Businesses push for defence and AI funds
OTTAWA — Defence, Canadian sovereignty and trade expansion are top priorities for businesses lobbying the federal government ahead of the 2026 budget. Hundreds of companies and industry associations submitted proposals to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance, seeking money or changes to rules that govern them.
This year, more than 1,350 submissions were filed, an increase of over 400 from last year. The requests show a clear focus on national defence and sovereignty. If an issue has a potential military benefit, businesses are making the case for federal support.
Defence and Sovereignty
The national Semiconductor Council argues that military technologies depend on semiconductors, calling for a national strategy to produce them. Good Roads, an association of Ontario municipalities and First Nations, wants the federal government to fund multibillion-dollar upgrades to two provincial highways, suggesting this spending could count toward NATO commitments. Real estate firm Starlight is seeking a fund to clean up old industrial sites, like one in Saskatchewan where it plans to build an explosives plant.
Major military suppliers were notably absent from this part of the budget process. Dominion Trends, however, which aims to become a prime defence contractor, filed nine recommendations. It wants the government to be more agile in its military procurements and to prioritize Canadian ownership and intellectual property in its suppliers. Consulting firm KPMG echoed this, calling for defence contracts to be assessed on whether they strengthen Canadian control over critical systems and supply chains.
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence is a dominant theme across many sectors. Submissions call for more funding, broader deployment, and new restrictions on the technology. The Canadian Shield Institute is proposing a new “strategic sovereign compute entity” to provide processing power for domestic firms and researchers. It argues that simply subsidizing data centres within Canada is not enough to achieve true sovereignty.
Artists and publishers are pushing for stronger copyright protections against AI companies. The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada, which is suing an AI startup, wants the government to force developers to disclose which works they use and to license them from creators. Other groups, including the Canadian Independent Music Association, oppose new exemptions to copyright law for AI training.
Several organizations want the government to fund AI initiatives that bring the technology to rural businesses and specific sectors. Polytechnics Canada is asking for $100 million a year in applied AI research grants to subsidize students working with small businesses. The Canadian Federation of Library Associations has requested $2 million a year for digital and AI literacy programs for its members.
Financial Services and Investment
The Coalition to Support Investment in Canada, a group of capital markets firms, wants Ottawa to encourage the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board to allocate at least one per cent of its assets to publicly traded Canadian companies. The group estimates this would direct roughly $7 billion into domestic markets.
Competition is a recurrent theme in the submissions. The Canadian Credit Union Association wants changes to the Bank Act to give federal and provincial credit unions more flexibility to merge. CAAT Pension Plan wants more opportunities for smaller pension funds to invest in Canadian infrastructure.
Wealthsimple wants Ottawa to move faster on its promised ban on investment account transfer fees. The Canadian Forum for Financial Markets wants Ottawa to cut the corporate income-tax rate by one percentage point in both 2027 and 2028.
Crypto and Payments
Several groups also asked Ottawa to narrow its proposed ban on yield or rewards payments for stablecoins. Shakepay, Kraken, and the Canadian Web3 Council argue the ban is unfair compared to credit card rewards.
The oilpatch made its key submissions not long before a string of major federal policy announcements. Lobby groups like the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers and the Canadian Association of Energy Contractors pressed for faster project approvals and tax measures to reward investment.
CAOEC called on Ottawa to remove the industrial carbon tax and the oil tanker ban on British Columbia’s northern coast. Cenovus Energy offered just two words as its top recommendation: “Move fast.”
Financial Technology and Cryptocurrency
Companies and industry associations had some familiar requests. Neo Financial, Fintechs Canada, and Wealthsimple all urged Ottawa to launch open banking, which has been in development since 2017. Fintechs Canada and Wealthsimple also called for the immediate launch of the Real-Time Rail instant payments system, which is expected to begin in late 2026. Payments Canada, which will operate the system, asked for continued federal support.
A group of crypto ATM companies is new to this budget cycle. Localcoin, CoinFlip, Instacoin, FastBTCatm, Bitcoin4U, and Bitcoin Central all asked the government to reconsider its proposed ban on their machines. They suggested tightening regulations instead, such as requiring identity checks and operator certification to address fraud. Ottawa is also proposing to ban yield payments on stablecoins, but Shakepay, Kraken, and others asked to narrow that ban.
