QUESTION PERIOD — National Defence
Digital Infrastructure
October 9, 2024
My question is for Senator Gold. It has been reported through open sources that Australia, the United Kingdom and the U.S., or AUKUS, are joining together to develop a top secret cloud network to exchange highly classified defence, national security and intelligence data with each other. Experts say that Canada’s lack of digital infrastructure will have a profound effect on the new military hardware that the government is committed to buying and our ability to interoperate with our key allies.
What is the government doing to develop the required digital infrastructure so we can join the team?
Thank you. Canada has made very important investments in its digital infrastructure and enjoys institutions like the Communications Security Establishment, or CSE, which is nonpareil in the world. It is working closely with its allies so that it can play its part with its Five Eyes allies and other democratic allies in improving our resistance to and resilience in the face of the dangers that are increasingly coming to us from so many different directions.
This digital tech gap is also putting us at a disadvantage in negotiations to become part of the high-tech portion of our Five Eyes alliance. Three out of five members of this Five Eyes intelligence alliance are getting together. Given our track record with AUKUS, how can Canadians be reassured we won’t be left behind in this increasingly insecure world?
Thank you. It is an important question. This government is committed to giving all of our institutions — certainly public and defence, but well beyond that — the tools in order to equip us going forward. Canadians should be reassured that the government, which has made historic investments in these areas, will continue to do so.
