Department of National Defence (Canada)

The Department of National Defence , frequently referred to by its acronym DND, is the department

Ministry (government department)

A ministry is a specialised organisation responsible for a sector of government public administration, sometimes led by a minister or a senior public servant, that can have responsibility for one or more departments, agencies, bureaus, commissions or other smaller executive, advisory, managerial or...

within the government

Government

Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...

of Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

with responsibility for all matters concerning the defence of Canada. In addition to the civilian components of the department, this also includes Canada's military, known as the Canadian Forces

Canadian Forces

The Canadian Forces , officially the Canadian Armed Forces , are the unified armed forces of Canada, as constituted by the National Defence Act, which states: "The Canadian Forces are the armed forces of Her Majesty raised by Canada and consist of one Service called the Canadian Armed Forces."...

, whose personnel make up approximately 2/3 of the department.

DND is the largest federal

Government of Canada

The Government of Canada, formally Her Majesty's Government, is the system whereby the federation of Canada is administered by a common authority; in Canadian English, the term can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Queen-in-Council...

department in terms of personnel/employees and budget; there are 65,000 members of the Canadian Forces regular force, 26,000 members of the Canadian Forces primary reserve force, and approximately 29,000 civilian DND support employees. The department's planned spending in Fiscal Year 2008-2009 is C$19.5 billion. In 2006, the government announced a C$17 billion spending program for capital projects.

Until a December 2003 reorganization of the federal government, DND was in charge of emergency preparedness and response in Canada, through the Office of Critical Infrastructure and Emergency Preparedness. DND also holds responsibility for the Communications Security Establishment

Communications Security Establishment

The Communications Security Establishment Canada is the Canadian government's national cryptologic agency. Administered under the Department of National Defence , it is charged with the duty of keeping track of foreign signals intelligence , and protecting Canadian government electronic...

which is an organization staffed by a mixture of civilian and military personnel.

DND is led by the Minister of National Defence

Minister of National Defence (Canada)

The Minister of National Defence is a Minister of the Crown; the Canadian politician within the Cabinet of Canada responsible for the Department of National Defence which oversees the Canadian Forces....

and is headquartered at National Defence Headquarters

Department of National Defence Headquarters (Canada)

The Major-General George R. Pearkes Building is the principal location of Canada's National Defence Headquarters and is located in Ottawa, Ontario....

(NDHQ) in Ottawa

Ottawa

Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...

History

DND was created with the passage of the National Defence Act

National Defence Act

The National Defence Act is the primary enabling legislation for organizing and funding Canada's military....

on January 1, 1923 through an amalgamation of the Department of Naval Services

Department of Naval Services (Canada)

Department of Naval Services was the department responsible for the naval services in Canada during the transition from the Royal Navy to the Royal Canadian Navy....

with the Department of Militia and Defence

Department of Militia and Defence (Canada)

The Department of Militia and Defence was the department responsible for military forces in Canada from 1906-1921.The Minister of Militia and Defence was in charge of this department....

and the Air Board

Air Board (Canada)

The Air Board was Canada's first governing body for aviation that existed from 1919 to 1923. The Canadian government established the Air Board by act of Parliament on June 6, 1919 with the purpose of controlling all flying within Canada...

. DND was intended to reduce administrative costs among the three services, as well as improve the coordination of national security policies. DND brought under a single department, the Royal Canadian Navy

Royal Canadian Navy

The history of the Royal Canadian Navy goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King George V. The Royal Canadian Navy is one of the three environmental commands of the Canadian Forces...

, the Militia and Canadian Army, and the Canadian Air Force

Canadian Air Force (1920–1924)

The Canadian Air Force which was formed in 1920, was one of Canada's early attempts at forming an air force. When the Air Board was formed in 1919 to manage Canadian aviation, one of its responsibilities was air defence; the CAF was formed to meet this responsibility...

(later the Royal Canadian Air Force

Royal Canadian Air Force

The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...

).

Early efforts at integrating the services failed and the RCN, army, and RCAF maintained separate headquarters. During the Second World War, a Minister of National Defence for Air

Minister of National Defence for Air (Canada)

Minister of National Defence for Air was the minister responsible for the Royal Canadian Air Force during World War II. post created by the 1940 War Measures Act...

and a Minister of National Defence for Naval Services

Minister of National Defence for Naval Services (Canada)

Minister of National Defence for Naval Services was the minister responsible for the Royal Canadian Navy during World War II. The post was merged into the current post of the Minister of National Defence...

were appointed in May and July 1940 respectively as well as a Minister of Munitions and Supply

Department of Munitions and Supply (Canada)

The Department of Munitions and Supply was the federal government ministry responsible for co-ordinating domestic Canadian industry during World War II. It was created by the Munitions and Supply Act in September 1939 and began operations on April 9, 1940 with C.D...

. In 1946, DND reverted to having a single minister, whereby efforts were renewed at reducing duplication among the services.

In 1964, the position Chief of Defence Staff

Chief of the Defence Staff (Canada)

The Chief of the Defence Staff is the second most senior member of the Canadian Forces, and heads the Armed Forces Council, having primary responsibility for command, control, and administration of the forces, as well as military strategy, plans, and requirements...

was created, replacing the heads of the individual services as the nation's top military officer, and on February 1, 1968, the three services were merged to form the unified Canadian Forces

Canadian Forces

. In a controversial October 1972 DND reorganization, the previously separate civilian and military branches in Ottawa were merged to form the single Department of National Defence Headquarters (NDHQ), with appointments being filled by both civilians and Canadian Forces officers.

In 2007 the Government of Canada began to refer to the department as National Defence and the Canadian Forces, however the official name for the department has not been legally changed:

The Defence Portfolio comprises the Department of National Defence, the Canadian Forces and a number of related organizations, all of which are the collective responsibility of the Minister of National Defence.http://www.forces.gc.ca/site/dp-pd/index-eng.asp

The Policy Group at National Defence is mandated to "formulate and manage all aspects of defence policy." This portfolio therefore includes leadership on the development and conduct of Canadian defence diplomacy

Defence diplomacy

In international politics, defence diplomacy refers to the pursuit of foreign policy objectives through the peaceful employment of defence resources and capabilities.-Origin of the Concept:...

, bringing coherence and shared vision to a highly varied array of international relations

International relations

International relations is the study of relationships between countries, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations , international nongovernmental organizations , non-governmental organizations and multinational corporations...

tools wielded by Defence, under the umbrella of Canadian foreign policy.

External links

Department of National Defence and Canadian Forces

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History

See also

External links