Hon. Roméo Antonius Dallaire:

Honourable senators, I am in no way questioning the debates that have taken place regarding prisoners and the ministerial responsibilities that exist and will continue to exist. In the past, this responsibility manifested itself unequivocally, but it would appear today that it is in jeopardy in the context of the government's major responsibilities.

However, still on the topic of defence, three weeks ago, I asked a question regarding the budget and budget cuts within the Department of National Defence, at a time when our troops are deployed in an operational theatre.

I was told at the time not to expect a response, since I was only hearing rumours.

While it is true there have been no cuts in the overall five-year defence budget, there has nevertheless been a transfer of hundreds of millions of dollars from this year's budget to the budget of four or five years ago.

I would like to know if the department has done an impact analysis of this year's budget cuts, which could be extended to future years, in relation to their operational capabilities to carry out the mission in Afghanistan.

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