Feds should stand up for Canadian aerospace and defence industries with CMMA procurement

On the same subject

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  November 22, 2019 | Local, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

  Major defence procurements and Phoenix pay fiasco will keep rookie MP busy

  DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN Rookie MP Anita Anand was named to one of the federal government's toughest portfolios on Wednesday as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau rearranged his cabinet. Anand, a lawyer, takes over as Minister of Public Services and Procurement, replacing Carla Qualtrough, who became Minister of Employment and Workforce Development. Anand was elected in the October federal election to represent the riding of Oakville. She was a law professor at the University of Toronto specializing in corporate governance and shareholder rights. Anand will have a busy portfolio dealing with the ongoing Phoenix pay fiasco as well as high profile defence procurements such as the acquisition of a new fighter jet fleet as well as the Canadian Surface Combatant program. The fighter jet project is estimated to cost taxpayers up to $19 billion and bids are expected by the end of March. The surface combatant project is estimated to cost between $60 billion and $65 billion. Her background in corporate governance could come in handy as she tries to navigate these two key programs. Other major defence projects that Anand will have to deal with include shipbuilding programs like the Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships and the Joint Support Ships, both for the Royal Canadian Navy, as well as new icebreakers for the Canadian Coast Guard. Anand will also have to be briefed on the way ahead for the selection of a third shipyard to contribute vessels to the national shipbuilding strategy. Davie Shipbuilding in Levis, Que. is seen as a frontrunner in that competition but an Ontario shipyard is also interested. The Liberals also promised to create a defence procurement agency as part of efforts to improve the purchasing of military equipment so it is expected that Anand will play a key role in the creation of that new organization. The Liberals, however, had said very little about the procurement agency since mentioning it during the election campaign and details about how it would be set up haven't been provided. Other faces in the cabinet announced Wednesday will be familiar to those involved in defence and veterans affairs. Harjit Sajjan remains as Minister of National Defence. Sajjan, who was first appointed defence minister in the fall of 2015, has earned mixed reviews for his performance. But he provides Trudeau with an experienced minister who won't have to be brought up to speed on the defence portfolio. Navdeep Singh Bains continues on as Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and Lawrence MacAulay returns as the Veterans Affairs Minister. Nova Scotia MP Bernadette Jordan, who was first elected in 2015, was named as Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard. Although that is seen as a promotion for Jordan, she has experience in the portfolio as she has served as chair of the Commons' fisheries and oceans committee. The coast guard is expected to receive new vessels, including icebreakers. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/major-defence-procurements-and-phoenix-pay-fiasco-will-keep-rookie-mp-busy

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  May 29, 2023 | Local, Other Defence

  Defence threats call for unorthodox ideas from younger Canadians, argues international politics prof

  Major threats to Canada's security include melting ice in the Arctic, aggression from Russia and China, and a personnel shortage in the Canadian Armed Forces, according to experts.

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  November 19, 2018 | Local, Naval

  Liberals reject committee recommendation to replace Victoria-class subs – no desire for subs with under-ice capability

  DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN New submarines won't be part of the future mix for the Royal Canadian Navy, at least in the foreseeable future. Several years ago there were some suggestions that a possible replacement for the Victoria-class submarines might be in the works. In 2017 a Senate defence committee recommended the subs be replaced. The Commons defence committee also recently recommended that the Victoria-class subs, bought used in 1998 from the United Kingdom, be replaced with submarines capable of under-ice capabilities. But the Liberal government has rejected that recommendation. The recommendation was the only one of the 27 made by the Commons defence committee that was rejected outright in a response delivered to the committee last month. The committee had recommended that the federal government respond to NATO calls to improve the quality of their naval fleets and underwater surveillance capabilities by starting the process of replacing Victoria-class submarines with new boats that have under-ice capabilities. It also recommended increasing the size of that fleet to enhance Canada's Arctic and North Atlantic defence preparedness. But the Liberal government pointed out in its response that it is in the midst of the most intensive and comprehensive fleet modernization and renewal in the peacetime history of the Royal Canadian Navy. Canada is recapitalizing and increasing the size of its surface fleet through investments in 15 Canadian Surface Combatants, two Joint Support Ships, and five to six Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships, it added. “The government has also committed to modernizing the four Victoria-class submarines to include weapons and sensor upgrades that will enhance the ability of the submarines to conduct Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) and deliver necessary improvements of platform and combat systems to extend operational capability to the mid-2030's,” the government response noted. Canada is also engaged in the re-building of the anti-submarine warfare capabilities of the fleet through the introduction of technologies, sensors and weapons while preparing to transition to the fleet of the future, it added. “As part of the NATO S&T Organization, Canada is participating in the Maritime Unmanned Systems S&T Pre-Feasibility Studies that focus on ASW and naval mine warfare capabilities with Allied nations that have the same capability targets,” the government stated. “In addition to increasing existing platform capabilities, the RCN is also in the process of re-vitalising individual and collective ASW training and advancing distributed mission training and synthetic training environments.” Last year Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan praised the capability submarines provide Canada. “No other platform in the Canadian Armed Forces can do what a submarine can do,” Sajjan said. “No other platform has the stealth, the intelligence-gathering, surveillance and reconnaissance capability and the deterrence to potential adversaries that a sub does.” Upgrading the Victoria-class subs is more “prudent” than buying new subs, Sajjan said at the time. Without upgrades, the first of the submarines will reach the end of its life in 2022, according to documents obtained last year through Access to Information by the Canadian Press. The last of the boats would be retired in 2027. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/liberals-reject-committee-recommendation-to-replace-victoria-class-subs-no-desire-for-subs-with-under-ice-capability