About

45th Parliament, 1st Session
(May 26, 2025 - Present)
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The House of Commons Standing Committee on National Defence (“the committee”) is a permanent committee established by the Standing Orders of the House of Commons, 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 the Royal Canadian Air Force – as two separate entities operating in close cooperation under the authority of the Minister of National Defence (“the Minister”). 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 concerning 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 federal entities, and members of the public.

Order in Council appointments, whereby individuals are appointed to certain senior posts within the department and the Canadian Armed Forces, are referred to the committee after they have been tabled in the House of Commons. Within 30 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 and indicate whether the committee finds the person to be qualified and competent to perform the duties of the office.

The committee is also empowered to review the performance and policies of the following federal entities, which operate within the National Defence portfolio:

• Canadian Coast Guard

• Communications Security Establishment Canada

• Defence Research and Development Canada

• Military Grievances External Review Committee

• Military Police Complaints Commission of Canada

• National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces Ombudsman

• Office of the Chief Military Judge

• Office of the Intelligence Commissioner

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, the topic of veterans’ affairs was added to the mandate of the committee, and it was renamed the Standing Committee on National Defence and Veterans Affairs. However, in April 2006, at the beginning of the 39th Parliament, the House of Commons adopted a motion that amended its Standing Orders to divide the areas of responsibility and establish both the Standing Committee on National Defence and the Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs.

Staff Assigned to the Committee

In the execution of its functions, each committee is normally assisted by a committee clerk, a committee assistant, and one or more analysts. Occasional assistance is also provided by legislative clerks and lawyers from the Office of the Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel. These individuals are non-partisan and serve all members of the committee and representatives of all parties equally.

Committee Clerk

The clerk performs their 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, is in frequent contact with Members’ staff. The clerk is also responsible for inviting witnesses and dealing with all the details regarding their appearance before the committee.

Committee Assistant

The committee assistant provides a wide range of specialized administrative services for the organization of committee meetings and the publishing of documents on the committee’s website. The committee assistant works with the clerk to meet the needs of the committee.

Committee Analyst

The Library of Parliament’s analysts, who are subject-matter experts, 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 analysts work 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 formal correspondence.

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 with the preparation of private Members’ bills or of amendments to government bills or other bills.

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 a bill is sent to committee, the clerk of the committee provides Members the name of the parliamentary counsel (Legislation) responsible for drafting the amendments for that bill.

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 with 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 Members the name of the legislative clerk assigned to the bill.

The Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO)

The Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) is an officer of Parliament created by the Parliament of Canada Act who supports Parliament by providing analysis, including analysis of macroeconomic and fiscal policy, for the purposes of raising the quality of parliamentary debate and promoting greater budget transparency and accountability.

The Parliament of Canada Act also provides the PBO with a mandate to, if requested by a committee, estimate the financial cost of any proposal over which Parliament has jurisdiction. Certain committees, including the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates, can also request research and analyses of the nation’s finances or economy, or of the estimates.

Further information on the PBO may be found at: http://www.pbo-dpb.gc.ca/en/.

During the 44th Parliament, the committee initiated studies on various topics and presented a number of substantive reports to the House of Commons. In particular, the committee released reports and made recommendations to the Government of Canada on issues relating to: the defence of Canada in a rapidly changing international security environment; the recruitment and retention of Canadian Armed Forces members; Arctic security and sovereignty; the cyber defence of Canada; Canadian Armed Forces health care and transition services; Canada and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s response to Russia’s aggression in Europe; defence procurement; disaster relief and the Canadian Armed Forces’ domestic operations; housing support for Canadian Armed Forces members and their families; and transparency and accountability within the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces.

As well, during the 44th Parliament, the committee conducted studies on other topics for which no reports were published, including in relation to the Department of National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces contaminated sites, the April 2024 defence policy update, space defence and the Canadian Armed Forces’ role in the 2021 Afghanistan evacuation.

Finally, in addition to work on substantive studies during the 44th Parliament, the committee examined government estimates, reviewed and adopted Order in Council appointments, and travelled to Estonia, Latvia, Poland, the United Kingdom and the United States. As well, the committee met with visiting foreign delegations in Ottawa, and received departmental briefings on international conflicts, threats to Canada, Canada’s participation in ongoing overseas missions and other defence-related issues.