Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I will, if I may, take a quick moment to introduce my tablemates. To my far left is Chief Caroline Xavier from the Communications Security Establishment. My deputy minister of national defence, Mr. Bill Matthews, is here. I think, perhaps, he needs no introduction to this committee, but our chief of the defence staff, General Wayne Eyre, is here. From the judge advocate general is Colonel Stephen Strickey.
Let me begin my remarks by simply saying thank you for your kind invitation. As you noted, Mr. Chair, this is my first appearance before this committee.
If I may, allow me to begin my remarks by saying that I very sincerely hope.... I have tracked the work of this committee and I think it's done some exceptional work over the past many years. I have had the opportunity now to meet with a number of the members—in particular, my critics—but all of us, I believe, are committed to many of the same things.
I very sincerely hope that in the future, I and the people before you will be able to work with this committee in order to bring about positive change for the Canadian Armed Forces and to ensure that Canada has a robust and well-equipped armed forces in order to support and protect Canada's interests at home and abroad.
I also want to begin my remarks by saying that my first priority, my goal, is really centred on the men and women of the Canadian Armed Forces. I think that is our first obligation. We can, and I'm sure we will, have a number of conversations about various equipment, platforms, ships, planes, submarines, ammunition and artillery. All of those things are important, and it's good that this committee will focus on them, but I want to assure all of you that my first focus is on the men and women who serve in the Canadian Armed Forces. I think they are the strength of the organization, and I'm very mindful of my responsibility—and, if I may say so, our collective responsibility—to them.
First of all, it's to make sure that they have a work environment that is inclusive, respectful, supportive and safe for every member of the service, and that we provide them with the appropriate supports to make sure that we can attract the very best and the brightest to the Canadian Armed Forces. I became really struck by some of the challenges we're facing as I visited some of the bases and wings, and I hope to have an opportunity to do much more of that.
I listened very carefully to the men and women who serve there, and they've talked to me about some of the challenges they're facing with housing, child care, getting a family doctor and some of the really significant challenges that make it difficult for men and women to serve in the Canadian Armed Forces. We have to address those things, and I want to assure you all that I'm committed to that.
I also wanted to be very clear that I'm building on the excellent work of my predecessor, Minister Anand. It is my intention to continue to work with our team and all of you to keep moving forward so that we can meet the greatest challenges the armed forces are facing today and also into the future.
This comes down, as I've said, to three very important aspects. These are the people—as I've already mentioned—modernization and operations. Today I'll take a brief moment, if I may.... By all means, cut me off and I'll come back to these things later upon questioning.
I've already spoken to you a bit about the people. I wanted to also acknowledge the important work of Madam Justice Louise Arbour. The 48 recommendations that she has provided provide us with an excellent road map and a path forward to implementing her recommendations to create a protected, respected and empowered environment for everyone who serves.
I want to assure you all of my commitment to ensuring that we will implement all of those recommendations, but that we will do so in a way that is thoughtful and consultative. I'm going to come back to this later on, if not in my remarks then certainly in my response to questions. This is because, frankly, I need this committee's help to make some of the important decisions of how we implement those recommendations in a timely way but also to achieve the intent of creating a really supportive environment for everyone.
Similarly, I can tell you as well that the chief professional conduct and culture is about to launch a public database for all of the defence team research and policies related to sexual harassment and misconduct. This is in response to Madam Arbour's recommendation. We've taken some very important steps just in the past few weeks to begin to put into action some of those recommendations, but we're also going to have to bring forward legislation.
In bringing forward legislation, the only path to that, in my opinion, is through this committee. Rather than just come to this committee when the legislation is drafted and drop it in front of you and ask you to then report on it, I would like the opportunity, Mr. Chair and members of this committee, to work with you in making sure that legislation is the right legislation. That doesn't in anyway preclude your ability to deal with it as a parliamentary committee and as Parliament should after that legislation is dropped, but I'd really like your help in getting it right. It's too important not to get it right, so I'm going to come to you and ask you for that help.
With respect to modernization, in 2017, as you're all very well aware, we launched the “Strong, Secure, Engaged” defence policy, SSE. Since that time, we've actually made some real progress. For example, we have received four of our six Arctic and offshore patrol ships. I happened to be in Halifax a few weeks ago for the International Fleet Week and had the opportunity to see one of those ships. Let me also suggest that the delivery of four of those ships was not without its challenges, but we're making real progress on it.
We have invested in armoured combat support vehicles to replace the current LAV fleet. We've made some very significant progress in procuring the F-35 fighter. We have obtained many smaller but significant items such as new night-vision goggles, replacement firearms and other matters, but it's important to acknowledge to all of you as well that the threat environment is evolving rapidly.
To address the challenges, we've also announced and launched a defence policy update, DPU. The SSE remains our primary road map for the military's future, but through the DPU, we are building on that policy to ensure we're ready to meet our biggest threats across a variety of domains.
We have begun critical work in bolstering continental defence, and we are investing over $38 billion over the next 20 years to modernize NORAD. I've had a number of discussions with our American colleagues and the U.S. ambassador. In that regard, I will be able to speak to that more if you have questions. We will be continuing to work with our U.S. partners to ensure NORAD remains capable of protecting North America now and in response to emerging threats in the future.
As I've said, the shape and scope of modern warfare are evolving, and we are investing in our military so that it will have the capabilities it needs.
With respect to operations, you're all aware...and many of you had the opportunity to visit our people in Lydd in the U.K., and in Europe. You're well aware of the work they're doing. I'm not going to repeat all of that for you, but I want to acknowledge something that's been primarily my responsibility through Operation Lentus. In previous responsibilities, over the past four years I have been calling upon the Canadian Armed Forces every time Canada needed them. When we had the pandemic and we needed help in the long-term care facilities in Ontario and Quebec, and when we had devastating floods, wildfires, hurricanes and other natural disasters across the country, Canada has called upon the Canadian Armed Forces over and over again.
I'm sure the general will tell me how many times that is, but, for example, they've been fighting fires so far this summer for over 120 consecutive days.
