Thank you, Chair.
I'm grateful we got past that and Mr. Desilets' amendment, though I had some reservations that it was a jury decision—sometimes, I still believe that—but in concert with my colleagues, I've agreed to it.
I would like to propose an amendment to Mr. Richards' motion. I propose that in paragraph b), we remove “November 8th, 2021” and replace it with “May 1st, 2014”.
The reasoning is that we're doing a study on the national monument to Canada's mission in Afghanistan, and I believe that to fully understand all the elements, we need to go back in time. We have to go back to the process that was originally run to select the monument site back in 2014. The national monument to Canada's mission in Afghanistan was announced in May 2014. That's why I think it would be relevant to have the documents since that date. This would allow us not only to compare the consultations that were made with the veterans then but also to understand the whole process in its entirety, how it has unfolded and how we have got to this point.
When I look back—obviously, I've had to look at this—I see that it's been a very interesting journey. There seemed to be a rush to have the memorial for those who fought against the Communists put up ahead of the monument for those who sacrificed their lives in the Afghan mission. This was not prioritized at the time, so I think that we need to understand what that process was and how it got to where it is.
I would ask that we discuss that amendment or we move on that amendment.