The Promised Government Support for DND – Where Do We Begin? 

By Jeff Gilmour, 20 October 2025

“It is not enough to stare up the steps, we must step on the stairs” Vaclav Havel

The government recently announced it intends to increase defence spending to 3.5% of GDP by 2035. Ottawa at last recognizes that the military has been neglected for decades and cannot fulfil Canada’s obligations to either NATO or NORAD. Currently the three services are suffering from a lack of personnel and new equipment to meet threats. DND is unable to fulfil many of its mandates and roles because of years of neglect and continued reduction of budgets. Action to improve this must take place sooner rather than later. Our military cannot wait decades to get military equipment that enables them to meet both defensive and offensive challenges.

            The problem for the federal government will be to prioritize which service gets what new equipment and when. Each will argue that they need this equipment to improve their operational capability now - and many of these projects cost billions of dollars. It will be interesting to observe how the government will assign priorities in the coming months.     

            The following is a list of issues on which I suggest the Minister and DND should reflect when reaching their decisions:

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Preview: Canadian Naval Review Vol. 21 No. 2 - Canadian Coast Guard Theme Issue

Our first article, “The Canadian Coast Guard and National Security,” looks at how the CCG can contribute to the national security environment after its move to DND. The second article, “Canada’s Coast Guard at a Crossroads: Safeguarding Shores and Security,” examines how the CCG move to DND can leverage “the CCG’s assets and capabilities to close gaps in the country’s common operating picture and deliver a more holistic national defence.”

The third article, “The Cost of Success: Rebuilding the Coast Guard’s Arctic Capabilities,” outlines that, despite the welcome addition of new ships for the CCG, the Canadian government is perpetuating the boom-and-bust cycle of shipbuilding. As well, the government is ensuring that the CCG will be ironing out wrinkles for years because of (a) the problems inherent in the first-of-class builds, (b) the different maintenance, crewing and training needs for the different ships, and (c) the fact that, once again, the fleet will have to be replaced wholesale in 30(ish) years. The fourth article, “The Canadian Coast Guard Arctic Region: Transforming Arctic Search and Rescue,” takes a close look at how the CCG has worked to improve its relationships in the North, and in this way to improve its response, and the response of local communities, to search-and-rescue operations. The final article, “How US Coast Guard Failures can Inform Canadian Success,” examines the recent USCG experience recapitalizing its fleet. In particular the article focuses on the need for strategic planning and getting the support of politicians, and examines hard lessons the USCG has learned about recruitment – with the hope that the CCG can learn from these lessons.

We don’t have our usual Making Waves commentaries, or “A View from the West” or “Warship Developments” but we do have “Dollars and Sense.” In this issue, “Dollars and Sense” looks at how the move of the CCG to DND affects defence spending, and can contribute to enhanced maritime domain awareness.

In addition to all this great information, we have our usual amazing photos – this time with a focus on CCG red and white ships!

Assuming that the Canada Post strike ends in the near future, the fall issue will be in your mailbox soon. E-subscribers will receive copies soon too. See the Table of Contents here.

CNR resources

Read more: CNR Archives (60+ magazines in PDF) and Subject Index (600+ articles)

Looking for Books about Maritime Matters?

Over the last 20 years, Canadian Naval Review has published over 180 book reviews. These books cover a variety of topics but they all relate to maritime matters, history, or security and defence at sea. This is an amazing resource. Go through the list of reviews, pick out a few books that look interesting, read the reviews, and then order the books from your nearest bookstore or from the publisher. See the list of book reviews at https://www.navalreview.ca/book-reviews/