Prime Minister Stephen Harper has announced that Lieutenant-General Thomas J. Lawson, currently Deputy Commander of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), will be appointed Chief of the Defence Staff, and promoted to the rank of General. In recent years, Canadians have become quite familiar with the Chief of Defence Staff.
As a nation, we all grew to know two previous Chiefs of Defence: General Walt Natynczyk and General Rick Hillier. General Hillier became a household name in Canada as he served from February 4, 2005 to July 1, 2008, during the height of Canada’s Mission to Afghanistan. We all watched as General Natynczyk oversaw Canada’s departure from our combat role in Afghanistan.
Our Prime Minister is confident that Lieutenant-General Lawson is the right leader for the Canadian Armed Forces and will bring a clear vision and strong values to the role. His experience, team-building skills and collaborative approach will help position the Canadian Armed Forces for the future.
Lieutenant-General Thomas Lawson was promoted to Brigadier-General in 2007 and appointed Commandant of the Royal Military College. In 2009, he was promoted to Major-General and became Assistant Chief of the Air Staff. He assumed his current position as Deputy Commander of NORAD in July 2011.
Our Conservative government has been re-building the Canadian Forces since the ‘rust-out’ years our troops experienced under the Liberals. Since 2006, we have made significant investments in Canada’s defence. We introduced the ‘Canada First’ Defence Strategy that sets a detailed road-map for the modernization of the Canadian Forces. It puts forward clear roles and missions for the Canadian Forces, outlining a level of ambition that will enable the CF to maintain the ability to deliver excellence at home, be a strong and reliable partner in the defence of North America, and project leadership abroad by making meaningful contributions to operations overseas.
The Canada First Defence Strategy is based on an extensive and rigorous analysis of the risks and threats facing Canada in the years to come, as well as the government’s vision for defence. Through stable and predictable defence funding, including balanced investments across the four pillars upon which military capabilities are built – personnel, equipment, readiness and infrastructure – the Strategy will increase the size of the Forces and replace their core capabilities. It is a 20-year $490-billion funding plan.
LGen Lawson is a veteran pilot and he gets into the cockpit of his new position in the post-Budget 2012 era. All federal departments offered 5-10 per cent – some more – reductions in their budgets to help eliminate the federal deficit in the mid-term. Unlike his two predecessors, he has the added burden of manoeuvring with the Department of National Defence’s budget being reduced $1.1 billion by 2014-15. At the same time, he will continue to pursue our Canada First Defence Strategy within these budgetary constraints.
As an accomplished and decorated CAF member, he knows that all Canada’s troops – for generations – train to bravely commit to: “any operation under any condition”. We wish our new Chief of Defence all the best
