Question Period Note: Culture Change and Justice Arbour’s Recommendations

The Canadian Armed Forces is facing a crisis and senior leaders within the organisation just don’t get it. When will this Government finally take action to protect our men and women in uniform?

• This Government’s top priority is to ensure that everyone in the Canadian Armed Forces and Department of National Defence feels safe and protected and that they belong.
• We are taking deliberate and coordinated actions at all levels of the department, military and civilian, to eliminate sexual misconduct and promote culture change.
• For example, we have accepted Former Justice Arbour’s interim recommendation to transfer sexual assault and criminal sexual offence cases in the military to civilian authorities.
• The Canadian Forces Provost Marshal and the Director of Military Prosecutions are currently working with federal, provincial, and territorial counterparts to implement Former Justice Arbour’s interim recommendation.
• Additionally, we are laying the groundwork to ensure we are ready to implement Former Justice Arbour’s final recommendations.
• Our goal is to better protect and support survivors, as well as implement long-lasting reforms and ensure our members and employees live up to our shared Canadian values of equality, safety and security, and respect.

Contexte

Budget 2021: Provides $236.2 million over five years to address sexual misconduct and gender based violence.
* Senior Leadership Selection Process: We recently updated our senior leadership selection process to include:
* Evidence-based character assessments to ensure we are promoting inclusive leadership.
* Increased verifications of candidate’s past for misconduct.
* Former Justice Arbour: Currently conducting a review of National Defence to identify the causes for the continued presence of harassment and sexual misconduct within the organization.
* Former Justice Arbour provided interim recommendations to National Defence on October 20, 2021.
* Interim recommendations build on recommendation number 68 of the report from Former Justice Fish which calls on National Defence to transfer all sexual assaults and other criminal offences of a sexual nature under the Criminal Code, including historical sexual offences, alleged to have been perpetrated by a Canadian Armed Forces member past or present, to civilian authorities.
* The final Arbour report is expected to be delivered to National Defence in the spring or summer of 2022.

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