National Defence Committee on May 27th, 2024

[Bill Matthews]

I'm not going to say that unequivocally. I'm saying that if you talk to the manufacturers, they're talking about two-year lead times to order products.

[Pat Kelly, Conservative, Calgary Rocky Ridge, AB]

The minister said 2024, but you don't think it's going to happen.

[Bill Matthews]

There has been increased production, but it's going to be a while before our stocks start to increase.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Thank you, Mr. Kelly.

I'll take the final three minutes, and I'll direct this question to Lieutenant-General Allen.

I thought that, in watching all the back-and-forth here this morning, the most shocking statement the minister made was that 70,000 people wanted to get into the Canadian military in the last year, and we were only able to process 4,000 or 5,000 of them.

I find it borderline scandalous, frankly, that we have a bunch of young Canadians keen to join the military, and we can't even process them.

What's your response to that?

[LGen Frances J. Allen]

Certainly, we always want to do what we can to reduce both the time and the process necessary to bring Canadians into the armed forces. In any recruiting process, and this certainly has been true historically, not everybody who applies will meet the standards necessary to join the Canadian Armed Forces and not everybody's interest necessarily stays the same. We know, however, we have a role to play in making the recruiting process faster and easier so that people's interest does not go elsewhere.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

To be honest with you, that sounds like a series of excuses. If I know there are 70,000 people outside the door who want to get in and are, by and large, qualified, and we have a 16,000-person deficit—in other words, people are leaving more quickly than they're being replaced—commitments to improving sound like a series of excuses.

This committee has opined on this several times. I don't understand why, in 2024, we're not processing a lot of people a lot more quickly, because we desperately need them.

[LGen Frances J. Allen]

I would agree with you, Mr. Chair, that we need to take faster steps. Indeed, that has been happening over the last year.

Changes to the requirements for applicants coming in with respect to the medical standard necessary are under way, so that people with allergies, asthma, ADHD and anxiety are no longer automatically unable to join based on a medical standard moving forward. That risk assessment has been made to ensure we're not excluding Canadians who could operate effectively within the universality of service structure that we have.

As for security clearances, we're trying to improve that process and the time frame. As you know already, members are enrolled in the Canadian Armed Forces without the final security clearance. A reliability clearance is done, and then, during the time between when they are enrolled and when they start their occupational training and need access to classified material, their security clearance can go through.

Our paper-based processes are terribly antiquated and need to be replaced by the digital system, and the new online digital portal that has been created for applicants is one step of many that's—

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Unfortunately, we're going to have to leave that answer here, but what disturbs me is that you may be giving the same response this time next year and maybe even the year after that. That will be, from this committee's standpoint, completely unacceptable.

Unfortunately, I have to bring this part of the meeting to a close. I want to again reiterate our committee's thanks to Mr. Matthews. Apparently you're going over to the dark side now, and we're rather hoping that all requests for procurement and personnel from DND will proceed expeditiously from now on. Thank you again.

With that, I will let the witnesses leave.

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

If you're done, Chair, for Mr. Crosby, Ms. Crosby and General Allen, it's their last meeting as well. They're all retiring.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Really? I didn't know.

Excuse me. Am I informed that the Crosby twins are finishing as well? And General Allen...? All right.

Colleagues, we have votes.

[An hon. member]

We're not adjourned yet, guys.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Yes. I want to call the votes. I'd like to call the votes all at once, if I may.

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Shall the votes on the main estimates 2024-25 under the Communications Security Establishment, the Department of National Defence, the Military Grievances External Review Committee, the Military Police Complaints Commission and the Office of the Intelligence Commissioner carry?

COMMUNICATIONS SECURITY ESTABLISHMENT

Vote 1—Program expenditures..........$977,621,520

(Vote 1 agreed to on division)

DEPARTMENT OF NATIONAL DEFENCE

Vote 1—Operating expenditures..........$20,236,301,508

Vote 5—Capital expenditures..........$7,216,407,948

Vote 10—Grants and contributions..........$893,526,093

Vote 15—Long-term disability and life insurance plan..........$446,727,532

(Votes 1, 5, 10 and 15 agreed to on division)

MILITARY GRIEVANCES EXTERNAL REVIEW COMMITTEE

Vote 1—Program expenditures..........$7,478,021

(Vote 1 agreed to on division)

MILITARY POLICE COMPLAINTS COMMISSION

Vote 1—Program expenditures..........$5,101,677

(Vote 1 agreed to on division)

OFFICE OF THE INTELLIGENCE COMMISSIONER

Vote 1—Program expenditures..........$2,415,887

(Vote 1 agreed to on division)

Thank you. Shall I report these votes, less the amount voted in interim supply, to the House?

[Some hon. members]

On division.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Thank you very much.

On Wednesday, we're going to continue with the procurement report consideration. Then, a week from today, there will be one hour for space defence and one hour for further consideration of the report.

With that, seeing no objections, the meeting is adjourned.