Thank you hon Chairperson, hon Minister; we have come a long way since the 5th Parliament and you sound like in the past; evidently frustrated by the fact that your department is highly constrained with regard to budget. Firstly, you have said in a previous reply that the defence of our country is vital. Now, taking into account the fact that every single year it is getting worse and your visible frustration with the fact that your department is underfunded and not getting better. Would you then acknowledge that this government has, in fact, over the last 25 years, actually presided over the steady decline of our Defence Force and there is no way that we can foresee unless the National Treasury intervenes immediately that this is going to change anytime soon?