Question Period Note: Defence Investment Agency

The Government of Canada has created a new Defence Investment Agency to modernize defence procurement.

• We created the new Defence Investment Agency to protect Canadian sovereignty by quickly equipping the Canadian Armed Forces and Coast Guard with the world-class tools they need, while also bolstering our industrial capacity
  • The agency will consolidate procurement processes, remove duplicative approvals and red tape, and provide industry with greater clarity and certainty
  • The Defence Investment Agency will promote and focus investments leveraging the Canadian defence industrial base, where appropriate, creating new careers, growing our economy, and supercharging innovation in aerospace, shipbuilding, and advanced manufacturing

If pressed on ties to economic impact:

• With this centralized process of review and approval, procurements will advance faster so that we can equip the Canadian Armed Forces with the world-class tools that it needs
• We intend to better leverage defence procurement through this investment in Canadian workers, companies, and technologies. The Agency will help Canadian firms scale up, develop cutting-edge capabilities, and compete globally

If pressed on defence spending:

• The establishment of the Defence Investment Agency is a cornerstone of Canada’s plan to increase defence spending to 2% of gross domestic product in 2025 and to 5% by 2035
• This effort supports economic growth while better protecting Canadian sovereignty and strengthens our ability to work with Allies
• Our goals are to reinforce defence supply chains and industrial capacity among allied nations, thus reaffirming Canada’s commitment to global security

Until now, defence procurement in Canada has been divided across multiple ministers and accountabilities, and layers of oversight from central agencies. To meet the Government’s commitment to accelerate spending on defence, reforms to defence procurement are needed. The Defence Investment Agency will centralize accountability, leverage expanded authorities and introduce flexibilities in the procurement process to deliver faster procurement outcomes. Defence procurement in Canada now better aligns with our allies, such as the United Kingdom and France, which have dedicated and independent defence procurement organizations.

Reforming defence procurement has been the subject of several reports and studies. In June 2024, the Standing Committee on National Defence tabled a wide-ranging report entitled, A Time for Change: Reforming Defence Procurement in Canada. Also, in June 2024, the Parliamentary Budget Officer tabled a report on the rising costs and extended delays associated with the development and acquisition of polar icebreakers. In December 2024, the Auditor General of Canada tabled a report on the application of Industrial and Technological Benefits (ITBs) to defence procurements, noting areas for administrative improvements, and tabled an additional report on Canada’s Future Fighter Jets in June 2025. Taken together, consecutive reports indicate that the procurement process and overly customized specifications have led to avoidable cost increases and significant delays.

• On June 25, 2025, the Prime Minister announced Canada’s commitment to NATO’s Defence Industrial Pledge, which will see investments of 5% of annual GDP by 2035 in individual and collective security
  • On October 2, 2025 the Prime Minister announced the creation of the new Defence Investment Agency, which will overhaul and streamline Canada’s defence procurement so the Canadian Armed Forces have the world-class equipment they need
  • The Prime Minister also announced the appointment of Doug Guzman as its Chief Executive Officer
  • The Defence Investment Agency is being established as a new Special Operating Agency within Public Services and Procurement Canada