Department of National Defence wraps up New Defence Policy

The Department of National Defence (DND) recently concluded nearly four months of public consultations on the future of Canada’s defence policy that has resulted in 20,000 Canadians submitting opinions to the online consultation portal.

Launched on April 6, 2016, the DND has spent the last few months interacting with interested Canadians, allies, and key stakeholders.

“I want to thank Canadians, Parliamentarians, experts, academics, key international Allies and partners who contributed to this important discussion about the future of Canada’s defence policy. I am confident that the information gathered over the last four months will help inform a new defence policy that balance priorities, responds to emerging challenges, and invests in the Canadian Armed Forces,” said Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan.

The government has gathered information via roundtable discussions and parliamentarian meetings with citizens. Discussions have been on the topics of the main challenges to Canada’s security, the role of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) in today’s threats; and the resources and capabilities needed to carry out the CAF mandate.

The public consultations have also resulted in 4,700 comments and votes on the online discussion forum.

The Department will now take the next few months to compile the information received from the various platforms. It is expected that Canada’s new defence policy will be launched in early 2017.

“Moving forward, important choices will be made to ensure that DND and the CAF have what they need to confront new threats and challenges in the years ahead, “ stated a DND press release.

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