QUESTION PERIOD — National Defence
Arctic Sovereignty
September 23, 2025
Senator Moreau, congratulations on your new role. The opposition here in the Senate is looking forward to working with you.
Having said that, of course, government leader, according to a CBC report yesterday, Transport Canada quietly cut back aerial surveillance flights over the Arctic this summer — this comes at a time of growing Chinese and Russian incursion in the North and despite this government’s repeated rhetoric on the importance of Arctic security. If your government cannot even ensure the operability of three turboprop patrol planes in the region, how can Canadians trust that the additional $9 billion in defence spending won’t be wasted on truncated procurement processes while our forces continue to struggle with basic operability in our North?
I think the government is well aware of the importance of securing all the borders of Canada, including the northern section of our country. The government is committed to the security and safety of all Canadians, and they will take into consideration whatever needs we must fulfill in order to ensure the security of Canada in all parts of our country.
While the Russians and the Chinese are using icebreakers and piercing through our North, Senator Moreau, we have learned that Transport Canada has an active contract with an Israeli firm for Arctic surveillance drones, with delivery originally expected in 2022, yet no drones have been received. Why has this program been delayed? Is the government placing its virtue-signalling Middle Eastern policy over Canada’s important Arctic sovereignty and security policy?
The government is taking very seriously all security matters. For instance, Canada has one of the largest coastlines in the world, and it is up to us to defend it. This is why the government is procuring up to 12 conventionally powered, under-ice capable submarines. It is the same with icebreakers. We are looking forward to that. The government announced massive investment in the military to ensure that we have all the tools we need in order to ensure security in Canada.
