Fraser Tolmie

“Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Labrador. This is my first opportunity to speak in the House since the tragedy at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright, so I want to begin by offering my deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of those who tragically died in this tragedy. My thoughts are also with those who were injured, their families and the entire community as they grieve and support one another through this difficult time. I rise today to give my full support to Bill C-30, which will transform the way Canada procures military equipment, invests in defence and, above all, builds its domestic defence industry. The Defence Investment Agency was created in October 2025 to speed up military procurement, but transforming it into a Crown corporation could reduce bureaucracy. I will come back to this later, but companies seeking defence contracts face significant challenges. The government has invested billions of dollars in defence, and that is very good. We want to meet NATO’s targets, but we also need to ensure that these investments benefit Canadian businesses and workers. The agency was originally established to modernize defence procurement. That was a very good first step, but it did not go far enough. Bill C-40 will finally give the agency the authority and independence it needs to accelerate the contract awarding process, reduce red tape and better coordinate government efforts. This is very important for accelerating and facilitating SMEs’ access to the defence market. This is a very practical response to the concerns that businesses have shared with us. It is also a way to quickly turn our defence investments into quality jobs for Canadians, innovation, and economic spinoffs at a time when we really need them. I want to focus specifically on the aerospace industry in Quebec and Canada, especially because Quebec’s aerospace industry is a major asset. This summer, I had the pleasure of organizing a round table that brought together both large corporations and SMEs from Quebec’s aerospace and defence industry. Bombardier was there, but so were many other innovative SMEs. In Quebec, we have outstanding expertise, world-class businesses and a network of specialized companies that contribute to our ability to innovate in Canada and around the world in the aerospace industry. During this round table with businesses, one very clear message emerged. One of the biggest obstacles to their growth and ability to secure contracts is the slow, bureaucratic pace of the defence procurement process. Their representatives explained to me that the historic investments we have announced for the defence sector are not automatically translating into jobs and economic spinoffs, because it takes so long to get contracts signed. These contracts are essential if businesses are to invest, hire staff and engage with other suppliers. For example, if Bombardier wins a defence contract, the entire chain of SMEs in Quebec and Canada stands to benefit as a result. The participants also pointed out that SMEs often struggle to access defence tenders, even if the government has already awarded them contracts and their technology is well known. In short, it takes a very long time for contracts to be awarded. Not only do we need to invest in defence, but we also need to ensure that our investments translate quickly into contracts, innovation and well-paying jobs for Canadians. Transforming the Defence Investment Agency is very important for doing that. Not only are we streamlining the processes, but another very aspect is that we are bringing together expertise within the agency to speed up procurement. If we do the right thing with this bill, we will finally be able to respond directly to the main concern expressed by the industry. Our aim is not just to spend more on defence, but to transform these investments into strong, lasting Canadian industrial capabilities that benefit our businesses and our workers, while ensuring the sovereignty of our amazing country. The agency’s core mandate is to combine and build on existing defence procurement expertise within government through a single organization focused on a very specific objective. Rather than duplicate the use of resources, it pools operational knowledge and expertise on procurement contracts in one place. As I said, one of the concerns that was mentioned during the round table was that companies have to explain their expertise or technology to one agency and then turn around and explain it again to another, even after receiving approval. They often have to repeat things twice. Now, everything will come together in a single agency. The agency’s transformation reflects our government’s commitment to build a strong, secure and sovereign Canada. With more autonomy and stronger contractual authority, the agency will finally be able to ease its administrative burden and improve its efficiency and speed, because these investments are needed now. This will strengthen our country’s ability to defend itself while providing more accountability. In February 2026, the unveiling of the first-ever defence industrial strategy marked a key step in modernizing our procurement system. The strategy already called for a whole-of-government approach aimed at strengthening our defence industrial base. We are now seeing the results of this strategy, since we have finally met the NATO defence spending target of 2% of our GDP. We have also reaffirmed our commitment to meeting the NATO target of investing 5% of GDP by 2035. The agency will obviously play a key role in meeting those targets. We are at a hinge moment. Global uncertainty, supply chain disruptions and evolving security challenges have made one thing very clear: Protecting Canadians and safeguarding our sovereignty, our economy and our military capability is what will give us industrial and military strength. Our investments in defence are also a powerful driver of growth for our economy and our innovative sectors. Let us consider just a few examples. Drone technology was developed for defence, but it can also be used in agriculture. Military aerospace innovations benefit the entire aerospace industry. The same is true for shipbuilding and satellites. There is a great company in the Outaouais region, Telesat, that builds satellites. That also benefits AI and cybersecurity. All of these examples show that by working with an effective agency, we will be able to build a strong and sovereign Canada.”