We are involved in a war in Afghanistan, and it's not cheap. But by most accounts, we have a
well-equipped military in the war zone, after defence spending almost doubled in 10 years.
The days of an under-equipped Canadian military seem over, but they came with a price: the annual
budget for the military in 2008 is slightly more than $18 billion, up from slightly more than $9.92 billion
in 1997-98 (with the actual expenditure turning out to be $10.12 billion). The cost of the mission in
Afghanistan up to 2011 should be released shortly, and there are many numbers out there — all guesses
so far — ranging from $4 billion to $22 billion.
Equipping the Afghanistan mission has moved along fairly smoothly (including purchasing high-tech
unmanned aerial vehicles and tanks), but in other areas of the military, there have been some big blips,
particularly when it comes to procuring helicopters as well as new Arctic patrol vessels and search and
rescue ships, all of which are outstanding.
Late in the summer, for example, the Conservatives announced that the $340-million plan to purchase
patrol vessels for the coast guard was put on hold "because the bid prices exceeded the anticipated cost,"
according to Public Works. As well, a $2.9-billion plan to build two supply ships was also put on hold.
