The Globe and Mail reports the shift would give the agency and its CEO, Doug Guzman, "far more authority in decision-making."
What the change would do
The new Crown corporation is expected to have its own board, CEO, corporate plan and workforce.
For public accountability, the corporation would report to an associate minister of defence.
New legislation on the way
The Globe and Mail reports the legislation is titled "An Act respecting production, procurement and investment in relation to national defence and national security." It was slated to be tabled in the House of Commons in the week of the report.
The bill would be separate from earlier legislation. An earlier bill introduced in spring 2026 has not yet passed, and Procurement Minister Joël Lightbound plans new, separate legislation to give the agency Crown corporation status.
Arm's length, with a trade-off
Carleton University defence policy expert Philippe Lagassé said a Crown corporation would operate "at arm's length from the government." That distance is the point of the design: it lets the agency work with more independence than a standard department.
Lagassé also warned about what could be lost. The change could mean "less internal oversight," he said, with fewer ministers having a say over major projects. In other words, the same shift that is meant to speed up decisions would also narrow the number of political hands on big purchases.
What is not yet known
The reporting available so far does not say when the Crown corporation would be up and running, how large its workforce would be, or how it would be funded. It also does not say whether the bill will pass in its current form. Those details are likely to emerge once the legislation is tabled and debated in the House of Commons.
What to watch
The key points to follow are the text of the bill once it is tabled, how much authority it hands the agency and its CEO, and how the associate minister of defence's accountability role is spelled out.
Sources: The Globe and Mail, Yahoo News Canada (CBC syndication)
