The world is increasingly dangerous and divided. Changes in the global trading system are causing massive disruptions and uncertainty for Canadians. The world has changed, and Canada's economic strategy must change.
Budget 2025: Canada Strong is our plan to transform our economy from one that is reliant on a single trade partner to one that is stronger, more self-sufficient, and more resilient to global shocks. This budget is a plan to enable $1 trillion in investments over the next five years. This is a plan for Canada to give ourselves more than any foreign government can take away - a plan to build Canada strong.
Central to our strategy is Buying Canadian and becoming our own best customer - using more Canadian steel, aluminum, lumber, and other Canadian materials, products, technologies, and services to build Canada strong. Today, the Honourable Joël Lightbound, Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement, visited Rio Tinto Alcan in Jonquière, Quebec, to outline nearly $186 million in new funding from the budget to fully implement the Buy Canadian Policy.
The new funding includes:
- $98.2 million over five years and $9.8 million ongoing to Public Services and Procurement Canada, as well as $7.7 million over three years to the Treasury Board Secretariat, to fully implement the Buy Canadian Policy across all federal departments, agencies, and Crown corporations. When domestic suppliers are not available, contracts will still be required to include Canadian content and be sourced from trusted trading partners.
- $79.9 million over five years to help launch the Small and Medium Business Procurement Program. The program will provide specialised, streamlined support for Canadian small and medium-sized businesses trying to break into the federal market. This will improve competition for federal contracts, strengthen local supply chains, and build our industries - from construction to energy, technology, and clean manufacturing.
The Buy Canadian Policy will extend to infrastructure spending and other federal funding streams, ensuring that as much as $70 billion in additional public investment supports Canadian-made products and services. More of every public dollar will go right into the Canadian economy, creating Canadian careers, using Canadian resources, and benefiting Canadian communities.
The Buy Canadian Policy will apply to the work of the Major Projects Office to fast-track transformative energy, trade, and transportation projects across the country, Build Canada Homes to supercharge housing construction, the Defence Investment Agency to scale up our industrial base, and the Build Communities Strong Fund to revitalise community infrastructure, from universities, colleges, and hospitals to bridges and recreation centres.
The past year has revealed there were limits to Canada's economic independence. Budget 2025 is tackling that challenge head-on. It is our plan to take control and build the future we want for ourselves. It is our plan to build Canada Strong.
