Section IV - Response to Parliamentary Committees and External Audits - DPR - 2011-12

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Response to Parliamentary Committees and External Audits

40th Parliament, 3rd Session
Standing Committee on Public Accounts
19th Report of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, 40th Parliament, 3rd Session, "Chapter 5, Acquiring Military Vehicles for Use in Afghanistan of the Fall 2009 Report of the Auditor General" (Adopted by the Committee on October 7, 2010; Presented to the House on October 25, 2010).
Original Report
Government Response
Recommendation Government Response/Commitment Status
4. That National Defence ensure that key decisions for urgent operational requirements are adequately documented, as was noted by the Office of the Auditor General in recommendation 5.83. The Government accepts this recommendation and has begun to work towards implementing it. National Defence issued interim guidance for Unforecasted Operational Requirements, which outlines the minimum essential documentation required for urgent acquisitions. Additionally, National Defence is reviewing its project approval process to ensure that relevant information is not excluded when project approvals are being fast-tracked for urgent projects. To that end, National Defence is revising its Project Approval Guidance and will engage the Treasury Board Secretariat in consultations once a substantive draft has been finalized. The revised Project Approval Guidance is expected to receive final approval by September 2011. A new Project Approval Directive (short title PAD 2011-12) was released in December 2011and replaces the old PAG, referred to previously. The PAD continues to be updated regularly to remain current with policy adjustments and lessons learned. The new PAD covers all the issues raised by OAG and this item is considered closed.
40th Parliament, 2nd Session
Standing Committee on National Defence
2nd Report of the Standing Committee on National Defence, 40th Parliament, 2nd Session, "Health Services Provided to Canadian Forces Personnel with an Emphasis on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder" (Adopted by the Committee on June 8, 2009; Presented to the House on June 17, 2009)
Original Report
Government Response
Recommendation Government Response/Commitment Status
19. The Department of National Defence (DND) to ensure that adequate resources are allocated to the establishment of a sufficient number of the Joint Personnel Support Units and Integrated Personnel Support Centres to provide this level of support and service nation-wide. DND continually strives to improve the resources, both financial and human, to support establishments throughout the country. Up to now, there is one Joint Personnel Support Unit with 19 Integrated Personnel Support Centres in its chain of command across Canada. Work is ongoing with the CF to assess the need for additional centres. The Canadian Forces now has 24 Integrated Personnel Support Centres located across Canada who support ill and injured personnel and their families, as well as families of the deceased. They provide high quality, consistent personal and administrative support based on individual needs during all phases of recovery, rehabilitation and reintegration. It continues to enhance its peer-based support programs, assisting those who are affected by Operational Stress Injuries, a serious physical impairment, or the loss of a loved one.
34. The federal government to move immediately to provide the necessary resources to reach full operational capability of the Canadian Forces Health Information Systems (CFHIS) project, with the assistance of a database. The CFHIS will improve the management of health information that is created within CF facilities. However, CF members also receive care from the public health care system. Accordingly, full operational capability of the CFHIS will not be realized until the CFHIS is rolled out to each CF Clinic and then connected to the emerging pan-Canadian Electronic Health Record. This will then allow care providers in both the CF and the public health care system to have complete health information. As recommended, the CF, as a member of the Force Health Protection (FHP) is collaborating with other federal organizations with similar needs in a whole of government effort towards identifying the requirements for federal participation in the pan-Canadian Electronic Health Record. The CFHIS Project has completed the rollout of 44 sites which completed the final Phase. Stakeholders have responded very positively to the final phase otherwise known as Primary Care Progress Notes (PCPN). The final Senior Review Board was held on May 28, 2012, at which time the committee endorsed the acceptance of Full Operational Capability and approved the project transition from implementation to Close Out phase. The project has completed all project scope within the approved schedule and within approved budget.

CFHIS continues to be identified by the TB Secretariat - Chief Information Officer (CIO) as a solid model for other federal departments with health care delivery responsibilities. Recommend that this item be closed.

