Is Canada’s submarine fleet just smoke and mirrors again

The Royal Canadian Navy hosts the Republic of Korea Navy KSS-III submarine, known as Dosan Ahn Chang-ho, and the ROKS Daejeon frigate during a welcome ceremony at CFB Esquimalt in Esquimalt, B.C., on Monday, May 25, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito

The Royal Canadian Navy hosts the Republic of Korea Navy KSS-III submarine, known as Dosan Ahn Chang-ho, and the ROKS Daejeon frigate during a welcome ceremony at CFB Esquimalt in Esquimalt, B.C., on Monday, May 25, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito For the last eleven years, Canadians watched energy and pipelines die, defence procurement stall, and this country’s standing among allies quietly erode, the last six years under Mr. Carney’s guidance.

So when three genuinely significant announcements landed inside a single week: a $100 billion submarine fleet, a revived west-to-east pipeline, and a formal Alberta to BC pipeline submission, the instinct to celebrate is understandable. These are, finally, the green shoots Canadians have been demanding since roughly 2015. But green shoots can be left to wither or worse.

This government has a well-documented history of being very heavy on announcement fertilizer, but very light on product delivery.