Canadian Federal government quietly releases $490B military plan

[RackMaster]

In the comments there is a lot of negative comments about spending that much money on "war". But if they pay attention to the areas that this money is being spent on, it is to ensure the safety of Canadians on Canadian soil. :uhh: Idiots.

Federal government quietly releases $490B military plan

Details posted online Thursday night

Last Updated: Friday, June 20, 2008 | 5:57 AM ET Comments251Recommend124

CBC News


The Conservative government has quietly released the details of its extensive plan to beef up the military, including spending $490 billion over the next 20 years to ensure Canadian soldiers are well-equipped, well-trained and highly active.
Details of the plan, known as Canada First Defence Strategy, were posted Thursday night without fanfare on the Department of National Defence's website.



The posting comes almost six weeks after Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced at a news conference that his government had a strategy for the military, but provided few details about it. Critics at the time said the strategy was nothing more than a speech, since Harper offered no document to back it up.
Military analyst Rob Huebert told CBC News that he can't understand why Harper would release the document so quietly, and why he would do so the day before the House of Commons is expected to adjourn for the summer.
Still, he praised the document's contents, saying the strategy appears to be a well-balanced assessment that juggles the military's commitments at home and overseas.
"I'm hard-pressed right at this point, looking at it, to be really overtly critical," said Huebert, associate director of the Centre for Military and Strategic Studies in Calgary. "I do think they've got a good balance on this particular aspect."
The document says the military needs to spend about $45 billion alone on large capital purchases, and should replace some of its destroyers, frigates, maritime patrol aircraft, search-and-rescue aircraft, next-generation fighter aircraft and land combat vehicles.
It also says the military needs to enhance its ability to operate alongside the American forces.
The document suggests that in the next 20 years, the international community will be coping with failed states, rogue nuclear nations and the increasing threat of terrorism. As a result, the military needs to be well-prepared to focus on six core missions:

• Defending Canada's sovereignty.
• Supporting a major international event in Canada, like the 2010 Olympics.
• Responding to any major terrorist attacks.
• Providing aid to civilian authorities during natural disasters and other crises.
• Conducting a major international operation for an extended period, such as the Afghan mission.
• Have enough troops remaining to deploy to other international crises for shorter periods of time.

NDP defence critic Dawn Black questioned why the document does not stress the peacekeeping work of Canadian soldiers.
"The more and more we become meshed with American foreign policy… the less and less ability we have to be independent and have a clear Canadian voice on the international stage."

 

[Cesser]

I didn't know so much money was involved in this. Of course over 20 years what did I expect?

and were will this 490 BILLION dollars come from ?? I'm sick and tired of working 50 hours a week my entire life to give 1/2 of it to the government to spend on useless military war machines that kill. I want my money to go towards ending poverty and hunger, education, protecting the environment and international aid ! When will the government understand this ?

:doh:
My mistake, venturing down into the comments.

 

[RackMaster]

I didn't know so much money was involved in this. Of course over 20 years what did I expect?

Exactly, that's a meagre budget of approx. 24.5 Mil. per year for the next 20 years. If you look at some of our allies and other nations that are more "peaceful" that does not even come close. It's a small drop in the bucket and barely enough to provide a safe existence for Canadians. We have been very lucky that nothing serious has happened in our country that has lost many of our peoples lives. If people don't believe terrorists exist here, look back in history not to long ago to the Bombing of Air India Flight 182.

 

[Cesser]

Yea thats why I added that part to my post, at first I was like 490 billion, that a bit of change right there, then I started thinking about the salaries and paying all the personel anywhere from 30-120 grand a year. Not to mention inflation.

Our students really need to be better educated in terms of recent history. I didn't even know about the FLQ shit untill university. Same thing with the riots in Quebec City surrounding the Summit. Even though the second happened when I was still in high school, I didn't hear anything about it untill now. But thats an entirely differnt issue, to some degree.

 

[CBH99]

$490 Billion over 20yrs isn't too much when you break it down per year. But for a country with a population of roughly 32M people, it isn't too bad either. The percentage of the GDP spent on defence in Canada is roughly 1.8% if I'm correct - substantially lower than many other countries in NATO, at roughly 2.5% - 3%.

That being said, I'm a firm believer that the Canadian Forces and Department of National Defence could get a lot more bang for the buck than they currently do. Currently, there is so much red tape and beauracracy in regards to equipment procurement - mainly capital projects - that if the Government of Canada really wanted to get as much bang for the buck as they could, they would review & eliminate the huge amount of money wasted on red tape.

Most capital projects as it stands now are worked on by the Project Management Office (PMO) - which then goes to the Treasury Board for funding approval - which in turn then goes to Public Works Canada to ensure that Canadian industry is best being served. Most of the time, equipment and numbers must be changed in order to meet the requirements of both the Treasury Board and Public Works - which translates into several years, and several hundred million dollars being wasted. I understand that both Treasury Board and Public Works do serve important roles in government - however, the military isn't just another government department, and I disagree that the military has to go through all the red tape and beauracratic crap that is does. (DND can currently bypass this process by declaring the procurement an Urgent Operational Necessity - hence the success of the Leopard 2A4M, C-17, RG-31 fleet, amongst several other examples.)

If DND was allowed to procure equipment on its own, rather than going through Public Works and Treasury Board - we could get alot more bang for our buck for the $490 Billion. If DND were able to sign contracts and procure equipment using its own system of checks and balances - we could have equipment delivered substantially faster, at a fraction of the current cost. (Beauracracy at its finest!!)

 

[Cesser]

...
If DND was allowed to procure equipment on its own, rather than going through Public Works and Treasury Board - we could get alot more bang for our buck for the $490 Billion. If DND were able to sign contracts and procure equipment using its own system of checks and balances - we could have equipment delivered substantially faster, at a fraction of the current cost. (Beauracracy at its finest!!)

That would work if anyone could figure out how to live without the red tape.

One thing I have learned recently, is you don't mess with the beauracracy.