Following the release of the Government of Canada’s Plan for a Stronger Canada: National Security for Canadians on October 29, 2026, the country’s first national security strategy since 2004, Canada is establishing a broader approach to national security that places sovereignty, economic resilience, domestic industrial capacity, and technological capabilities at the center of its national defence planning.
In this episode of the Expert Series, Vincent Rigby, Slater Family Professor of Practice at McGill University’s Max Bell School of Public Policy and former National Security and Intelligence Advisor to the Prime Minister, and Jody Thomas, former National Security and Intelligence Advisor and Deputy Minister of National Defence, examine the significance of Canada’s new national security strategy, what it means for the country’s sovereignty, Canada’s evolving relationship with the United States, the development of a sovereign defence industrial base, the importance of updating defence policy, and whether the government has the resources and implementation plans necessary to turn ambition into action.
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Photo: Corporal Rebecca Mainardi, Canadian Forces. Department of National Defence / Combat Camera / 2022. Crown Copyright. The use of this image does not imply or constitute endorsement by the Department of National Defence or the Canadian Armed Forces.
