National Defence Committee on Feb. 9th, 2017

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

I want to return to something. I'm going to be a little more direct this time. It goes to the ability to attract.

Earlier I brought up your words about meaningful employment and sense of purpose and people really needing to feel that. When he was speaking after me, Mr. Fisher talked about whether it was sexy enough.

I want to understand. Following World War II, there were 78,000 reservists, if I understand correctly. Notwithstanding the fact that it was at the end of a great conflict, has there been a deterioration or decline in the sense of, to use your words, satisfaction that comes from being involved in this particular line of work? We're still engaged in conflict throughout the world, yet there's a significant decrease in the number of reservists.

I know you gave a number of reasons, but is the sense of patriotism or the sense of wanting to fight for one's country different now with respect to reservists from it was following World War II?

[Cmdre Marta B. Mulkins]

I doubt that. I think it's more a question of being aware that there is a naval reserve that could afford fantastic personal development opportunities and employment opportunities. I believe it's more a need for us to make sure that we are seen in our communities, that people understand that's an option for employment for them. That's why that is one of our lines of effort to improve recruitment: to be reaching out to the right people, at the right places, at the right time—

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

I found the comment very interesting—

[The Chair, Liberal, Stephen Fuhr]

I apologize. I'm going to have to cut you off.

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Are we going to go around the block a second time?

[The Chair, Liberal, Stephen Fuhr]

We might be able to do that.

I'm going to yield the authority to Mr. Paul-Hus. Sir, you have floor.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I would like to know whether the Canadian Forces Fleet School, which is in Quebec City, falls under your command, in whole or in part.

[Cmdre Marta B. Mulkins]

No longer. It's part of the naval training system. It is one of the campuses of the naval training system, run by the navy as a whole.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Okay.

Where do you train the reservists? Is it in Esquimalt, Halifax, Quebec City?

[Cmdre Marta B. Mulkins]

It can happen at any of the above, depending on what the particular training is and what level it's at. Sailors, through their careers, may be at any one of the schools across the country.

Chief, I don't know if you can add some detail on that.

[CPO 1 David Arsenault]

It's just that the level of equipment and whatnot changes across the three schools. The naval training system schedules courses that are specific for reservists, that are specific for regular force, and that are mixed. The instructors at any of the three schools could be regular force or reserve. It's really a pan-Royal Canadian Navy solution, and it works quite well for us.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

If I understand correctly, the training of the naval reserve is really integrated with that of the regular force. You do not have a separate reserve school.

[Cmdre Marta B. Mulkins]

Certainly in the last 20 years that has been the case, in the sense that the preponderance of the training and developing courses and whatnot were executed through the fleet schools. The regenerative training, however, traditionally has been done at the naval reserve unit level.

[CPO 1 David Arsenault]

If I could answer, we do some aspects of the formal training that would be delivered in a school for the regular force through distributed learning at a naval reserve division in order to shorten the time that the reservist has to spend away from home, but it's the same training. It's just a different delivery method.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Fine.

Let me go back to the training budget and the operational budget.

Is the budget for all national reserve operations completely decentralized and independent from the Naval Reserve Headquarters? Are you with the maritime command? How does it work? Do you have autonomy in terms of management?

[Cmdre Marta B. Mulkins]

Our budget is through the navy and is managed by us. However, it is now, as a result of the chief of the defence staff's directive of a couple of years ago, managed at the corporate level and is a corporate fund. It comes to us through the navy, but it sits in a corporate fund, and essentially we draw from that fund.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

What do you mean by corporate fund? I know that one of the problems with the reserve is that, after the budgets are set, a number of people take money and there is no money left in the end. Does the naval reserve have more control than the army over its budgets?

[Cmdre Marta B. Mulkins]

That's in fact the mechanism that was proposed in that directive. Having all of the primary reserve budgets held in a corporate account was deliberate, so that it would be very clear that the money that had been allocated to the reserves was being spent by the reserves.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

The money is earmarked for the naval reserve. That’s fantastic.

I have asked all my questions. Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Stephen Fuhr]

Ms. Blaney is next.

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Thank you. I have just a couple more questions.

What is the ideal role that you would envision for the naval reserve in the future?

[Cmdre Marta B. Mulkins]

These are the types of questions that were.... The establishment review was preoccupied with meeting the missions as we understand them right now. I think any change in roles in the future is certainly going to be the purview of government, and I would refer the questions in that direction.

Within the tasks and missions that we have right now, as we are transitioning we are designing a system that I think will enable us to deliver on the naval mission and help support the navy and everything that it does going forward.

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

With the navy review under way, I understand that there will be further decentralization of operations to the coasts. What will be the effects to the 24 naval reserve divisions?

[Cmdre Marta B. Mulkins]

I'm not sure if I understand your question—decentralization of operations?

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Yes. That's what we're hearing. It will be decentralization to the coasts, so I'm just wondering what you think will be the impact on the 24 naval reserve divisions.