A re-elected Conservative government would significantly increase the size of the Canadian special forces unit aiding in the fight against ISIS.

On Saturday, Conservative candidate Jason Kenney unveiled a plan to invest $75 million over the next four years to expand the Canadian Armed Forces Special Operations Command, with the goal of increasing its size by 35 per cent by 2022. The expansion would cost $50 million a year when fully implemented.

At a news conference in Regina, Sask., Kenney called the special forces “one of the most effective aspects of the Canadian military.”

“This is about long-term planning; it’s about realizing that we live in a dangerous world. We live in a world including the terrorist organizations that have expressed hostility to Canada, and we need the ability to protect ourselves,” Kenney said.

The special forces unit has about 1,900 members, meaning the Conservatives would add about 665 personnel.

The NDP responded by accusing the Conservative government of consistently bungling military procurements. In a statement to the Star, Jack Harris, the NDP candidate for St. John’s East, claimed that in the last five years only one in four procurement projects has come in on time and on budget.

“Today’s announcement just adds to 10 years of speeches without action. The Conservatives have failed to provide the Canadian Forces with the equipment they need to accomplish their missions,” Harris said.

The NDP has promised to launch a review Canada’s military priorities, and Harris said that any decision to expand the special forces would be based on that study.

The special forces unit focuses on counterterrorism, hostage rescue and crisis response. Some of its members been active in Iraq, training Kurdish peshmerga fighters engaged in the bloody battle against ISIS. Canadian CF-18 fighters are also bombing ISIS positions in the region as part of a U.S.-led mission in Syria and Iraq.

NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair has said he would move quickly to end the Canadian military’s involvement in the bombing campaign, on the grounds that it has not been endorsed by the United Nations or NATO.

Justin Trudeau, the Liberal leader, has opted for what he calls a “balanced and reasonable position” that would turn the Canadian mission into a training exercise to help Iraqi fighters fend off ISIS.

With files from The Canadian Press

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