National Defence

The House of Commons Standing Committee on National Defence met to study the integration of the Canadian Coast Guard into the Department of National Defence. Witnesses were Chris Henderson (former Deputy Commissioner for Operations at the Canadian Coast Guard), Professor James Boutilier, Associate Professor Adam Lajeunesse (Director of the Canadian Maritime Security Network), and Teresa Eschuk (National President of the Union of Canadian Transportation Employees).

Chris Henderson recommended creating a new Canadian Coast Guard act to enshrine a national security role, make the commissioner a deputy head, and consolidate tools like the national aerial surveillance program and the Canadian Hydrographic Service under the Coast Guard. He argued the Coast Guard should be given a law enforcement mandate to protect Canadian interests at sea, augmenting rather than replacing the RCMP, CBSA, and DFO, and stressed that every ship must be a sensor connected to a secure network. He disagreed with the idea that the Coast Guard is being militarized, saying it should remain a civilian organization.

James Boutilier described the integration as long overdue and a case of the sum being greater than the parts, given the Coast Guard’s larger fleet and Arctic expertise. He emphasized urgency, arguing Canada has been a nation of sleepwalkers in security and is now at war in a dangerous world, with adversaries like Russia and China operating large icebreaker and coast guard fleets. He called for immediate resolve and noted the Coast Guard’s relationship with northern communities is invaluable for surveillance and intelligence.

Adam Lajeunesse proposed creating a combined officer and sailor training program between the Royal Canadian Navy and the Coast Guard, standardizing qualifications and embedding junior naval officers on Coast Guard vessels to address a lack of sea time. He recommended outfitting Coast Guard vessels with communication systems and electronic support, deploying UAVs for surveillance, and exploring arming select vessels for limited defensive tasks, but warned that imposing a top-down military hierarchy could undermine the Coast Guard’s effective decentralized regional structure.

Teresa Eschuk raised concerns about chronic underfunding, recruitment and retention problems, and the need to preserve the Coast Guard’s civilian identity, as members did not enlist in the military. She urged restoring the seven Marine Security Operation Centres (MSOCs) to ensure full 24-7 coverage, expanding the Coast Guard’s role in analyzing intelligence, and guaranteeing payroll stability during the transition to avoid errors like those from the Phoenix pay system. She noted that communication about the transfer has been poor and members remain uncertain about their employment terms.

The committee briefly discussed a technical issue with interpretation for Mr. Henderson, and members noted they would seek written submissions from him. No procedural debate, motions, or votes occurred during the meeting.