Â鶹´«Ã½

Politics

    • Canada edges farther away from NATO spending target in latest estimate

    Share
    Ottawa -

    A new NATO report suggests that while most other allies have started to invest more in defence, Canada is even farther from meeting the military alliance's spending target than previously believed.

    The report from NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also shows Canada falling farther behind allies in terms of the share of national gross domestic product spent on the military.

    The latest figures are likely to spark fresh debate on the state of Canadian military spending, particularly in the context of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which has shaken long-held perceptions about international order and security.

    They could also add more pressure on the Liberal government to inject new funds into the military at a time when it has promised considerable new spending on social programs such as universal pharmacare in exchange for the NDP's support in Parliament

    The latest NATO figures indicate Canada spent 1.36 of its GDP on defence last year. That represents a decline from the alliance's previous estimate of 1.39 per cent for 2021, which it had published in June.

    Defence Department spokesman Andrew McKelvey attributed the decline to changes in Canada's GDP projections.

    "The fluctuation in the NATO estimate since June 2021 is the result of changing GDP forecasts, due to the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and current economic recovery," he said in an email.

    "When GDP increases, the percentage of that figure represented by defence spending is lower Γüá-- and vice versa."

    While the difference appears miniscule, it nonetheless moves Canada farther from the two per cent spending target all members agreed to in 2014 and reaffirmed during a special leaders' summit in Brussels last week.

    The decline also leaves Canada firmly near the back of the alliance in terms of defence spending, with only four members projected to have spent less as a share of their GDP on defence last year: Belgium, Luxembourg, Slovenia and Spain.

    That compared to 10 in 2020, when Canada spent 1.44 per cent of its GDP on the military.

    Asked about the revised figure, Defence Minister Anita Anand referred to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's promise at last week's NATO summit in Brussels that Canada would increase its military spending.

    The prime minister at that time offered only vague suggestions on how the government would achieve the objective.

    His comments came after NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said allies had agreed to "redouble" efforts to reach the two per cent target and submit plans on how to meet the pledge at a June meeting in Madrid, Spain.

    "We will continue to increase defence spending," Anand said Thursday. "And we are engaged in a budgetary process right now. And that process needs to take its course. And as we know, we will see a budget on April 7."

    The defence minister added she is working on a "robust" plan to modernize the North American Aerospace Defence Command, the joint U.S.-Canadian network that serves as the backbone for defending North America from attack.

    Dedicating money to Norad modernization, which includes replacing a series of 1980s-era radar installations in Canada's Far North, would be one of the easiest ways that the government could inject more funds into the military.

    The project is a priority, especially in the context of tensions with Russia, and was not included in the Liberals' 2017 defence policy.

    But experts have said Canada would have to add $16 billion per year to its $30-billion defence budget to reach the two per cent figure, a number that would be impossible to achieve in the short term and require a significant rethink of its defence policy.

    This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 31, 2022.

    IN DEPTH

    Opinion

    opinion

    opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster

    A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?

    opinion

    opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike

    When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.

    CTVNews.ca Top Stories

    Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard is abandoning his bid to appeal his 2022 sexual assault conviction before Canada's top court.

    An Ontario man said he feels 'devastated' after learning his identity was stolen to take out two fraudulent loans under his name.

    Police north of Toronto have released video of what they’re describing as a violent, targeted robbery in Thornhill, where suspects boxed in the victim’s car and made off with a suitcase filled with cash.

    Canada

    • Police north of Toronto have released video of what they’re describing as a violent, targeted robbery in Thornhill, where suspects boxed in the victim’s car and made off with a suitcase filled with cash.

    • The superintendent of the Winnipeg School Division (WSD) has apologized over a message displayed during a professional development day on Wednesday.

    • Halloween is right around the corner, but residents of a South Kanata community say they've been living in what feels like a horror movie for over a month.

    • Jennifer Johnson, Lacombe-Ponoka legislature member, has been welcomed back into the United Conservative Party (UCP).

    • During the campaign, BC Conservative Leader John Rustad has repeatedly said people are "dying on the streets" in the province – and on Tuesday he claimed to have witnessed that very thing in downtown Vancouver while he was on his way to the leaders' debate.

    • A bill restricting the sale of long-bladed weapons was introduced in Manitoba Wednesday by Justice Minister Matt Wiebe.

