What a load of BS? The first duty of a government is to protect its citizens? (Wonder where they got that ?) If that's the first duty why did it end

up on page 73 if it was such a priority? Their rhetoric doesn't match their actions. The military critics can pretty well cut this nonsense to
shreds.Just because they roll out this mush doesn't necessarily mean they are
doing what must be done to protect Canadians. CSIS was also downsized by about
700 people , so protecting Canadians wasn't their first priority. The Sponsorship and gun registry seemed to have much higher priority.Since the crooks don't pay attention to PR fluff pieces, they aren't too concerned about the $2billion wasted on the registry.

Page 73

"Supporting Canada’s defence forces – New policy and new resources
The first duty of government is to protect its citizens.Today, that
responsibility has been complicated
by the emergence of new threats – failed and fragile states, international
criminal syndicates,
weapons proliferation, and terrorists prepared to act with no concern for the
cost in human lives,
including their own.
The international policy statement set out the Liberal government’s commitments
to defend
Canada; to pull our weight in protecting the northern portion of the North
American
continent; and to preserve Canada’s sovereignty, notably in the high Arctic.
This new defence
strategy includes the following key elements:
 Canada Command – A fundamental restructuring of our domestic military
operations under
a unified command that will make certain that Canada’s military has a single
line of command
to more quickly and efficiently act in time of crisis.
 Expanded Canadian Forces – Our military strength will be increased by 5,000
regular troops
and 3,000 reserves, with up-to-date equipment to do the job as safely as
possible. This will
enhance our ability to address situations of humanitarian catastrophe in a way
that will allow
Canada to play a leading role in peace support operations.
 New resources – We will provide an additional $13 billion of investments in
defence capacity
over the next five years – the largest increase in the military budget in two
decades.We will
move forward with the procurement of a new tactical airlift fleet for the
Canadian Forces. It
will allow for the acquisition of new medium-heavy capacity helicopters,
logistics trucks,
search and rescue utility aircraft and specialized facilities for Joint Task
Force Two, Canada’s
elite anti-terrorist troops.With these investments, the Canadian Forces will be
able to do more
of what they already do so well."
*************************************************************
http://www.parl.gc.ca/37/2/parlbus/chambus/house/debates/119_2003-09-15/han119_1435-E.htm

Mr. Jay Hill (Prince George—Peace River, Canadian Alliance): Mr. Speaker,
today the highly respected British military publication Jane's Defence Weekly
delivered a scathing indictment of the Liberal government's attack on our
nation's armed forces, but we know who the real culprit is. As finance
minister, it was the member for LaSalle--Émard who slashed $20 billion from
Canadian Forces' budgets.

He wrote the cheque for posh new Challenger jets for the cabinet while our
military continues to try to keep 40 year old Sea Kings and Hercules in the
air. Is this what our military can expect once he achieves leadership?


They pulled out $20 billion over 10 years and are "promising" to put back $13
billion over the next 5 years? Doing the math, they are still about $7 billion
short from where they were years ago let alone what is really needed after
inflation in the next 5 years.Only with this government can less be translated as more. How many cabinet Ministers have been flying in the Sea Kings? lately

[Canada election security]