The federal government has appointed Lieutenant General Jenny Carignan as Secretary of Defense.
As CBC News first reported last week, Carignan’s appointment makes her the first woman to hold the top job in the Canadian Armed Forces. She currently serves as the military’s chief of professional ethics and culture, a position created in the wake of the sexual misconduct scandal.
Several senior officials accused of sexual misconduct in 2021 were forced to resign.
In the wake of the scandal, former Supreme Court Justice Louise Arbour released a scathing external report that laid out a series of recommendations to change the toxic culture within the force. Carignan has been the public face of the effort to reform that culture, updating the public on efforts to implement those recommendations.
Carignan joined the military in 1986 and commanded a combat engineer regiment, leading units responding to floods in Quebec.
In 2008, she became the first woman to command a combat unit in the Canadian Armed Forces.
She is a recipient of the Distinguished Service Medal and the Governor General’s Military Merit Medal and has deployed to Afghanistan, Bosnia and Syria, among other places. She led a year-long NATO mission in Iraq that ended in late 2020.
Her official biography also states that she has four children, two of whom are in the military.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters in Montreal on Wednesday that the appointment of a new defence secretary was a “very important choice.”
“Especially at a time when geopolitics are becoming more complex and threats to the Arctic are increasing,” he said.
“Ensuring we have the right person to lead our military at this critical time is something Canadians rightly felt we needed to take seriously, and I think we’ve done that.”
The military struggles to recruit
Carignan takes over command of a military in a period of transition amid ongoing cultural change efforts and the urgent task of rebuilding the force after years of declining recruitment and low retention rates.
The military is short about 16,000 soldiers and has been unable to recruit more in recent years to offset the losses caused by retirements and layoffs – a “death spiral” that Defence Secretary Bill Blair called in March.
This has led to tensions between the government and the military leadership.
Meanwhile, as the war rages in Ukraine, the Canadian military faces increased demands, including responding to weather-related emergencies and strengthening its presence in Eastern Europe.
The outgoing defense secretary said in a recent interview that the military is “starting to see an upturn” in recruiting.
Gen. Wayne Eyre said Canada’s allies face similar challenges in recruiting and that the issues are not well understood.
Along with demographic changes, he cited a “very tough labor market” as one challenge.
Eyre also said there are issues with Canadians’ preparation for military service, including “increased rates of medical issues and mental health issues.”
The military is experimenting with changes to enlistment eligibility for people with certain conditions, such as allergies, and those taking medication for ADHD.
“We have begun a journey towards significant reform across the organization,” he said, adding that a future internal strategy would detail efforts to improve readiness across the force.
Eyre was appointed in 2021 when Rear Admiral Art McDonald resigned just weeks into his term as defence secretary amid allegations of sexual misconduct.
He said his top priority was stabilizing the organization amid the scandal.
“It’s a work in progress and what I leave my successor with is unfinished business, but it’s work that will never be finished because it continues to evolve,” he said.
Carignan is due to formally take over command of the military in a ceremony on July 18.
Lt. Gen. Frances Allen, the first woman to be appointed Deputy Chief of Defence Staff, is also due to retire this year and will be replaced in a change of command ceremony in early August. The name of her successor has not yet been made public.
