National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, we are in constant communication with our allies with regard to the sharing of best practices. In fact, there is a Five Eyes group focused on personnel—human resources issues, recruiting, retention. It meets fairly regularly. When I meet with my NATO allies, we discuss these issues.

National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, I'm going to answer in English to make sure I get the terms right. The post-living differential was brought in in 2008, and it had not been changed since. It was based on market differences. In the 14 or 15 years since that policy was brought in and last updated, there have been changes in markets, so many were getting the benefit where others weren't.

National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, we're getting very close on the duty to report. I believe I talked to you two years ago at this committee that this was something we needed to move on. I have signed off on it. I believe it's making its way up about addressing this and making some very fundamental changes to that policy.

National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, I'll answer the specific question. The office of the CDS does not get terribly involved in labour relations. That being said, as the commander of the army, I was very involved and had routine meetings with union representatives. It was a very cordial relationship, with an open door and a willingness to connect between those meetings if there was an issue to be addressed.

National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, this was a difficult decision. It is a benefit that has needed fixing for a long time. We took the difficult decision of fixing that as a first step in revamping our other compensation and benefits that are in dire need of updating. There's more to come on this. However, as I travel around the country and talk to our members, indeed I'm also thanked for bringing it in for the tens of thousands who are now getting a benefit and who truly needed it.

National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, as the team looked at options to deal with this, the overall cost of goods was roughly the same across the country. There are pockets of difference, but the main differentiator is housing. That was the fundamental change of going to a housing differential. It's based on 25% of a member's salary.

National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, this was all part of the negotiation with central agencies as to what we could get through and what we couldn't and what was landed on. Now that's not to say it's going to end at seven years. Seven years is a long time away. There will be a reassessment that goes in over the next few years to look at the impact.

National Defence committee  This is a negotiation between our staff and the Treasury Board.

National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, I'm happy to report that our recruiting modernization team is making good progress. It is advancing on three lines of effort. The first is on attraction, getting more applicants in the door to sign up. The good news is that I was just informed last week that our applicant numbers are above historic norms—and that's putting the new permanent-resident policy aside.

National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, just for clarification.... Are you asking how our training of Ukrainian armed forces is proceeding?

National Defence committee  The training we provide to the Ukrainian armed forces is highly valued. I believe I spoke to this committee after my trip to Ukraine two months ago. The commander of our joint operations command came back from meeting counterparts in Ukraine a week and a half ago, and we had the same message: the training we are delivering is of incredible benefit.

National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, I wish I could give every member of the armed forces more than a 10% salary increase, but that's not the current policy.

National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, I had the opportunity to visit that ammunition plant, and also the one in Valleyfield, back in the fall. That plant produces the M107 variant, which has a shorter range than what we would like them to produce, which is the M795 variant. Work is ongoing for that.

National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, many, at the beginning of this second round of the invasion of Ukraine, said the era of the tank was over. I think it's instructive to see arguably the most successful and most experienced army in conventional war in the 21st century asking for tanks. The era of the tank is not over.

National Defence committee  Mr. Chair, I'll say a few words and then turn it over to the deputy minister for the real answer. I remember that conversation well. It was with Admiral Rob Bauer, the chair of the military committee for NATO. The importance of this speaks to the changes we see in the security environment.