Ottawa tables bill to spin out defence procurement agency

The federal government has introduced legislation to convert the Defence Investment Agency into an arm’s-length Crown corporation. Bill C-40, tabled yesterday, would transfer procurement authority to a board of directors, aiming to accelerate military purchasing cycles.

BetaKit first reported the bill’s introduction. No timeline for parliamentary review or implementation has been disclosed.

The proposal mirrors long-standing industry calls for procurement reform, particularly from defence primes and dual-use tech startups. Current processes often stretch acquisition timelines to a decade or more, a bottleneck that has pushed some firms to prioritize contracts abroad. If the board is stacked with former defence executives or procurement specialists, the shift could lower barriers for vendors. Conversely, a board dominated by political appointees might simply relocate the same bottlenecks to a new entity.

The bill arrives amid broader momentum in defence innovation. Just last month, DTCP closed a €455 million fund targeting European defence startups, while UC Investments led a $580 million round in Portuguese defence tech firm Tekever. Closer to home, Calian and Invest Ottawa opened a defence R&D lab at Area X.O last week, focusing on interoperability testing. Whether Bill C-40 becomes another piece of that momentum—or another layer of bureaucracy—will hinge on the board’s makeup and mandate.

Sources: betakit.com