The House of Commons Standing Committee on National Defence is a permanent committee established by the Standing Orders, the written rules under which the House of Commons regulates its proceedings. It is mandated to review all matters pertaining to the Department of National Defence (“the department”) and the Canadian Armed Forces. It may examine and report on matters referred to it by the House of Commons or it may undertake studies on its own initiative.
The National Defence Act established the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces – the Canadian Army, the Royal Canadian Navy and Royal Canadian Air Force – as two separate entities operating in close cooperation under the authority of the Minister of National Defence. National Defence Headquarters is a “combined” headquarters consisting of both military and civilian personnel. The Standing Committee on National Defence is responsible for examining legislation, activities, and expenditures of the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces, as well as the effectiveness of related policies and programs.
When examining legislation or undertaking a particular study, the Committee may hear from a variety of witnesses including the Minister, relevant departmental and Canadian Armed Forces personnel, academics, subject matter specialists, stakeholders, Ministers and officials from other departments, and members of the public at large.
Order in Council Appointments, whereby individuals are appointed to certain senior posts within the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces, are referred to the Committee after they have been tabled in the House of Commons. Within thirty sitting days of this referral, the Committee may choose to examine the qualifications and competence of these appointees in relation to the posts to which they have been appointed. If the committee decides to present a report to the House, the report will ordinarily state that the committee has reviewed the appointment or nomination and whether or not the committee finds the person qualified and competent to perform the duties of the office.
The Committee is also empowered to study and report the following agencies and other independent bodies:
Defence Research and Development Canada*
Office of the Chief Military Judge*
Communications Security Establishment Canada*
Office of the Communications Security Establishment Commissioner*
Military Grievances External Review Committee (formerly known as the Canadian Forces Grievance Board)*
Military Police Complaints Commission*
Office of the Ombudsman for the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Forces
National Search and Rescue Secretariat
*These bodies operate as independent units within the defence portfolio. The other agencies report to Parliament through the Minister of National Defence.
For procedural information regarding the mandate and power of committees please consult the relevant section in the Compendium of House of Commons Procedure.
Until 1986, the Standing Committee on External Affairs and National Defence was responsible for examining defence policy. One result of the Canadian parliamentary reforms implemented during the 1980s was the establishment of a separate Standing Committee on National Defence in 1986.
In 1989, Veterans Affairs was added to the mandate of the Committee, and it was renamed the Standing Committee on National Defence and Veterans Affairs. However, on April 5, 2006, at the beginning of the 39th Parliament, the House of Commons adopted a motion which amended its Standing Orders to, among other things, divide the areas of responsibility and establish both a Standing Committee on National Defence and a Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs.
In the execution of its functions, each committee is normally assisted by a committee clerk, an analyst and a committee assistant. Occasional assistance is also provided by legislative clerks and lawyers from the Office of the Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel. All of these individuals are non-partisan and serve all members of the committee and representatives of all parties equally.
Committee Clerk
The clerk performs his or her duties and responsibilities under the direction of the committee and its Chair. As an expert in the rules of the House of Commons, the clerk may be requested to give advice to the Chair and members of the committee should a question of procedure arise. The clerk is the coordinator, organizer and liaison officer for the committee and as such will be in frequent contact with members’ staff. He or she is also responsible to invite witnesses and to deal with all the details regarding their appearance before the committee.
Committee Assistant
The committee assistant provides a wide range of specialized administrative services for, in particular, the organization of committee meetings and the publishing of documents on the committees’ website. The committee assistant works with the clerk to meet the needs of committees.
Committee Analyst
The Library of Parliament’s analysts provide authoritative, substantive, and timely research, analysis and information to all members of the Committee. They are part of the Committee’s institutional memory and are a unique resource for parliamentarians. Supported by research librarians, the analyst works individually or in multidisciplinary teams.
Analysts can prepare: briefing notes on the subjects being examined; detailed study plans; lists of proposed witnesses; analyses of an issue with a list of suggested questions; background papers; draft reports; news releases; and/or formal correspondence. Analysts with legal training can assist the Committee regarding any substantive issues that may arise during the consideration of bills.
OTHER RESOURCES AVAILABLE AS REQUIRED
Parliamentary Counsel
Within the Office of the Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel, Parliamentary Counsel (Legislation) are available to assist Members who are not in Cabinet in the preparation of private Members’ bills or of amendments to Government bills or others.
At various stages of the legislative process, Members may propose amendments to bills. Amendments may first be proposed at the Committee Stage, during a committee’s clause-by-clause review of a bill. Amendments may also be proposed at the Report Stage, once a bill returns to the House.
Once bill is sent to Committee, the clerk of the Committee provides the name of the Parliamentary Counsel (Legislation) responsible for the drafting of the amendments for a particular bill to the Members.
Legislative Clerk
The legislative clerk serves all members of the Committee as a specialist of the process by which a bill becomes law. They are available to give, upon request from Members and their staff, advice on the admissibility of amendments when bills are referred to Committee. The legislative clerk organizes the amendments into packages for committee stage, reviews all the committee amendments for procedural admissibility and prepares draft rulings for the Chair. During clause-by-clause consideration of bills in committee, a legislative clerk is in attendance to assist the committee concerning any procedural issues that may arise. The legislative clerk can also provide Members with advice regarding the procedural admissibility of Report Stage amendments. When a bill is sent to committee, the clerk of the committee provides to the Members the name of the legislative clerk assigned to the bill.
The Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO)
The Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) has a mandate to support Parliament and parliamentarians in holding the government to account for the good stewardship of public resources. The Federal Accountability Act of 2006 mandates the PBO to provide independent analysis to the Senate and to the House of Commons regarding the state of the nation’s finances, the government estimates and trends in the national economy.
The enabling legislation also provides the PBO with a mandate to provide analytical support to any committee during its consideration of the estimates, as well as provide advice to any Member of Parliament regarding the financial cost of proposals.
Further information on the PBO may be found at: http://www.pbo-dpb.gc.ca/en/
Since 2010, the Committee has presented a number of major reports to the House of Commons, including:
In undertaking these in-depth studies, the Committee has travelled to CAF bases across Canada, as well as Colorado Springs, Colorado, and Washington, DC. It also met with visiting delegations and received departmental briefings on Canada’s participation in ongoing oversees missions.
In addition to its substantive reports, the Committee has examined government estimates, reviewed and adopted Order in Council appointments, and considered legislation. With respect to recent legislation, the Committee studied and reported on Bill C-16, An Act to amend the National Defence Act (military judges) (November 2011) and Bill C-15, An Act to amend the National Defence Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts (March 2013). Both bills made reforms to the military justice system.