Today, Prime Minister Mark Carney and Minister of National Defence David McGuinty announced Canada's plan to increase and accelerate its investments in defence. This builds on the commitments made last year in Canada's defence policy, Our North, Strong and Free (ONSAF), to strengthen Canada's sovereignty, security, and prosperity, and drive economic growth in this pivotal moment.
This plan includes a cash increase of over $9 billion ($8.3 billion on an accrual basis) in defence investment this fiscal year (2025-26), bringing Canada's defence spending to 2% of gross domestic product.
To deliver on our plan, we will make foundational investments in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), expand and enhance existing and emerging military capabilities, strengthen Canada's relationship with the defence industry, and diversify our defence partnerships.
Below are the planned investments for the Department of National Defence (DND) and the CAF, and the Communications Security Establishment (CSE) in 2025-26.
The figures presented below are on a cash basis, with accrual figures included in parentheses.
Foundational Investments
A Strong Fighting Force
- $2.6 billion (both on a cash basis and on an accrual basis) to empower the military to recruit and retain the personnel needed to carry out its mandate.
- Accelerate recruitment and reinforce retention to bring the CAF to 71,500 Regular and 30,000 Primary Reserve members by 2030 (13,000 Regular and Primary Reserve members are needed). This would include investments in recruitment and retention efforts to ensure that the CAF has the personnel it needs to be ready to respond effectively to threats at home and engage meaningfully abroad.
- Invest in the civilian workforce to enable members of the Defence Team to support operational readiness, fleet maintenance, internal service functions, finance, policy procurement, public affairs, security, accountability, digital, and infrastructure requirements - allowing the CAF to focus on operational requirements.
Repair and Sustain - Equipment and Infrastructure
- $844 million ($767 million on an accrual basis) to repair and sustain CAF capabilities and invest in revitalizing and optimizing key infrastructure.
- Leverage Phase 2 of the National Procurement Program to increase funding for the repair and maintenance of CAF equipment. These additional resources will be allocated to critical fleets such as in land, maritime and aerospace domains.
- Invest in repairing and sustaining existing DND/CAF infrastructure in order to maximize operational readiness and support CAF members. Infrastructure repair and sustainment will ensure that the CAF can continue using existing capabilities and be ready to bring online new capabilities.
Strengthening Digital Foundations
- $560 million ($376 million on an accrual basis) to strengthen DND and the CAF's digital foundations to ensure that the Defence Team is a relevant and modern workforce in today's technological era. This funding will enable the Defence Team to be more resilient to cyber threats and leverage data strategically to improve decision-making, while keeping defence information safe and secure. This amount also includes funding for the CSE.
Expanding and Enhancing Existing and Emerging Military Capabilities
- $1 billion ($431 million on an accrual basis) to grow existing and introduce emerging military capabilities that will allow Canada to become increasingly self-sufficient in fulfilling its responsibility to defend its territory and citizens, especially in the Arctic. To do so, DND will move forward with commitments made in ONSAF, with a focus on Canadian suppliers.
Strengthening Canada's Relationship with the Defence Industry
- $2.1 billion (both on a cash basis and on an accrual basis) to strengthen the Government's relationship with Canada's defence industry to lay the groundwork for a comprehensive Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS). These actions focus on immediate needs like reducing obstacles that currently limit industry's ability to provide critical equipment and support to the CAF. As Canada cannot produce all needed military capabilities independently, the DIS will also strengthen Allied industrial partnerships and leverage joint NATO procurement mechanisms.
Developing Stronger Defence Partnerships
- $2 billion (both on a cash basis and on an accrual basis) to:
- Diversify Canada's defence partnerships beyond the United States (US). Canada will take advantage of both a strategic opportunity and imperative given changes in the global environment. As part of this effort, Canada will continue to leverage partnerships with the US when it is in Canada's best interest to do so.
Planned spending for 2025-26 also includes $135 million ($20 million on an accrual basis) for defence-related investments of other government departments and agencies.
