Brett Boudreau

Strategic communications practitioner. Former senior military public affairs officer. CGAI Fellow. Aussie dad. 🇨🇦

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

New report by @CAGlobalAffairs tells the story of a 5+ year DND initiative labelled by leaders as "incompatible" with govt policy, and lacking "appropriate authorities & oversight." See: https://t.co/2YsqEp6kBp

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

Particularly good overview of the key issue of this report by this journalist.

Other key take-aways:

“Over‑redaction of personal information continues to be a recurring problem, undermining transparency and the credibility of oversight.”

“Delayed disclosure also remains an issue.”

“The CFPM has also declined to provide disclosure at the preliminary stage when the MPCC is determining whether to call a public interest investigation or hearing … this reluctance to share information early in the process creates a significant barrier to effective oversight.”

“In several cases this year involving delays in Professional Standards investigations, the CFPM declined to respond to recommendations directed to her, citing the absence of a statutory obligation.”

Why political authorities and senior CAF leaders are fine with this continued organizational intransigence by the military police is baffling. These behaviours do great and/or grave harm to many members.

[David Pugliese @davidpugliese]

My latest article....Military police leadership still battling civilian oversight, watchdog reports
https://t.co/kmFNz7qdET via @ottawacitizen

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

@ValourLegal More MPCC power isn’t the answer: they won’t ever be able to compel change on a decidely recalcitrant organization. Reform of disfunction this deep requires political intervention to direct a radical transformation of the MP/CFPM/Director Prosecution offices.

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

@RotaryVictoria Funnily enough, that policy is original from 1998. So are the majority of related policies from the series. Times have moved on, but the senior leader mindset toward comms function has not....nor the responsible functional authority (otherwise, policies would be fit-for-purpose).

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

No matter how "good" an idea is, major initiatives like this will flounder without deliberate, senior leader-driven, proactive comms from policy conception through to execution. Defence needs to slow-build understanding by continuous two-way public engagement with critics and skeptics. Policy and communications needs to be progressively elaborated, in lock-step.

[David Pugliese @davidpugliese]

Patriotism will drive Canadians into mobilization force, military report says. The goal is to create a new 300,000-strong reserve force to be used in national emergencies.
https://t.co/fB0ohhmlZp via @ottawacitizen

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

@davidpugliese They are hoping that ignoring your query, on basis of “a decision on the initiative yet to be approved” will delay or even dissuade you from further reporting: a consistently bad tactic. How CAF senior leaders accept this standard from PA functional authority remains a mystery.

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

Bad look for advocacy organization with deep support from DND. Given DND track record with media, one could reasonably ask whether decision to restrict access to critical media is bad call by CADSI pandering to what DND would like, or some other even less favourable explanation?

[David Pugliese @davidpugliese]

Interesting @C_Somos was told by CANSEC organizers there was no room for her. Our reporter got accredited in a few minutes without prior registration. Somos has written articles questioning the military. So has other barred outlets, @Ricochet @readthemaple @TheBreachMedia

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

“DND public servants, concerned that the department and [CAF] were not being forthcoming with information, provided the Ottawa Citizen with a copy of the May 4 internal message about the initiative.”

Wheels have fallen off DND comms when even details about parking are secret!

[David Pugliese @davidpugliese]

The Defence department has set up a temporary overflow lot at the Connaught Range in hopes it might alleviate some of the ongoing parking problems at its Carling campus headquarters.
https://t.co/VsWkYtu9t7 via @ottawacitizen

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

Pretty rich that the leading defence business advocacy group regularly calling on Govt to be more transparent denies media access on grounds that: “Publications or organizations that exist primarily for advocacy purposes may not qualify for media accreditation.” 😜

[David Pugliese @davidpugliese]

CANSEC Arms Fair Bars Multiple Independent Journalists From Attending

https://t.co/8hefXqrTQ8

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

@steffanwatkins @AmbDBHartman Steffan, there we will disagree: for many reasons, the functional authority can, and will ignore, such an entreaty should it happen.

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

@steffanwatkins It’s NATO-related, so you are sure to hear from several quarters of the CAF about our contributions and how vital NATO is (PA effort will be made at least until the September CMC vote).

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

@globepolitics @globeandmail Wow, just imagine the shortages (and business opportunities for kit suppliers) when the 400,000-strong Reserve Force is stood up!

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

@steffanwatkins Some offices like the mil HR head purported they didn’t have records about Dany Fortin, though the disposition of his case had been a hot topic amongst senior CAF for years. Of note, now ATIP is the responsibility of DND public affairs head, no admin conflict of interest there!😜

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

“In February 2024, Maynard testified at the Commons defence committee that DND was regularly violating the law, with little consequences … DND broke the law in almost 40 per cent of the requests it received to produce records…In an increasing number of cases, the department was claiming that records don’t exist…”

[David Pugliese @davidpugliese]

RCAF @RCAF_ARC refused to release photo of Lt. Gen. Jamie Speiser-Blanchet signing the F-35 fuselage bulkhead. I used Access to Info to try to get a copy...but DND and the RCAF would only release this grainy photocopy.

[Steffan Watkins  @steffanwatkins]

Still no Canadian 🇨🇦 news coverage of the Canadian warship visiting Vietnam 🇻🇳, or any official Canadian government posts about it, while the foreign press are all over it. Another public communications failure from the MND/DND/CAF/RCN/CJOC.

#HMCSCharlottetown #OpHORIZON

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

@stphnmaher A space-launch/port seems worthy of note as a significant project in NS.

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

Important new details uncovered here by Ashley.

In June 2021, the day Parliament adjourned for the summer, Defence leadership acknowledged the broader military strategic communications scheme was “incompatible” with government communications policy and the vision, mission and principles of DND Public Affairs. In a surprising self-indictment, the leaders also admitted a lack of “institution-wide strategic level direction and guidance,” to build information-related capabilities that were “governed by appropriate authorities and oversight.”

At issue, is whether the leader and institutional mindset has sufficiently evolved since then. Hard to know, since CAF is so opaque about issues that are deeply embarrassing to them.

https://t.co/uDFkRpAh88

[Ashley Burke @AshleyBurkeCBC]

The military reprimanded soldiers after they raised concerns about an order to monitor Canadians' online activity during the COVID-19 pandemic, CBC News has learned:
https://t.co/fC3CZesdNH

[Christy Somos @C_Somos]

Not every tip off results in the story you think it will.

When I was approached to look at "how the RCMP is reliant on the U.S." for training, what the story became was 'how has our federal police force managed whilst being too small and underfunded for the threats we face’

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

Superb commentary about this subject.

[Christopher E Richardson @DivebumChef]

Check out my latest article: When VAC Puts On an Art Exhibition While Calling a War a “Mission” https://t.co/ZELm22dRAr via @LinkedIn

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

Recalling CAF got initial 2019 cenotaph unveiling at Carling Campus horribly wrong, essentially telling folks days-after-the-fact on CAF Facebook account, keeping attendance to a few insiders, despite public affairs advice otherwise. After widespread veteran and public outrage, CDS Vance directed a second re-dedication, this time done with tremendous respect, appropriate representation, solemnity, and public awareness.

There will be many opportunities to mark significant stages of the National Memorial as it comes to life…here’s hoping the negative coverage VAC rightly received on this occasion is sufficient reminder of the need for consistent, ongoing public communication and proactive stakeholder engagement.

[Brett Boudreau @WHMTE]

@CharlotteDuLan And perfectly right and helpful to do so. My implied point is, more influencers are spending more of their time trying to explain and contextualize DND/CAF issues and policy choices in the absence of a regular, sustained effort by the institution to do so on its own behalf.