By Don Newman

June 27, 2026

As we approach the Canada Day launch of summer, much of the attention on Prime Minister Mark Carney and the challenges facing his government is focused on the fate of the CUSMA trade deal and Alberta’s future.

But there is another event on the horizon that could both deliver disproportionate impact on these ongoing policy and political files and provide Mark Carney with a level of financial capital commensurate with the political capital represented by his approval ratings.

On September 14th and 15th, the Canada Investment Summit will be held in Toronto.  Announced by Carney in April, the conference will “convene the world’s largest investors, including top CEOs, entrepreneurs, and prominent global business leaders,” to attract “new investment into Canada to advance Canada’s nation-building projects, create new career opportunities for Canadians, and grow our economy.”

The economic purpose of the conference is to help pay for the complete redesign of the country’s economy, defence posture and infrastructure and transport and trading relationships.

“Over the past year, Canada’s new government embarked on a clear mission to position Canada as a top destination for foreign direct investment (FDI),” per the PMO release announcing the Toronto event. “This Summit builds on the progress over the past 12 months: Canada has secured more than 20 new economic and defence partnerships and $97 billion in foreign investment commitment.”

The summit is an invitation-only gathering of the world’s largest investors, top CEOs, entrepreneurs and global business leaders. Its goal is an ambitious one: to lure $1 trillion of investment to Canada over the next five years. The plan is to have most of the investments go to nation-building projects in clean energy, critical minerals, new technologies and artificial intelligence (AI). Investments in other areas will not be discouraged.

The Canada Investment Summit will be a test of the Prime Minister’s claim that ‘Canada has what the world wants,’ and whether they want it enough to pay a trillion dollars to get it.

Since April, the government and the summit co-sponsors, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board, have been issuing invitations to prime targets for investment commitments. The list is still in play. One difficulty is that some of those invited want private meetings with the Prime Minister in addition to attending the summit.

That can be seen as a problem. But it is also a confirmation that the idea for an investment summit plays to the Prime Minister’s strengths. As a former Governor of both the Bank of England and the Bank of Canada, as well as a Goldman Sachs executive earlier in his career, Carney possesses a level credibility with the global financial community that no other world leader commands.

The Canada Investment Summit will be a test of the Prime Minister’s claim that “Canada has what the world wants,” and whether they want it enough to pay a trillion dollars to get it. The other question is how much investment will be raised that can fit into the government’s established spending plans.

The Prime Minister has said that the generational projects that will be designated by the Major Projects Office for quicker approval should have private-sector backers along with the provincial governments proposing them.

So far, the bitumen pipeline proposed by Alberta lacks a private-sector proponent, although Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says she is confident one will emerge once the pipeline receives fast-track approval. Maybe the summit will help address that problem.

So far, the Carney government has committed to large spending programs, including $81 billion in defence and security requirements, infrastructure spending of $115 billion, more than $25 billion on housing, and $110 billion in spending and tax breaks on steps to improve Canadian productivity and competitiveness.

All of this adds up to a lot of money. But so does the$1 trillion goal for new investment. Going forward, the challenge will be twofold; to reach the investment target and then to marry the money to the government’s huge, transformational spending plans.

The potential political payoff for Carney includes a recognition by Canadians that having him as prime minister delivers economic benefits that no partisan rival can possibly match.

Policy Columnist Don Newman is an Officer of the Order of Canada, and a lifetime member and a past president of the Canadian Parliamentary Press Gallery.