National Defence committee  I'll be working on the procurement file, specifically the national shipbuilding strategy; the defence renewal process to find savings within the department and reallocate from lower to higher priorities; the Veterans Affairs file; and I also will be responsible for the science, t

National Defence committee  I think our model—

National Defence committee  I think that the actual fitting of weapons on a ship is the smallest part of the problem and the smallest part of the challenge, if you were to change the function of the Coast Guard. It is a civilian agency. It doesn't have a culture across the organization of military training,

National Defence committee  I think the roles of parliamentarians are quite clear in a democracy. Your roles are to represent constituents' issues in the House of Commons and ensure that democracy remains safe in this country. In terms of the committee, I have a lot of experience with the fisheries committ

National Defence committee  He is in Colorado Springs. He is a major-general.

National Defence committee  Chris Coates....

National Defence committee  Certainly, that was an approach I used when I was in the Coast Guard. Right now, we are focused on delivering the services that are on your plate and your agenda for the upcoming year. Where we need to be is how we, in the Coast Guard, implemented a number of major initiatives, t

National Defence committee  Safely has a number of facets to it. When I was in the military, it was, of course, about keeping the ship and crew safe. In an organization like the Coast Guard, it was ensuring, as we took on different and new tasks, that the training, infrastructure, and vessels were there for

National Defence committee  It's a very interesting question, and thank you for it. It's one we are asked a lot in the Coast Guard. I'm not there any longer, but it's certainly something I was frequently asked when I was commissioner. The interesting thing about coast guards is that there are as many differ

National Defence committee  Thank you. Mr. Chair, I very much appreciate the opportunity to be here and to introduce myself to all of you as the new senior associate deputy minister of national defence. This is day 17. Over the past three weeks, I've had the feeling of being on new but familiar ground. I