OTTAWA — Finance Minister Jim Flaherty unveiled a surprisingly modest defence-spending package yesterday, offering the hard-pressed Canadian military just $1.1-billion in new spending over the next two years.
Neither the budget speech nor the 315-page budget document made a single mention of Afghanistan, where Canada has deployed 2,300 troops to bolster the Western-backed government of President Hamid Karzai.
Nor does the budget outline how the government intends to fulfill a campaign promise to buy new strategic airlift planes -- which could run up to $3-billion, depending on which aircraft is selected and how many -- or three armed icebreakers to patrol the Arctic Ocean.
Liberal defence critic Ujjal Dosanjh said the budget document reads as though the government simply cut and pasted from its defence policy platform in the recent election campaign.
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"I believe they have not progressed one inch farther than their election platform and that's why, I'm assuming, there are no details in this budget," he said.
Mr. Dosanjh suggested the lack of detail may be the result of a policy deadlock between Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor and Chief of Defence Staff General Rick Hillier. Mr. O'Connor is known to favour a renewed emphasis on the Arctic, whereas Gen. Hillier would rather transform the Canadian Forces to meet the threat of failed and failing states. "They can't resolve the differences between Gen. Hillier's modern vision and the needs of the modern military versus Mr. O'Connor's obsession with Cold War needs," Mr. Dosanjh said.
In his speech to the Commons, Mr. Flaherty briefly paid tribute to Canadian soldiers. "These soldiers exemplify the character and dedication of our Canadian Forces, and all our men and women in uniform deserve our gratitude and full support." He also repeated the Tory mantra that "our men and women in uniform have not been given the tools they need to do their job." During last winter's federal election, the Conservatives vowed to undo years of Liberal neglect.
The budget, however, devotes just one of 315 pages to defence.
It reiterates some Conservative campaign promises -- a pledge to recruit 13,000 new regular force members and 10,000 reservists, restoration of a regular army presence in British Columbia, and a plan to "initiate the establishment of territorial battalions." It also affirms the top-line defence spending promise of the campaign: $5.3-billion in new money for defence over five years, which, when added to previous spending increases, would bring the defence budget to just under $20-billion by 2010, from the current $14.5-billion.
Defence industry insiders speculated that to buy new transport aircraft, as well as new icebreakers and recruit thousands of new troops, the defence allocation in the budget would have to be significantly greater than $5.3-billion over five years.
