Discussion · Government Orders
Xavier Barsalou-Duval Bloc Québécois
“The government's defence spending is confusing, even to the Parliamentary Budget Officer. The government seems to be spending money quickly just to hit targets, instead of spending it for the right reasons.”
“Madam Speaker, in connection with what my colleague just said, the committee also heard from the Parliamentary Budget Officer, who admitted that she herself is having a hard time keeping track of government spending on what is included in NATO, what is not included in NATO and what is included in National Defence spending. It is very difficult to find out what is really going on. If the Parliamentary Budget Officer is confused, I think that quite a few people would have reason to be confused. As for including the Coast Guard in the management of National Defence and raising salaries, I am not saying that those were bad decisions. I think that these are decisions that can be justified. What matters, however, is that they not be made on the fly and that they not be decided on the back of a napkin simply to meet targets. That is what it seems like right now. These decisions are not being made for the right reasons. The government is making these decisions just to meet targets, to show that it is spending as much as possible. I think the goal should not be to spend as much as possible. That is more or less my message. The goal should be to spend on the right things for the right reasons, and on that front, I am not sure the government is on the right track.”
Madam Speaker, in connection with what my colleague just said, the committee also heard from the Parliamentary Budget Officer, who admitted that she herself is having a hard time keeping track of government spending on what is included in NATO, what is not included in NATO and what is included in National Defence spending. It is very difficult to find out what is really going on. If the Parliamentary Budget Officer is confused, I think that quite a few people would have reason to be confused. As for including the Coast Guard in the management of National Defence and raising salaries, I am not saying that those were bad decisions. I think that these are decisions that can be justified. What matters, however, is that they not be made on the fly and that they not be decided on the back of a napkin simply to meet targets. That is what it seems like right now. These decisions are not being made for the right reasons. The government is making these decisions just to meet targets, to show that it is spending as much as possible. I think the goal should not be to spend as much as possible. That is more or less my message. The goal should be to spend on the right things for the right reasons, and on that front, I am not sure the government is on the right track.