Standing Committee on Public Accounts
1st Report of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, 40th Parliament, 2nd Session, "Chapter 4, Military Health Care – National Defence of the October 2007 Report of the Auditor General of Canada" (Adopted by the Committee on February 12, 2009; Presented to the House on February 25, 2009)
Original Report
Government Response
Recommendation Government Response/Commitment Status
2. National Defence to provide information in its annual Departmental Performance Report (DPR) on the aggregate costs of the military health care system, as well as the number of physicians, nurses, pharmacists, medical technicians and physician's assistants employed in that system. The Government accepts this recommendation. DND will report this information in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2009-10 DPR. In future years, DND will also look for other ways to make this information available to the public. The current budget for the CF H Svcs Gp is $434.5 million. This represents the majority of the expected expenditures for the CF health care system, noting that it excludes pay for regular force military and costs for current operations.

Currently in the military health care system there are 315 Physicians, 753 Nurses, 83 Pharmacists, 2438 Medical Technicians and 216 Physician Assistants in the Regular Force, Reserve and Public Service.

4. National Defence to report in its annual Departmental Performance Report on the status and implementation of the Canadian Forces Health Information System (CFHIS), including whether the system is on budget and on time. The Government accepts this recommendation. DND will report this information in the FY 2009-10 DPR. In future years, DND will also look for other ways to make this information available to the public. The CFHIS Project has completed the rollout of 44 sites which completed the final Phase. Stakeholders have responded very positively to the final phase otherwise known as Primary Care Progress Notes (PCPN). The final Senior Review Board was held on May 28, 2012, at which time the committee endorsed the acceptance of Full Operational Capability and approved the project transition from implementation to Close Out phase. The project has completed all project scope within the approved schedule and within approved budget.

CFHIS continues to be identified by the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) - Chief Information Officer (CIO) as a solid model for other federal departments with health care delivery responsibilities. Recommend that this item be closed.

39th Parliament, 1st Session
Standing Committee on Public Accounts
11th Report of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, 39th Parliament, 1st Session, "Chapter 2 of the May 2006 Report of the Auditor General of Canada on National Defence – Military Recruiting and Retention" (Adopted by the Committee on November 30, 2006; Presented to the House on December 7, 2006)
Original Report
Government Response
Recommendation Government Response/Commitment Status
8. The Department of National Defence determine the rate of attrition for female members of the Canadian Forces and, in its exit surveys, seek to establish which factors prompt female members to leave the Forces before full service is completed. The results, along with corrective measures taken to encourage women to complete their full service should be reported in the Department's annual Performance Reports, beginning with the Report for the period ending 31 March 2008. A comprehensive survey analysis that will be conducted in the fall of 2007 will allow the Government to better understand the reasons female members of the Canadian Forces decide to leave the military. Should trends be identified that indicate a need for change, the Government will initiate appropriate corrective measures. The results of this survey analysis, together with any corrective measures undertaken, will be reported in the DPR, beginning with the report for the period ending 31 March 2008. CF attrition research has been expanded and research focussed on female attrition and retention has been completed for naval officer occupations as well as for air force officers in the Pilot and Air Combat Systems Operations occupations. A comprehensive 20 year comparison of overall male and female attrition rates are included in the Annual Reports on Regular Force Attrition (FY 2007-08 and 2009-10 (draft)). Several studies have been undertaken to investigate attrition occurring during the first year of service (YOS) as well as attrition patterns for CF members deployed on Task Force Afghanistan (TFA). In support of the CF Retention Strategy, the CF Retention Survey and CF Exit Survey continue to be administered to gather data on turnover intentions of CF personnel. The physical fitness requirements for military service have been a key factor in loss rates for both men and women during basic training, but even more so for women. While remedial training has been in place for some time, additional measures being trialled at the CF Leadership and Recruit School show promise in substantially improving women's success rates in meeting physical fitness standards and thereby their success rates in basic training.

Female Attrition Rates for the CF Regular Force
Fiscal Year (FY) Officers Non-
Commissioned Members
2001-02 4.7% 6.9%
2002-03 6.5% 6.7%
2003-04 6.6% 6.5%
2004-05 5.4% 6.3%
2005-06 6.0% 6.2%
2006-07 5.0% 8.1%
2007-08 6.9% 9.8%
2008-09 6.1% 8.6%
2009-10 7.3% 8.9%
2010-11 5.4% 7.3%
20011-12 5.0% 6.2%

