Canadian Military Faces Rise in Mental Health Cases, Language Barriers, and Cultural Infighting Under New Recruiting Model

Canadian Forces Military Personnel generation group commodore Pascal Belhumeur, left, looks on as Chief of Military Personnel and Commander of Military Personnel Command Lt-Gen. Erick Simoneau responds to a question during a briefing about recruitment efforts during a briefing in Ottawa, April 20, 2026 in Ottawa. Adrian Wyld/The Canadian PressThe Canadian military is grappling with a range of challenges linked to an easing of recruitment standards, including new members who lack proficiency in English or French or who face significant mental health issues.The concerns appear in a leaked report written by the commander of a core military training school in Quebec, first covered by Juno News earlier this week. The report says the changes are hurting completion rates of basic training.