Innovation, Science and Economic Development should develop a five-year National Science, Research, and Innovation Strategy to establish a common vision and priority objectives, enhance coordination and connect recent investments to strengthen the Canadian research and innovation ecosystem, says Evidence for Democracy (E4D).

The lack of a national science strategy affects the way Canada is perceived internationally, leaving Canada at a disadvantage among our international peers,  the non-profit organization said in a pre-budget submission for this fall’s federal Budget 2026. E4D’s executive director is Sarah Laframboise (photo at right).

“Without a well-defined vision for science, Canada risks continued fragmentation, difficulty attracting top talent and reduced global competitiveness,” E4D said.

Other countries have introduced ambitious strategies for becoming science and technology superpowers, as outlined in the U.K.’s International Technology Strategy and Japan’s sixth Science and Technology Basic Plan.

Through comprehensive assessments of Canada’s science and technology areas, the federal government has the opportunity to identify areas of excellence, emerging opportunities and gaps needing attention, E4D said.

The organization said Canada’s new science strategy must:

• Support both mission-driven and fundamental research.
• Set clear R&D investment targets relative to GDP (accounting for inflation).
• Identify priority areas and gaps.
• Strengthen innovation and commercialization pathways.

Despite its critical importance, intramural science has long been under-resourced, E4D said. Funding for federal science still is currently $1.02 billion dollars less than 2010/2011 levels.

Periods of reinvestment have been followed by significant cuts, with the most recent budget aiming to slash science departmental budgets by millions of dollars.

Given the long history of budget cuts, Budget 2026 needs to instead support critical intramural science long-term, in order to ensure Canada is best able to respond to today’s challenges, E4D said.

The federal government needs to follow through on recent investments to strengthen the science and research ecosystem by increasing each of the three federal research granting councils’ total base budgets for their core grant programming by at least 10 percent annually, the organization recommended.

Ottawa also should restore funding for intramural science to 2010/11 levels, “and ensure that science-based departments and agencies have the appropriate resources to deliver on their mandates.”

Canada’s R&D intensity has remained below the Organisation for Economic Development and Co-operation average since 1991, placing Canada 17^th overall in the OECD and behind all other G7 countries except Italy, E4D noted.

Recent federal investments, including $1.8 billion in Budget 2024 and $1.7 billion in Budget 2025, are important but leave behind gaps in support for the research ecosystem, E4D said. Much of this funding remains unallocated or delayed, with only 12 percent of Budget 2024 funding delivered last year, the organization pointed out.

Simultaneously, federal science and technology funding is projected to fall by $613 million in the coming year. Current funding also fails to fully cover indirect and operating costs, limiting research capacity.

In Budget 2026, the government also needs to account for the full costs of research by committing to complementary funding for indirect research costs through the Research Support Fund, E4D said.

Establish a “Canadian Democracy Fund” and reintroduce Online Harms Act

E4D also recommended that the government should introduce a budget proposal of $20 million per year over five years, beginning in 2026, to establish an arm’s-length, non-partisan Canadian Democracy Fund, with governance and implementation to be developed by public officials in consultation with civil society organizations and leaders.

The funding should be provided through an arm’s length granting mechanism to non-partisan, civil society organizations that are already delivering scalable, public-facing democratic resilience and civic engagement initiatives, E4D said.

Ultimately, the Canadian Democracy Fund would help close this scalability gap by fuelling organizations that are already translating evidence into public engagement initiatives, “bringing communities into the democratic conversation, and helping Canadians participate meaningfully in civic life.”

E4D also recommended that the federal government should amend and reintroduce the Online Harms Act to establish a coordinated regulatory approach, including a Digital Safety Commission with the authority to investigate incidents and enforce compliance, and a Digital Safety Ombudsperson to support Canadian users.

Canadian Heritage budget estimates suggest that this enforcement network would cost $201 million over five years, minus any possible monetary penalties, fines and regulatory charges collected by the Commission – “a fraction of the cost these online harms are wreaking on Canadians’ health outcomes and Canada’s democratic institutions,” E4D noted.

Looking to international best practices for inspiration, including the EU Digital Services Act and the EU AI Act, Canada has the opportunity to introduce a much needed regulatory framework capable of addressing online harms while improving transparency, E4D said.

The original Online Harms Act (Bill C-63) died when Parliament was prorogued in January 2025, and the federal government replaced it on June 10, 2026, with Bill C-34, the Safe Social Media Act. Bill C-34 is currently at the second stage of reading in the House of Commons.

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