National Defence Committee on March 25th, 2026

[The Chair, Liberal, Charles Sousa]

Yes.

We'll give you the extra time.

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

The British and Americans, who also have troops in the same area, are providing daily briefings on what damages they're incurring and the whereabouts of their troops. I don't know why we can't do that from a Canadian perspective.

Just on Sunday, March 22, when Canadians were stationed at Camp Naqoura in Lebanon, part of Operation Jade, when it got attacked, immediately we had department officials letting Canada know. That's a 180° turn in what happened from March 1 to March 22. Three weeks later, now we're releasing information.

Is this because you guys realize that you made a mistake in not informing Canadians when we were under attack?

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

Was that a Canadian Armed Forces installation?

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

Canadians were there as Operation Jade.

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

Was that a Canadian Armed Forces installation?

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

You tell me.

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

No, it wasn't. We took the appropriate steps internally, as we do, by putting these security questions always first and foremost. A decision was made to communicate after the fact in coordination with the principal actors who were there.

Mr. Bezan, you know and I both know that what other sovereign countries do is their business. In this country, our sovereign business is to make sure that the women and men of the Canadian Armed Forces remain safe. We're very careful in how we communicate.

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

In the final minute that I have, I know that our troops are definitely in danger's way. Are we going to be giving hazard pay increases to those who are currently in the Middle East as part of our operations?

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

Many people at this table can help me with that answer.

Mr. Chair, with your indulgence, I think the vice-chief could speak to that for a few seconds or a minute just to clarify the answer.

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

Okay. We'll do that in the next hour.

This is my final question for you. In budget 2025, there is talk about retiring selected fleets out of the Canadian Armed Forces. There are a number of fleets that I'm sure you're considering. Would you be willing to inform the committee on which fleets are going to be retired where there aren't going to be things to replace them? Are we retiring the CF-18s before we get the F-35s? Are we retiring the Tutors and the Snowbirds?

[The Chair, Liberal, Charles Sousa]

The time is up. You may have to refer that to the second half, if that's possible.

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

I would do that, sir.

[The Chair, Liberal, Charles Sousa]

Ms. Lapointe, we'll go over to you.

[Viviane LaPointe, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

Thank you, Chair.

Thank you, Minister, for joining us here today.

The estimates reflect Canada's ongoing work with international partners across a number of operations. What do these investments mean in practical terms for how the Canadian Armed Forces can operate alongside partners and also contribute to shared security efforts?

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

It means that we're able to expand our reach and our presence in the Indo-Pacific, for example. It means that we're able to participate more fulsomely in different exercises. It means that we're able to invite more diverse participation to Operation Nanook in the Arctic to assert our sovereignty there. It means that we're able to, as we did, sign specific agreements with countries like the Philippines to allow for a more direct exchange of our personnel on both soils and have them participate, streamline their admission into the country and get clearances so they can participate more fully in our work.

It means many things, but what it really indicates is that now, with this large envelope of support we're putting into the Canadian Armed Forces and DND, we are indicating that Canada is going to engage more fulsomely in the world. We've done that just recently in Norway, where we signed on to a special deal on space, for example. As I mentioned earlier, we have announced that we intend to build up to six space launch pads in Canso, Nova Scotia, to be able to—

[Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay, Bloc, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot—Acton, QC]

Mr. Chair, it's not that we're losing the interpretation, but there are fluctuations in the sound. Sometimes, we hear the minister again with the right tone of voice, the right pace and the right volume, but other times, the interpretation comes and goes. It's as if the sound is fading in and out.

[The Chair, Liberal, Charles Sousa]

It's now resolved.

[Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay, Bloc, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot—Acton, QC]

Great, everything's fine.

[The Chair, Liberal, Charles Sousa]

Ms. Lapointe, please continue.

[Viviane LaPointe, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

Minister, we noticed that in these supplementary estimates there's a strong focus on working with northern and indigenous partners. What does this funding mean, again in practical terms, for local infrastructure, partnerships or economic benefits in these northern communities?

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

Just 10 days or so ago, the Prime Minister and I attended Yellowknife with many other folks. We announced up to $40 billion in investments in the Arctic, much of which is for NORAD modernization, NORAD forward operating locations, and building and expanding new northern operational support hubs and nodes, depending on locations. It means, again, that Canada is moving very directly into the Arctic to build our capacity, enhance our presence and make the necessary investments in terms of, for example, dual-use investments, landing strips, water and waste-water systems, housing, energy systems and grids.

We're also investing in over-the-horizon radar systems, a technology we purchased and are co-operating with Australia in installing for the country to be able to give us a much better idea of what might be coming at Canada or North America as a continent from over the horizon, over the pole. It's the first phase of several phases. It fits within the integrated air missile defence systems we're looking at with the United States.

What we're really doing is asserting more direct presence and taking on more Arctic defence responsibilities in the Arctic. It will lead to billions of dollars of investments.

[Viviane LaPointe, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

Yesterday we met here with a contingent from Portugal. One of the members of their defence team said there is the saying that “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas”, but what happens in the Arctic doesn't stay in the Arctic. That really struck me. Can you underline for us how these investments you've just shared with us strengthen Canada's ability to maintain a persistent presence in the north?

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

We can take Operation Nanook, for example, our northern exercise, which began as an exercise of several months long over the year and has now basically extended into a full-time exercise. We're expanding the number of countries that are joining us on this exercise.

We're also participating right now in leading the Arctic Seven, A7, group of nations at NATO, where we are pulling together northern countries to come together and share and invest in each other. Our defence industrial strategy is also embracing these relationships to look for co-investment opportunities, for example.

All of this means that we are leveraging not only our own know-how and our own investments, but also our partnerships internationally. I mentioned, for example, the relationship that we've just consolidated with Norway, which we're very keen on expanding. We have a similar defence agreement with Denmark.

We are looking at pulling together a group of partner northern Arctic countries that have a responsibility in the area and at beginning to co-operate more directly.

[Viviane LaPointe, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

Can you speak to us about the recent investments that are being made in Canadian Armed Forces housing and what progress is happening when it comes to improving housing for our members and their families?

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

It's an acute continuing challenge that we're addressing head-on. Like all the things we're trying to execute here, we're doing it systematically and with a plan. We recently announced 7,500 homes to be constructed. We're also already building about 800 units. Shovels are in the ground across the country. This is spread out across bases. We are looking at dual-use opportunities with Build Canada Homes.

We are also, for the first time as a department and an organization, buying buildings. We recently purchased a building in Esquimalt, for example, with 37 units now available for our forces. We're also giving the forces what they seem to want. We're hearing that what they really want, especially our newest recruits, are one- and two-bedroom apartments, so we are designing those, configuring those, and they're purpose-built for our forces.

We are very engaged in this question of housing. It's moving very quickly. We're encouraged and we're moving forward.