    World

    Politics

    Health

    Sci-Tech

    Entertainment

    Business

    Lifestyle

    • Jeff Warner from Aidie Creek Gardens in the northern Ontario community of Englehart has a passion for growing big pumpkins and his effort is paying off in more ways than one.

    • Dave Lindsey began growing giant pumpkins to bring a bit of magic to his grandkids' Halloween.

    Sports

    Autos

    • video

      video

      Dozens of cars were pulled out of the Detroit River in west Windsor on Tuesday, causing many questions for Windsorites.

    • Mercedes-Benz has partnered up with the Ontario Vehicle Innovation Network (OVIN) and the provincial government to launch a new “incubator programâ€. One of the first three locations is Windsor, with the other two going to Toronto and Kitchener-Waterloo.

    Local Spotlight

    Jeff Warner from Aidie Creek Gardens in the northern Ontario community of Englehart has a passion for growing big pumpkins and his effort is paying off in more ways than one.

    Saskatchewan’s Jessica Campbell has made hockey history, becoming the first ever female assistant coach in the National Hockey League (NHL).

    Have you ever seen videos of hovercrafts online or on TV and thought, 'Wow, I wish I could ride one of those.' One Alberta man did, and then built his own.

    A B.C. couple is getting desperate – and creative – in their search for their missing dog.

    Videos of a meteor streaking across the skies of southern Ontario have surfaced and small bits of the outer space rock may have made it to land, one astronomy professor says.

    A unique form of clouds made an appearance over the skies of Ottawa on Sunday evening.

    Bernie Hicks, known as the ‘Batman of Amherst,’ always wanted to sit in a Batmobile until a kind stranger made it happen.

    Bubi’s Awesome Eats, located on University Ave West took to social media to announce the closure on Friday.

    Weeneebayko Area Health Authority and the Government of Ontario have awarded a $1.8 billion fixed-price contract to design, build and finance a new Far North hospital.

    • Mounties are issuing a warning to personal watercraft owners after a wave of thefts were reported at marinas in Metro Vancouver.

    • The 2024 B.C. election officially kicks off Thursday morning as advance voting locations open their doors.

    • It all happened within a matter of seconds. Christopher Taylor was biking near an East Vancouver park on a leisurely Sunday morning when he looked left to see a police cruiser barrelling toward him.

    • Police north of Toronto have released video of what they’re describing as a violent, targeted robbery in Thornhill, where suspects boxed in the victim’s car and made off with a suitcase filled with cash.

    • Here is a look at what’s open, what’s closed, and what’s on in the GTA during Thanksgiving weekend 2024:

    • Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard is abandoning his bid to appeal his 2022 sexual assault conviction before Canada's top court.

    • Calgary commuters can expect delays at 9th Avenue and 1st Street S.E. over several days.

    • 10 things happening in Calgary this weekend.

    • WEATHER

      WEATHER

      As expected temperatures will moderate and return to more typical values for the next few days.

    • The transit service conducted a fare compliance blitz between September 3 and 30, with 12 fare inspectors "active across the transit network, enforcing fare regulations," OC Transpo said.

    • The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) says enrolment was 1,130 students below projections in elementary schools in September, including 750 fewer Kindergarten students.

    • The Ottawa Police Service is asking the public for help in identifying a suspect involved in an alleged theft from a vehicle last month in Sandy Hill.

    • The City of Montreal's French-language committee wants a French-language office established to promote and increase the use of the language in the metropolis.

    • Although he acknowledges that there is still a lot of work to be done in mental health, Social Services Minister Lionel Carmant is confident that he has succeeded in reversing the trend.

    • Three young people aged 17, 19 and 20 were arrested after shots were fired late on Tuesday near Old Montreal.

    • It was a familiar start to the NHL season for the Edmonton Oilers.

    • WEATHER

      WEATHER

      A few more days of average temperatures in Edmonton and then we're back into some warmer air for the Thanksgiving long weekend.

    • Jennifer Johnson, Lacombe-Ponoka legislature member, has been welcomed back into the United Conservative Party (UCP).

    • Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida as a Category 3 storm Wednesday night, among those assessing the damage in its aftermath is former CTV Atlantic employee and Maritimer Eric Bungay.