The attrition rate for females in FY 2010-11 was slightly higher than that for male members.
9. The Department of National Defence begin to report the results of the exit surveys it conducts among members of the Canadian Forces in its Departmental Performance Reports (DPR) beginning with the Report for the period ending 31 March 2007. References to the methodology and scope of the surveys should be included. The Department of National Defence will ensure that the information identified in this recommendation is included in its annual DPR. However, since the comprehensive analysis of survey results will not commence until the fall of 2007, the reporting of these results can only begin with the report for the period ending 31 March 2008. The Exit Survey is given to all Regular Force members who are leaving the CF voluntarily. Survey completion is voluntary. The objective of the analysis of Exit Survey data is to assess departing members' satisfaction with several organizational issues as well as to determine the extent to which these organizational issues and dissatisfiers influence their decision to leave the CF. Analyses of 2008-2011 data indicate that although none of the organizational issues were identified as a salient dissatisfiers or strong influential factors on members' decisions to leave, the areas of greatest concern included the career management system, work-life balance and the effects of postings and deployment on families. Analyses of 2005-2008 data suggest that lower ranks and increased operations tempo is associated with more negative attitudes and perceptions.

As well, the CF Retention Survey, which is administered to occupations that are "at-risk" with regards to attrition, is used to explore specific work and non-work related items and their impact on whether an individual intends to stay or leave the CF in the next five years. Descriptive results from the 2010 administration of the CF Retention survey have been completed and are under review. Based on the results of the 2010 CF Retention Survey, it is estimated that most CF personnel do not intend to leave the CF in the next year. Overall, the findings of this survey indicate that CF personnel are satisfied with most of the work and organizational variables assessed. However, there were several areas identified as needing some additional focus, including: perceptions of organizational support, perceptions of fairness in the processes used to allocate outcomes and rewards, and issues related to career management and work–life balance.

The 2012 Retention Survey is currently being administered and results will be analyzed in Fall of 2012. Preparations for administration of the 2012 CF Retention survey have commenced. Results of the 2010 Retention survey will provide performance measures to the CF Retention Strategy.

10. That the Department of National Defence establish a target for the maximum acceptable rate of attrition of its trained effective strength and monitor the performance of the package of measures it has instituted to meet that target. The Department should begin to report its progress in its annual DPR beginning with the report ending 31 March 2007. The Government will include data regarding attrition rates in the Department of National Defence annual Departmental Performance Report beginning with the report ending 31 March 2007. However, the data will be based on trend analysis as opposed to pre-determined targets. Due to the number of factors influencing attrition that are beyond the control of the CF, including the state of the Canadian economy, instead of establishing a target for the maximum acceptable rate of attrition of its trained effective strength, the CF closely monitors all aspects of attrition and uses statistical modelling to forecast attrition for each occupation for each fiscal year (FY). These forecasts are used in formal, structured processes to determine the number of personnel who need to be recruited for each occupation for each FY, and are published as the Strategic Intake Plan. During the reporting period, actual recruiting and attrition are monitored on a month-by-month basis and the Strategic Intake Plan is adjusted as required.

The current rate of attrition is running at an historical low and is projected to remain so for the next few years. As a result of several retention initiatives targeted at high-loss stages of service and reduced pressures on the recruiting and training systems, most occupations are either at their authorized strength levels or have sufficient personnel in the training pipeline to make up current shortages. The overall trained effective strength of the Regular Force has been steadily improving, and at the end of FY 2011-12, was 58,035 relative to the establishment requirement of 60,314.

Attrition Rates for the CF Regular Force
Fiscal Year Trained Officers Trained Non-Commissioned Members Overall CF: trained and untrained
2001-02 5.0% 6.1% 6.0%
2002-03 4.9% 6.4% 6.4%
2003-04 4.5% 6.3% 6.1%
2004-05 4.5% 7.1% 6.7%
2005-06 5.4% 6.8% 6.8%
2006-07 6.3% 8.0% 8.3%
2007-08 6.8% 8.3% 9.1%
2008-09 7.7% 8.9% 9.1%
2009-10 6.3% 7.1% 7.6%
2010-11 5.3% 6.8% 6.6%
20011-12 4.8% 4.5% 6.1%

