Prime Minister Mark Carney tours General Dynamics, a defence manufacturing facility, on the day he announced new measures to strengthen Canada's defense capabilities in London, Ont. on July 16.Carlos Osorio/Reuters
For far too long, Canada has treated military procurement as a regional economic development program: A fleet of ships re-engineered here, a helicopter design torn apart and rebuilt there – enough to satisfy job targets, but incapable of delivering a combat-ready force.
For just as long, Canada assumed the United States would anchor continental defence, allowing Ottawa to safely starve its defence budget. But under growing pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, and escalating threats from authoritarian states, the days of bespoke defence are dead.
In March, Prime Minister Mark Carney confirmed Canada had hit NATO’s military spending target of 2 per cent of gross domestic product. That was a major step toward honouring the country’s defence commitments to allies. But a deeper, structural flaw lurks, risking the sabotage of the next stages of Canada’s defence expansion: Budgeting to spend dozens of billions of dollars over the next decade means absolutely nothing if the capital remains wandering in procurement limbo.
To turn those promises into real-world armament, Ottawa must scrap its economic-development mindset and pay more attention to defending its borders. The federal government showed this is possible when it announced in March a $1.4-billion plan to expand Canada’s supply of heavy artillery shells.
Guns and butter: The true cost of Canada’s military spending is yet to be tallied
Giving contracts directly to U.S. defence giants General Dynamics and IMT Precision, whose Canadian divisions are headquartered in Quebec and Ontario, respectively, might seem to run counter to Mr. Carney’s pledge to reduce Canada’s reliance on the U.S. for its military goods.
Until you consider: There are no other companies in Canada that can make the ammunition at the quantity and speed it needs. IMT and General Dynamics are quite literally the only companies in the country that have the capacity, expertise, and intellectual property required to build the ammunition used by the Canadian military.
The point was made again earlier this month, when the federal government announced it will pay GD’s Land Systems-Canada division nearly $2-billion over four years to build armoured combat support vehicles.
The government has, in these instances, dispensed with performative consultations or attempting to build from the ground up what already exists. In a world where Canada is facing military threats in the Arctic, growing defence obligations overseas, and the threat of Russian missiles that can reach North America, there simply is no time.
(Ottawa has not entirely abandoned the idea of economic benefits: the company has committed to investing in Canadian jobs, research and suppliers.)
A fighting chance: How Canada can beef up its defences and grow its economy at the same time
This is far from a perfect scenario. Once fully operational in 2029, the government expects General Dynamics to be churning out 12,000 projectiles per month. That might be enough to cover a weekend of fighting in actual, live combat, and comes several years too late – but it’s a start.
Canada needs to move more urgently to buy what is already made; investing in what we can realistically build; and partnering with trusted allied specialists. It cannot hope to develop the massively complex submarines recently ordered from Germany’s Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, or the new fighter jets produced by U.S. or Swedish defence juggernauts – but it can absolutely solidify its status as a key supplier in their global supply chains.
Where Canada already has expertise and experience – such as in shipbuilding or aerospace – the government can award long-term, high-scale contracts to domestic companies such as Irving Shipyards or Bombardier.
Critics will argue that favouring entrenched defence giants will cement monopolies and lock out startups. But most early-stage companies will have their best shot at flourishing, at first, as suppliers and contractors for larger manufacturers who have the capacity to produce in mass quantities.
To address today’s urgent military gaps, Canada must strike deals with existing companies that are built to produce at a (relatively) fast pace. It must expand assembly lines that have the best shot at creating long-term jobs, raising wages and boosting economies across the country’s hard-hit manufacturing regions.
After years of leaving its defence budget frozen, Canada cannot afford to wait any longer. Its adversaries certainly won’t.