for Canadians. As announced in the strategy, there are still $2 billion in opportunities available to the Davie shipyard and other Canadian shipyards in the small-ship construction and ship repair, refit, and maintenance programs.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to the national shipbuilding strategy. The strategy is a long-term commitment that will rejuvenate our maritime industry, support Canadian innovation, and result in jobs for Canadians across the country. As set out in the strategy, $2 billion in opportunities remain for Chantier Davie and other Canadian shipyards for small ship construction projects, as well as ship repair, refit, and maintenance.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, on day two of my new job as public services and procurement minister, I was with the Prime Minister in Miramichi meeting the hard-working public servants who are leaving no stone unturned to make sure their colleagues get paid. We are doing everything to support them.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, on day two of my new job as Minister of Public Services and Procurement, I was in Miramichi with the Prime Minister to see just how hard public servants are working to fix the Phoenix problems. The well-being of those workers is of paramount importance to this government.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, let me assure everyone that resolving this issue is my top priority. People deserve to be paid properly and on time. When the previous government irresponsibly treated pay modernization as a cost-cutting measure instead of the complex, enterprise-wide business transformation that it was, it set the project up to fail and exposed it to enormous risk.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, our thoughts are with this family. Resolving this as quickly as possible is our priority. These issues have caused real hardships for many public servants and their families. They should not have to face this kind of situation. We will leave no stone unturned.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, it is unacceptable that hard-working public servants are not being paid the money they are owed. These issues have caused real hardships for many public servants and their families, and they should not have to face them. Resolving this as quickly as possible is our priority.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, it is unacceptable that public servants are not getting the salary they are owed. We are taking substantive measures to resolve this problem, including a $140-million investment in recruiting, hiring, and training new employees, emergency pay advances, and opening up satellite offices, among other things.