Minister of National Defence announces Lieutenant-General Wayne Eyre to stay acting CDS

Minister of National Defence, Harjit S. Sajjan announced today that Admiral McDonald would be on administrative leave until further notice.

In his statement, Minister Sajjan says he initially expected that Admiral Art McDonald would remain on leave while the Government figures out what needs to happen following a military police investigation.

“Appointments like that of Chief of Defence Staff must meet the highest possible standards and our goal must be to create a better workplace for the women and men of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF),” Sajjan stated.

Allegations Taken Seriously

He continued, “A workplace that ensures that complainants and survivors are treated with the utmost respect and that allegations are taken seriously in every instance.

McDonald stepped down from his position this past February as Chief of the Defence Staff due to a Canadian Forces National Investigation Service investigation into an allegation of misconduct.

End of Investigation

Last Friday, the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service announced the end of the investigation.

According to Canadian Press, in a statement that was released yesterday, McDonald’s legal team said, “the naval officer would be returning to the position after the nearly six-month investigation “exonerated” him.”

Military police did not charge McDonald following the investigation as McDonald’s lawyers said in their statement, “the fact military police couldn’t find enough evidence to charge him even under the disciplinary code was evidence the allegation against their client was unfounded,” according to Canadian Press.

Sajjan continued his statements and expressed his confidence that acting Chief of Defence Staff Lieutenant-General Wayne Eyre will continue to serve the CAF and Canadians well as they deal with some very complex issues.

Confidence Acting Chief of Defence Staff

Sajjan continued his statements and expressed his confidence that acting Chief of Defence Staff Lieutenant-General Wayne Eyre will continue to serve the CAF and Canadians well as they deal with some very complex issues.

“From fighting forest fires and helping Canadians battle the pandemic at home, to assisting our Afghan interpreters and locally engaged staff to come to Canada, while continuing to confront other security challenges around the world Canadians and the CAF,” he added.

McDonald assumed his role as Chief of the Defence Staff in January. This was weeks before Global reported allegations of sexual misconduct by retired General Johnathan Vance, who has since been charged with obstruction of justice.

Addressing Sexual Misconduct

With the two investigations and many people coming forward with allegations of inappropriate misconduct, it put priority on the need to switch gears when addressing sexual misconduct in the CAF.

Retired Supreme Court Justice Louise Arbour led an Independent External Comprehensive Review of the Department of National Defence and the CAF.

The intention behind the review:

• • to bring attention to the causes of the consistent presence of harassment and sexual misconduct despite attempts to rid of it,
  • identify barriers to reporting inappropriate behaviour and to assess the adequacy of the response when reports are made, and
  • to make recommendations on preventing and eradicating harassment and sexual misconduct.