Canada needs a defence industrial strategy to secure its future
As published in the Toronto Sun
The last few months have seen a generational change in how our federal government is approaching defence investments and national security.
Canada’s commitment to reach 5% of GDP in defence spending by 2035 is a concrete step toward building a significant defence industrial complex within Canada and putting Canada back on the map as a global security player. Through all of this, the level of public support for increasing defence spending has also reached unprecedented levels in recent memory.
The opportunity for Canada, and sustained public support, will depend upon clearly demonstrating the additional economic and societal benefits of such a defence strategy.
Budget priorities may evolve over time, yet it is clear that national security and economic security go hand in hand. Jurisdictions like the European Union, United Kingdom, Australia and the U.S. have all launched defence industrial strategies ensuring their military are equipped to meet emerging challenges while supporting their own domestic industrial base. Strategic, deliberate investments across Canada will create a robust, innovative, sustainable defense industrial base with ancillary economic benefits to the communities that host it.
An increasingly dynamic geopolitical environment requires that Canada increase sovereign control over our defence capabilities
Canada already has a robust defence industry which generates a GDP impact of nearly $10 billion annually and supports more than 80,000 jobs. Yet much of that industry is built around support to foreign products. Our country has the workforce and capabilities to do more, including developing our own products and capabilities.
A case in point is aerospace. Canada is one of very few nations with the full range of capabilities to design, engineer, build, certify, and service aircraft to the highest standards of safety and performance. The Canadian aerospace sector’s R&D is second to none amongst manufacturers. The industry contributes $28.9 billion to GDP and 218,000 jobs to the Canadian economy every year.
However, in the absence of a strategic national framework, Canadian industry remains underutilized. Companies are left navigating unclear policy signals, inconsistent procurement timelines, and limited access to long-term investment or innovation support.
A comprehensive integrated Canadian Defence Industrial Strategy would move us away from a transactional, piecemeal mindset. Such a strategy should be grounded in earlier, pre-tender government and Armed Forces’ engagement with industry on our national security needs and Canadian-derived solutions. It should also be strengthened by a genuinely integrated approach to defence R&D innovation investments, defence procurement decisions, and export potential assessment and support.
Such a strategy would enhance our ability to respond to global threats and support our Canadian Armed Forces with the most advanced technologies developed under sovereign control. It would also increase our international credibility, making Canada a more attractive – even indispensable – partner for joint procurement or multinational defence technology initiatives.
Industry, its employees and partners are aligned: National security and economic prosperity are mutually reinforced. The policy would go beyond procurement plans – it would set up a long-term framework to align national security priorities with industrial capacity, innovation, workforce development, and economic growth. It would empower the Government of Canada and provinces to invest strategically from shipbuilding and aerospace to cybersecurity and mining. These actions would set Canada up to grow firms and employment.
In recent months, we’ve all seen what Canadians can accomplish when we’re united.
We’ve been loud and clear about how important it is to protect our nation’s sovereignty. We have the expertise to protect our vast borders – it’s time for our government to put Canadians to work to secure Canada and its future.
By investing strategically in Canada’s defence industrial base, industry believes the Government of Canada has a unique opportunity, and we stand together, ready to support.