Attrition rates were calculated based on data obtained from the Human Resources Management System (HRMS) in June 2012. Note that the attrition rates calculated for fiscal year (FY) 2011-12 may still change as the data is updated in HRMS. HRMS provides the attrition rates for female officers and NCMs from FY 2001-02 to 2011-12, for trained officers and NCMs, as well as the overall CF attrition rates.
15th Report of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, 39th Parliament, 1st Session, "Chapter 5 – Relocating Members of the Canadian Forces, RCMP, and Federal Public Service of the November 2006 Report of the Auditor General of Canada (Adopted by the Committee on May 16, 2007; Presented to the House on May 29, 2007)
Original Report
Government Response
Recommendation Government Response/Commitment Status
5. That the Department of National Defence, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and Treasury Board Secretariat include, in their annual DPR, references to the Integrated Relocation-Program as it relates to their employees. Information on the numbers of employees using the Program, the costs, and the extent to which the purposes of the Program are being achieved must be included. This performance information must be included in DPRs beginning with Reports for the period ending 31 March 2008. The Government accepts this recommendation. The purpose of the Integrated Relocation Program (IRP) is to relocate CF personnel and their families in the most efficient fashion and at the most reasonable cost to the public while having a minimum detrimental effect on the employee and family, and on departmental operations.

In 2011, the following moves were coordinated through the Brookfield Global Relocation Services (GRS), by quarter:

2011 FY Total 14753
2011-Q2 5030
April 2297
May 1555
June 1178
2011-Q3 2143
July 757
August 775
September 611
2011-Q4 1582
October 527
November 534
December 521
2011 Total 8755
2012-Q1 5998
January 621
Febuary 685
March 4692
Response to the Auditor General (including to the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development)
During the reporting period the Auditor General (AG) and the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development tabled two audit reports in Parliament focused specifically on National Defence-Chapter 5 of the November 2011 tabling titled "Maintaining and Repairing Military Equipment" and Chapter 2 of the April 2012 tabling titled "Replacing Canada's Fighter Jets".

In the Chapter on "Maintaining and Repairing Military Equipment" the AG concluded that while the annual process of allocating available funds for maintenance and repair (M&R) activities was effective in meeting DND operational priorities in the short term, DND's ability to meet training and operational requirements over the long term was at risk due to deficient management information systems, a lack of sufficient cost and performance information, and weaknesses in the implementation and oversight of its contracting approaches for M&R. Further, the AG reported a significant gap existed between the demand for M&R services and the funds available for this purpose, but that DND does not know the specific long-term impacts of this gap. With respect to the new contracting approaches for M&R of military equipment, the AG reported that the Optimized Weapon System Management (OWSM) approach for existing fleets has suffered from a lack of concerted action and follow-through and that as a result, the implementation of this approach has been slower and more limited than planned. For new fleets the AG reported that the In-Service Support Contracting Framework (ISSCF) was not adequately monitored and that significant risks associated with this approach are not being sufficiently mitigated.

In the Chapter on "Replacing Canada's Fighter Jets" the AG concluded that DND, as the lead department, exercised due diligence in managing Canada's participation in the Joint Strike Fighter Program by: managing industrial participation well in conjunction with Industry Canada; identifying and communicating risks and mitigation strategies related to participating in the Program; and, assessing options before signing the 2006 production, sustainment and follow-on development (PSFD) Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The OAG also concluded however, that DND did not fully inform decision makers of the implications of participation in the 2006 MOU on the acquisition process, nor provide documented analysis to support decisions in some cases. With respect to the management of the process to replace the CF-18 jets, the OAG concluded that DND did not demonstrate due diligence because: DND did not consult PWGSC on the procurement implications of the PSFD MOU nor develop a plan for managing unique aspects of the acquisition; problems and associated risks related to the development of the F-35 were not fully communicated to decision makers; full life-cycle costs were understated in cost estimates to support the 2010 decision; some costs were not fully disclosed to Parliamentarians; and, there was a lack of timely and complete documentation to support the procurement strategy decision.

These two Chapters, including departmental responses to the Auditor General's recommendations, can be accessed on the Auditor General's website at the following link: OAG Latest Audit Reports

During the reporting period, the Office of the Procurement Ombudsman (OPO) completed a Follow-Up Report on five of its 2008-09 Practice Reviews. Two of the five chapters involved DND-"Supplier Debriefings" and "Advance Contract Award Notices." The full report can be accessed from the OPO website at the following link: Follow-up of 2008-2009 Procurement Practice Reviews.

External audits conducted by the Public Service Commission of Canada or the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages
Nil during the reporting period.

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