Discussion · Government Orders
Rhéal Éloi Fortin Bloc Québécois
“This bill spends defence money on new government offices and high salaries for political friends instead of buying tanks, planes, or recruiting soldiers. I want to know what my colleague thinks about meeting our NATO defence spending targets this way.”
“Mr. Speaker, I would like to hear my colleague’s views on the 5% of GDP that NATO requires for defence spending. Personally, I thought the government would be investing in buying tanks or airplanes or recruiting new soldiers. Instead, it seems to be investing primarily in organizational structures. There was going to be an agency, and now it will be a corporation. There was going to be a director, but now they will be called something else. I do not know what the person’s title will be, but their salary will be at least double that of their predecessor. The government is tinkering with structures. All of this comes at a cost to Canadians and Quebeckers. At a time when everyone is tightening their belts and being asked to pay more, the government is spending money not on improving our defence capabilities, but on creating new structures and jobs for the Prime Minister’s friends. This strikes me as a highly questionable way of meeting the NATO target. What does my colleague think?”
Mr. Speaker, I would like to hear my colleague’s views on the 5% of GDP that NATO requires for defence spending. Personally, I thought the government would be investing in buying tanks or airplanes or recruiting new soldiers. Instead, it seems to be investing primarily in organizational structures. There was going to be an agency, and now it will be a corporation. There was going to be a director, but now they will be called something else. I do not know what the person’s title will be, but their salary will be at least double that of their predecessor. The government is tinkering with structures. All of this comes at a cost to Canadians and Quebeckers. At a time when everyone is tightening their belts and being asked to pay more, the government is spending money not on improving our defence capabilities, but on creating new structures and jobs for the Prime Minister’s friends. This strikes me as a highly questionable way of meeting the NATO target. What does my colleague think?