National Defence  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Kingston and the Islands for his hard work. Canada is actively contributing to NATO's efforts to support global stability and deter Russian aggression. In July 2016, the Prime Minister announced that Canada would lead a robust multinational NATO battle group in Latvia.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, as I have stated, if the previous government had taken this seriously, it would have replaced our fighters a long time ago. We do have a capability gap and we cannot meet our NORAD and NATO commitments simultaneously; hence, the reason we will be supplementing our fleet.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, there is a capability gap and we are talking about other capability gaps. There is one with supply ships. If a capability gap is not fixed, it turns into a capability loss, and that is exactly what happened with the previous government with our joint supply ships and did not replace them properly.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, as I stated before, I appreciate the member's enthusiasm for providing for the Canadian Armed Forces, but if this were true, they would have solved this problem a long time ago. Today, along with my colleagues, I was very proud to stand up and announce the start of the competition.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, in Canada's new defence policy, we are committed to making sure we modernize our Canadian navy. As part of the national shipbuilding strategy, two permanent joint supply ships are required for our navy. However, because of the previous cuts, a capability gap was left and because of that, the interim capability gap will be filled by Davie shipyard, which built the Asterix.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, our government is ensuring that our Canadian Armed Forces are well looked after. This is why, with our new defence policy for Canada, we are investing unprecedented amounts in the Canadian Armed Forces, an additional $63 billion for the next 20 years, to make sure that our air force has the right aircraft, with a fully transparent competition.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, our fighter jets should have been replaced a long time ago, but they were not. However, with our new defence policy, we will make sure our Canadian Armed Forces are well looked after. We are going to have an open competition to replace our fighter jets, not with 65 like the previous government but with 88.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the extreme passion of the hon. member with respect to purchasing the right equipment for our Canadian Armed Forces. Maybe he should have been more passionate, and actually purchased the equipment 10 years ago, when it should have been replaced. With our new defence policy, we are going to make sure that we are not purchasing 65 aircraft, like the previous government wanted, but 88 aircraft, through a proper and fully transparent competition.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, because we lost our two joint supply ships, there was a capability gap that was created, hence the reason why two joint supply ships are being built. In terms of the timeline that it has taken, the interim gap that needs to be filled, Davie shipyard is building that interim capability gap, and we thank them for that service.

Public Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, as I have stated, the navy is currently in the midst of the most comprehensive fleet modernization in its peacetime history. Work is under way on the two joint supply ships that Seaspan is building. Because of some of the delays, the interim ship was required, and we thank Davie for its tremendous work in filling this interim capability gap.

Government Services and Procurement  Mr. Speaker, the navy is in the midst of the most comprehensive fleet modernization since peacetime in history. As part of the national shipbuilding strategy and under new defence policy, our government is acquiring fleet support ships to permanently replace the Protecteur class auxiliary oiler replenishment vessels.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, the navy is in the midst of one of the most comprehensive fleet modernizations in its peacetime history. As part of the national capabilities strategy under our new defence policy, our government is acquiring fleet support ships to permanently replace the Protecteur-class auxiliary oiler replenishment vessels.

Public Safety  Mr. Speaker, the only cutting of the Canadian Armed Forces that was done was by the previous government of billions of dollars. Under our new defence policy, we are investing in our people. In chapter 1, we are looking after people, increasing their pay, increasing their benefits, and, more importantly, for any deployed personnel on an international named operation, it will be tax-free.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, through our defence policy, our government is committed to providing unprecedented support to our people and their families. This government is committed to ensuring that our military members receive their fair compensation for their service to their country. That is why our government has recently approved a 6.3% pay raise for most of the military's members.

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, this year's Halifax International Security Forum was a great success in facilitating important discussions and innovative thinking on global security challenges. I had the chance to discuss important issues with our partners and allies, including increasing women's role in peacekeeping.