New report calls for $1 billion in military cuts
A new report calls for $1 billion in defence cuts, and the Canadian armed forces chief, Gen. Walt Natynczyk, stands behind it. The Report on Transformation 2011, authored by former head of the Canadian army Lt. Gen. Andrew Leslie, advocates axing overhead and bureaucracy costs and investing in soldiers, sailors and pilots who can be deployed on operations. That means eliminating or transferring 11,000 military and civilian jobs in the defence department and cutting much of the $2.7-billion the military spends on contractors and consultants every year. It would be a brutal downsizing, but “everything’s on the table,” Natynczyk told reporters, adding that it will be up to the government to decide where to drop the axe. The Conservatives, who’ve been portraying themselves as champions of both the armed forces and fiscal discipline, are in for a delicate balancing act—cutting out the fat without digging too deep into what constitutes the muscle of our defence capabilities.