“As Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy, I welcome the Chief Review Services (CRS)’s evaluation of Naval Forces. The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) has already taken steps to address each aspect of the evaluation.
Currently, the RCN is in the midst of its most intensive and comprehensive period of recapitalization in its peacetime history. The RCN has already developed a plan to ensure we continue to meet the tasks and missions set by Government of Canada during this period of transition.
The overall assessment of the CRS evaluation of Naval Services is that there is evidence of ongoing and demonstrable need for the Naval Forces program being delivered by the RCN, which is aligned with the roles, responsibilities and priorities of the federal government.
The evaluation did find that the RCN has had challenges in meeting some of its readiness requirement; however, despite these challenges, we have consistently met Government of Canada and DND expectations and demands for the conduct of operations.
The availability of ships is also set to increase in the near term with the completion of HCM and Victoria-class Introduction programs, and in the medium to longer term with the Arctic Offshore Patrol Ship (AOPS), Joint Support Ship (JSS), and Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) platforms that will be added through the NSPS program. Additionally, the Halifax-class project is expected to be completed by the end of 2018.
The RCN is also committed to operationalizing the Victoria-class submarine fleet and is on track to reach steady state by the end of 2014.
While program expenditures increased over the period of the evaluation, the evaluation noted that they have not exceeded reasonable amounts for a fleet of the size and composition of the RCN. The RCN continues to find new efficiencies and ways to achieve the mandate given to it by the Government of Canada.
The Government of Canada has made significant investments in the military and remains committed to providing the men and women of the RCN with the equipment they need to do the jobs that are asked of them. The modernization of the Halifax-class frigates represents an investment of $4 billion, and the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy (NSPS) represents an investment of $36.6 billion for the recapitalization of the federal surface fleet during the coming decades.
Through smart investments and implementation of best practices, we are enabling front-line capabilities and delivering on our commitment to ensure the RCN continues to be ‘Ready Aye Ready’ to defend Canadian interests at home and abroad.”