    • From Friday through Monday, Nova Scotia RCMP will join police forces across the country to educate drivers and enforce safe driving behavior.

    • The superintendent of the Winnipeg School Division (WSD) has apologized over a message displayed during a professional development day on Wednesday.

    • Manitobans could be paying more for natural gas in the future.

    • Saskatchewan RCMP say a larger police presence in Whitewood is related to a report of robbery with a firearm on Wednesday evening.

    • At the final meeting of this iteration of Regina City Council, a plan for how to pay for a new indoor aquatic facility that would replace Lawson Aquatic Centre was approved.

    • After nearly four decades, Howland's Honey is retiring from the Regina Farmers' Market and strictly selling its products in retail stores.

    • Ontario Provincial Police have arrested a Waterloo man who they believe is linked to a group that has been scamming victims across Canada.

    • One person was struck by a GO train, near the Kitchener station, on Wednesday morning.

    • Two pedestrians were treated for minor injuries after being struck by vehicles in separate collisions on Wednesday in Guelph.

    • Milton is shaping up to be a monster of a storm, expected to strike Florida as a Category 3 hurricane, just weeks after Hurricane Helene hit the region.

    • A Saskatchewan Party candidate publicly apologized on Wednesday after it was revealed that he used a racial slur in caucus offices a year and a half ago.

    • A busy stretch of road, the site of a fatal crash earlier this year, will be closed for a couple of hours Thursday morning.

    • An Ontario man said he feels 'devastated' after learning his identity was stolen to take out two fraudulent loans under his name.

    • Police in Huntsville are investigating a deadly single-vehicle collision that happened Tuesday morning.

    • The Humane Society of London & Middlesex (HSLM) has reached its fundraising goal for the new Old Oak Animal Campus. Located at 1414 Dundas St. construction continues on the building and remains on track for an opening in early 2025.

    • The advisory was issued as a result of water sample results that indicated the presence of bacteria. While resampling is scheduled, the advisory is issued as a precaution.

    • A Barrie man accused of assaulting a police officer in late September, which then became the topic of conversation in parliament last week, has been denied bail.

    • Provincial police are investigating reports of an armed robbery in Amaranth Township that sent one person to the hospital in critical condition.

    • A boarded up home caught fire in Orillia early Thursday morning.

    • A team 14 staff members from Entegrus are on their way to Florida to assist in the restoration of power to thousands of customers affected by hurricanes Hele and Milton.

    • Many people will get together this weekend to celebrate Thanksgiving, but there are a number of closures to look out for if you are running out to buy last minute items for your festivities.

    • The 2024 B.C. election officially kicks off Thursday morning as advance voting locations open their doors.

    • Mounties are issuing a warning to personal watercraft owners after a wave of thefts were reported at marinas in Metro Vancouver.

    • Abbas Motalebizadeh is a PhD candidate at the University of Victoria’s Mechanical Engineering Department and on Wednesday he was at the Victoria International Marina to test the Inner Harbour for microplastics.

    • Dave Lindsey began growing giant pumpkins to bring a bit of magic to his grandkids' Halloween.

    • A U.S. District Court judge in Montana has sentenced a 27-year-old man from Kelowna, B.C., to 18 months in prison for using fake names to buy guns with the aim of selling them in Canada.

    • Nearly two years after a man was stabbed to death in downtown Kelowna, RCMP have made an arrest in the case.

    • Thousands more Lethbridge residents will soon be without a family doctor.

    • Alberta's police watchdog says the Medicine Hat police officers who were involved in an in-custody death in August 2023 acted reasonably and with appropriate force in dealing with a suspect armed with a machete.

    • Charges have been laid against a 44-year-old man following a traffic stop in Brocket, Piikani Nation RCMP said Tuesday.

    • An annual international mining conference is underway in Greater Sudbury, Ont., marking the first time the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Conference of Mining Regions and Cities has been held in North America.

    • Jeff Warner from Aidie Creek Gardens in the northern Ontario community of Englehart has a passion for growing big pumpkins and his effort is paying off in more ways than one.

    • A woman in Greater Sudbury, Ont., said "It doesn't get more Canadian than this" when she spotted a black bear dumpster diving at a Tim Hortons last month.

    N.L.

    Stay Connected
    Follow Â鶹´«Ã½