About two thirds of Canadians support increasing defence spending to reach NATO target: Nanos

Most Canadians support increasing defence spending to reach the two per cent target for NATO allies, according to a national survey conducted by Nanos for CTV News.

Most Canadians support increasing defence spending to reach the two per cent target for NATO allies, according to a national survey conducted by Nanos for CTV News.

Nanos asked 1,080 Canadians how they felt about the country’s defence spending and meeting NATO’s target. The majority of respondents (64 per cent) said Canada should increase its spending to reach the NATO target, while about one in five (21 per cent) said the country should maintain its current level of spending at 1.4 per cent of its GDP.

Seven per cent answered Canada should spend less than the 1.4 per cent of its GDP it currently allocates to defence, and eight per cent said they were unsure.

A majority of people in all demographics surveyed—except for younger Canadians aged 18 to 34—agreed Canada should up its spending on defence to meet NATO’s targets.

People in Ontario were most likely to prefer Canada increasing defence spending (67.6 per cent), while people in British Columbia were least likely to support the idea (57.7 per cent).

However, a majority of people in all regions across Canada prefer increasing defence spending.