‘Growth must be matched with investments’: Halifax mayor on federal defence projects

Prime Minister Mark Carney, left, and National Defence Minister David McGuinty walk aboard HMCS Margaret Brooke before an announcement at HMC Dockyard Halifax in Halifax on Thursday, March 26, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese

Halifax’s mayor is responding to a large federal defence spending announcement that was made in the city Thursday by Prime Minister Mark Carney.

Carney said Canada spent $63.4 billion on national defence in 2025, meeting its NATO commitment to spend two per cent of GDP on defence.

Carney also announced more than $3 billion in infrastructure and defence-related spending in the Maritimes.

The funds will be used to upgrade the following facilities:

• $1.2 billion will be used to modernise critical power and municipal service infrastructure at CFB Halifax Dockyard and Stadacona
• $648 million will be used to construct two new aviation support facilities at 14 Wing Greenwood
• More than $180 million will be used to build the Combatant Training and Integration Centre
• $82.5 million will be used to acquire Halifax Gate
• $60 million will be used for a new, 140-unit apartment complex for Canadian Armed Forces members, near 12 Wing Shearwater

The federal government is also spending more than $1 billion in the CFB Gagetown Range and Training Area in New Brunswick.

Halifax Mayor Andy Fillmore says he spoke to the prime minister about the spending announcement on Friday morning.

“To fully realize this opportunity, growth must be matched with investments in core infrastructure - water, wastewater, transportation, and joint-use facilities - to unlock housing for both military and civilian families,” he said in a statement.

“By working together, our municipal and federal governments can lead a dense web of reliable partners that delivers on this opportunity — at the speed and scale this moment requires.”

Carney says that over the next decade, Canada will spend half a trillion dollars on defence, which includes money for new submarines, aircraft, drones, sensors and radar systems.

Houston also meets with Carney

Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston also met with Carney in Halifax on Friday where they signed an agreement to speed up federal and provincial environmental approvals for major infrastructure and resource projects.

“Our one project, one review model will cut duplication, shorten timelines, and give more certainty to builders and investors,” Houston said in post on Facebook.

“This will help get Nova Scotia’s Wind West project moving, faster. With some of the strongest and most consistent offshore winds in the world, Wind West has the potential to power about a quarter of Canada’s electricity needs.”

With files from The Canadian Press

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