Canada moves to 2% GDP end of FY25/26 - PMMC

[Fabius]

Good interview with the CDS where she's asked some pretty hard questions:

I would like to know if the CDS would have chosen different words/phases/answers if she could have spoken in French

Senior leaders at the CDS level don’t do media interviews without significant media preparation. I am sure she spent at least 3-4 hours with her PAO staff going over possible questions and responses along with rehearsing her message to ensure she could get it hammered home.
The fact that it’s not evident is weird.

 

[KevinB]

Senior leaders at the CDS level don’t do media interviews without significant media preparation. I am sure she spent at least 3-4 hours with her PAO staff going over possible questions and responses along with rehearsing her message to ensure she could get it hammered home.
The fact that it’s not evident is weird.

I know several 3 and 4* who constantly thought they knew better, and didn’t need the media prep. Time and time again their results showed that they did, and they refused to accept that was the reason for the poor performance.

 

[Czech_pivo]

I know several 3 and 4* who constantly thought they knew better, and didn’t need the media prep. Time and time again their results showed that they did, and they refused to accept that was the reason for the poor performance.

Its the fault of the Journalist, they asked me questions that I didn't prepare for!

 

[dapaterson]

Its the fault of the Journalist, they asked me questions that I didn't prepare for!

And disobeyed my order to stop asking about it.

 

[MrWhyt]

Maybe we shouldn't be putting any of this new spending towards E-7s.

E-2 Hawkeye Replaces USAF E-3 Sentry, E-7 Cancelled In New Budget

 

[MilEME09]

Crazy suggestion here, wanna show we care? Stop giving reservists 89 day contracts so we dont have to pay benefits. Make them 90 days min, at the very least allow those on contract to use the local field amb det for doctors visits especially with so many without family doctors.

 

[dapaterson]

Crazy suggestion here, wanna show we care? Stop giving reservists 89 day contracts so we dont have to pay benefits. Make them 90 days min, at the very least allow those on contract to use the local field amb det for doctors visits especially with so many without family doctors.

CAF medical capacity is also overstrained. In the PM's announcement was "More health care funding and staff for Armed Forces personnel."

The entire Reserve employment framework needs to be revisited...

 

[Brad Sallows]

The right to manage doesn’t mean the right to violate collective agreements. I don’t know what the coast guards collective agreements look like, but depending on what is in there it can definitely limit what management can or cannot do.

Such a radical change at the minimum could be considered constructive dismissal resulting in potentially huge severance payments to anyone who choses to walk away. It isn’t as easy as snapping your fingers and people have to do what you say. It isn’t the military.

Plus all those who go, don’t like it leave seem to be shocked when people do and they can’t replace them. I have been watching the military do it for the last decade and a half.

I always used to stress, in the Res F world and my ordinary job, that no-one is irreplaceable and no-one should be treated like a prize pig, ever, even if it meant losing a key person. The heartaches of explaining a prize pig's status to everyone else exceeds the cost of letting one go.

 

[Czech_pivo]

Maybe we shouldn't be putting any of this new spending towards E-7s.

E-2 Hawkeye Replaces USAF E-3 Sentry, E-7 Cancelled In New Budget

With us buying P8 and an uncertain number of F35’s, given the current climate I don’t see the E7 being picked up.

 

[Navy_Pete]

I always used to stress, in the Res F world and my ordinary job, that no-one is irreplaceable and no-one should be treated like a prize pig, ever, even if it meant losing a key person. The heartaches of explaining a prize pig's status to everyone else exceeds the cost of letting one go.

I think there is a big difference though between civilian jobs and the military generally for replacements, and while no one is replaceable, there are a lot of people who are difficult to replace with a long lead time, and big loss of institutional knowledge.

We have let a lot of things degrade to the point were we already have people multi hatted and no one learning their job as a backup, as well as people filling empty jobs a rank higher.

If a welder, plumber, salesman etc quits on civvie street you can find another qualified person with comparable experience to fill their job, we have to grow people (for the most part). Some of it is also very niche, and the only way to really learn it is from someone who has done it, so lot of institutional knowledge like that.

On the tech side, a lot of that is usually critical to new projects for requirements and review, so it absolutely impacts capitol projects. A lot of critical stuff gets baked into the design, so where we don't buy off the shelf stuff from allies that actually value that kind of tech niche specialists, we can really do things quite badly when we go with MOTS or Canadianized kit.

 

[dapaterson]

RCAF success has been in "Buy off the shelf and Canadianization is the Roundel and nothing else".

 

[Cloud Cover]

During the GWOT era the CAFs own statistics showed we recruited in the 6500 to 6800 personnel a year which resulted in actual growth of around 150-200 pers a year.

We were losing more than the net gain to loss of life, limbs and mind.

 

[KevinB]

We were losing more than the net gain to loss of life, limbs and mind.

The Army had long lines to join. Just no large amount of available positions.

 

[Cloud Cover]

The Army had long lines to join. Just no large amount of available positions.

See it was a mistake to not overfill the regiments, squadrons and batteries.

 

[rmc_wannabe]

See it was a mistake to not overfill the regiments, squadrons and batteries.

Yeah but then you're stuck in the "If you give a mouse a cookie...." trap:

Those MMO folks would have then asked for kit, and salary, and lodging, and training spots, and numerous other things we had no forethought or desire to stockpile. We only had what we had for our "authorized strength" at any time.

We were terrible at mobilization then, and still suck at it now.

 

[Kirkhill]

Keir Starmer is visiting Canada ahead of the G7. He and Mark Carney are well acquainted and much of a sameness in mindset.
Both attended Liberal Party of Canada conventions during the Trudeau era.

