Vanguard Magazine

D E F E N C E P R O C U R E M E N T All that said, notwithstanding this promising update, the defence procure- ment system itself must change signifi- cantly to meet these commitments in a timely manner. Simply put, the status quo is not acceptable. Rebuilding the Royal Canadian Navy will require not only significant resources, but a new approach to procurement. One of the most damaging structural flaws in Canada's approach to defence has been to tie (and even subordinate) vital questions of security to more politically saleable matters of industrial development and em- ployment. Rarely does an announcement of a defence contract cite operational re- quirements or address the military neces- sity for delivering new capabilities. The fo- cus is jobs (employing inflated numbers), economic benefits (with similarly inflated dollar values), and regional development equity. Each of these elements increases the costs and time to reach decisions, and the complexity of the procurement. While this is an unavoidable political reality, the urgency of the current security environ- ment demands that governments begin to rebalance their priorities, placing more Canadian Defence Procurement T he recent announcement of the long-awaited policy up- date to the 2017 Defence Pol- icy – Strong, Secure, Engaged – entitled Our North, Strong and Free: A Renewed Vision for Canada's Defence – coincides with the release of the Naval Association of Canada's (NAC) stra- tegic analysis of evolving maritime threats facing Canada, which also addresses bud- getary considerations and needed opera- tional reforms. While the updates polixy reflects some concerns articulated in the analysis paper, there are a number of areas where a more definitive statement on fleet procurement intentions, notably replace- ment submarines, was expected. Further- more, while the fiscal plan commits to a large increase in defence spending project- ed to meet 1.76% of GDP by 2029/30, it fails to set a timeline to reach the NATO- agreed minimum threshold of 2% of GDP. Nonetheless, the defence policy update is a step in the right direction, particularly its emphasis on the defence of North America (including the Arctic) which underscores the priority for recapitalization of credible naval and aerospace forces. www.vanguardcanada.com APRIL/MAY 2024 25 NAC Article on Canadian Procurement Policy With the kind permission of the Naval Association, Vanguard is publishing excerpts of the recent NAC strategic analysis entitled "Canada in Extremis: Rebalancing the Canadian Armed Forces and Rebuilding the Canadian Navy" - Canadian Naval Association Strategy Paper (April 2024). Moreover, to better inform industry attending the forthcoming annual CANSEC defence and security forum, an excerpt from this analysis, related to defence procurement, is reproduced below. The full report is available at the Naval Association of Canada website at https://www. navalassoc.ca/naval-affairs/. HMCS MONTREAL and other NATO Allies sail in formation as part of Standing NATO Maritime Group Two, in the Mediterranean Sea on April 8, 2022. Photo: Corporal Braden Trudeau, Canadian Armed Forces photo

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