The Trudeau government has lost its way in directing Canada’s Defence portfolio.

The Department of National Defence and the Canadian Forces, as well as pertinent stakeholders, are confused and frustrated by this Government's shifting positions and priorities.

Industry and others are now challenging the Government on key decisions regarding the Defence Policy Review, the National Shipbuilding Strategy, Canada’s commitment to international operations and the procurement of fighter aircraft.

In each of these issues there is a troubling pattern: Obfuscation of facts, inconsistent communications, incompetent policy analysis and lame explanations of these affairs in the House of Commons.

Take, for example, the scandal regarding the Government’s reported intent to procure an “interim” Boeing fighter aircraft. The government has misled Canadians on the need for an interim fighter aircraft, having reportedly chosen to sole-source an inferior aircraft to fulfil a misguided political objective and therefore set the Royal Canadian Air Force on an unnecessary and embarrassing trajectory that will affect defence operations and budgeting for decades.

In a previous role, as Minister of National Defence, I was part of a Government that signaled its clear intent to move forward with a purchase of sixty-five F-35 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft from Lockheed Martin, a competitor to the “interim” solution built by Boeing.

When the Conservatives formed Government in 2006, Canada had already been part of a consortium of 9 nations committed to the Joint Strike Fighter for nine years and spent $200 million to be part of the development program. I stand by our 2010 decision to procure the F-35 because it is without doubt the best fighter aircraft for our military. It is the best option for survivability, stealth and. interoperability. And Canada’s long participation in the JSF program has benefited 130 Canadian aerospace companies since 1997 capturing $825 million worth of work and supporting thousands of jobs.

Successive governments, Liberal and Conservative alike, invested hundreds of millions in the JSF program allowing Canadian industry to participate in the development and production of the aircraft. Some suggest successive governments spent that money to build fighter jets for the exclusive use of other nations. Hogwash. Boeing’s top executive concedes they lost the fighter competition.

Contrary to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's statement that the F-35 is “far from working…" there are currently 185 F-35 aircraft flying in twelve allied nations. The Royal Canadian Air Force is flying none of them and Canada is at risk of losing future industrial opportunities.

So, what happened? The Liberal Party is retreating on a six-year-old pledge made by now Transport Minister Marc Garneau to “hold an open competition to replace Canada’s CF-18s based on clear and publicly disclosed foreign and defence policy requirements.”

He railed against the F-35 with personal attacks and venom. His Government is now retreating on the PM's mandate letter to his Minister of National Defence to hold an "open and transparent" competition to replace Canada's CF-18 fighter jets.

Instead, the Government is placing more value on a politically motivated decision - sole-sourcing an inferior "interim" aircraft - than making sound public policy or taking the advice of not only the Royal Canadian Air Force but also the professional public service.

This is disappointing, may lead to law suits and will cost Canadian aerospace. This hurts the economy which will lose out on opportunities worth billions of dollars and thousands of jobs. This leads to the Government losing legitimacy in the eyes of the Royal Canadian Air Force and our international partners.

The government wants Canadians to believe there is a pending capability gap. This is untrue. The Chief of the Royal Canadian Air Force recently confirmed our fleet of CF-18's are capable of flying until 2025 based on a $400 million upgrade announced by the Conservative Government last year.

And if the PM doesn't want to use fighter aircraft against an enemy like ISIL then when would he use fighter jets and how would a capability gap emerge?

The real issue is the Government’s credibility gap.

Much like the 1993 Liberal decision to scrap the Sea King replacement helicopter, the net results of the Government’s actions are a weaker military, less industrial opportunities, long-term defence budgeting challenges, strained civil-military relationships and an inability to significantly contribute to domestic and international defence and security objectives.

In short, the Government doesn't appear up to the challenge of stewarding the Defence portfolio. It needs to come to its senses and recalculate positions on key defence initiatives, the most critical of which is procuring the right fighter aircraft for Canada.

So go ahead and hold a competition, as former Liberal Defence Minister David Pratt called for this week when we appeared together before the Senate Committee on National Security and Defence. Experts say the F-35 will win on both technical capability and industrial benefits in any revised process. Then keep your word and buy the plane.

- Peter MacKay is a former Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Minister of National Defence and Minister of Foreign Affairs. He does not work with Lockheed Martin or Boeing. This article reflects his personal views.