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Sir Keir Starmer to visit Canada

Prime Minister Starmer’s visit will strengthen the long-standing economic and security partnership between the two nations – and deliver growth and prosperity for our peoples.

www.pm.gc.ca

So what kind of headlines did Keir leave behind him?

Reeves sacrifices defence and police for NHS splurge

Tax rises now inevitable as Chancellor prioritises record boost to health spending over the nation’s security

www.telegraph.co.uk

Rachel Reeves has been accused of sacrificing police and defence spending in favour of a record handout for the NHS.

Police chiefs warned that Labour’s flagship election promises on reducing crime could be missed after the Chancellor set out her spending review on Wednesday, while former military leaders criticised her “totally inadequate” plans for the Armed Forces.

Ms Reeves told MPs: “I have made my choices. These are my choices. These are the choices of the British people.” Writing for the Telegraph, she added: “We are keeping our country safe.”

National Health Service and the nations Courts - priorities.

Ben Wallace was the Minister of Defence under Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak during the opening phases of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

In 2014 at the Cardiff Summit, the Treasury furiously resisted the demands. All sorts of tricks were pulled and definitions were stretched to get the UK to 2 per cent of GDP. The Americans, in their polite way, asked nicely. They’ve been asking ever since. Because as they command all Allied forces in Nato they knew the truth about the state of everyone’s forces.

Today’s spending review confirmed what we all feared. Rather than making tough decisions on public spending priorities, Rachel Reeves chose to use Treasury tricks to deceive us all. The Government has folded in intelligence spending, Ukraine spending and even Foreign Office money to the notional “defence” figure. The result is that core defence spending will not even be 2.5 per cent as promised: not even close. There was no path to 3 per cent either. It was just a con all along.

Rachel Reeves may have just killed Nato

The old Treasury con of reclassifying other existing spending as ‘defence’ has been wheeled out again

www.telegraph.co.uk

Ukraine found us out. Nato and the international community needed to act: and as we examined our inventory ministers could see just how weak we had become.

I remember when we debated gifting the AS90 155mm long range artillery to Ukraine I was informed that while we had 73 guns on the books only 19 worked! Or when I tried to increase the number of tanks to be upgraded to Challenger 3s I was told it was impossible because so many of our tanks had already been stripped of parts to keep others running.

Mr. Wallace's summary.

Next week Donald Trump will arrive in Holland for the Nato summit. He will bring with him a message that we must all spend 3.5 per cent of GDP on actual defence, not counting spies or diplomats. The Donald will not be bought off with Treasury tricks.

I was in Washington last week and some very senior people in the White House and the Pentagon genuinely believe Trump may leave Nato in two years. They are serious.

So we need to either demonstrate we are pulling our weight or we need to compensate for the 70 per cent loss to Nato capability if the US leaves. Based on Rachel Reeves’s efforts we will do neither. History may point to this as the moment when the UK surrendered its place in Nato and triggered its demise.

And all the while, Putin and Xi will be licking their lips. Waiting for their moment. For that little bit of Estonia or Finland. The best Donald Trump can do next week is say that Nato is a club with a subscription. No money should mean no entry.

....

Keir Starmer meets Mark Carney - June 14-15
G7 Summit in Kananaskis - June 15-17
NATO Summit in the Hague - June 24-25

I eagerly await the outcome. Fortunately I have low expectations.

 

[Czech_pivo]

Keir Starmer is visiting Canada ahead of the G7. He and Mark Carney are well acquainted and much of a sameness in mindset.
Both attended Liberal Party of Canada conventions during the Trudeau era.

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Sir Keir Starmer to visit Canada

Prime Minister Starmer’s visit will strengthen the long-standing economic and security partnership between the two nations – and deliver growth and prosperity for our peoples.

www.pm.gc.ca

So what kind of headlines did Keir leave behind him?

Reeves sacrifices defence and police for NHS splurge

Tax rises now inevitable as Chancellor prioritises record boost to health spending over the nation’s security

www.telegraph.co.uk

National Health Service and the nations Courts - priorities.

Ben Wallace was the Minister of Defence under Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak during the opening phases of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Rachel Reeves may have just killed Nato

The old Treasury con of reclassifying other existing spending as ‘defence’ has been wheeled out again

www.telegraph.co.uk

Mr. Wallace's summary.



....

Keir Starmer meets Mark Carney - June 14-15
G7 Summit in Kananaskis - June 15-17
NATO Summit in the Hague - June 24-25

I eagerly await the outcome. Fortunately I have low expectations.

I expect us to announce 1 or more defence acquisitions between the 13th and the 23th.
From an optics point of view we need to come the table with something.

 

[Kirkhill]

Maybe.

I think of all sorts of containerized mission packages that, all they have to do is put them them on the back of their ships and sail around a piece of ocean that we tell them to.

Funny you should say that...

Mysterious Shipping Container Rocket Launcher Spotted At Trump's Visit To Fort Bragg

A pop-out launcher for rockets and ballistic missiles inside a shipping container offers extreme flexibility and can hide in plain sight.

www.twz.com

 

[KevinB]

Funny you should say that...

View attachment 93850

Mysterious Shipping Container Rocket Launcher Spotted At Trump's Visit To Fort Bragg

A pop-out launcher for rockets and ballistic missiles inside a shipping container offers extreme flexibility and can hide in plain sight.

www.twz.com

So exactly one of those tricks that has us furious already.

I mean for fucks sakes.

By all means play whatever games with the 1.5% after you hit 3.5%. But the games and bullshit to even try to pretend about 2%

Childish

 

[Brad Sallows]

I think there is a big difference though between civilian jobs and the military generally for replacements, and while no one is replaceable, there are a lot of people who are difficult to replace with a long lead time, and big loss of institutional knowledge.

Exactly. And the longer they are allowed to be prize pigs, the more prize some become.