Next week, the mountains in Kananaskis, Alta., will be the backdrop for what’s set to be an historic G7 Summit. And as the guest list of world leaders grows, so too are expectations that the bill the Canadian government will ultimately be footing, is likely to be at least hundreds of millions of dollars.
There are benefits to this cost, foreign policy and international summit experts say, telling CTV News that’s the price of admission for federal officials to be able to hold bilateral meetings in their backyard, and set the global agenda at such a pivotal time.
Canada’s yearlong G7 presidency is culminating in a three-day meeting June 15 to June 17 in the Rocky Mountain resort town, hosted by Prime Minister Mark Carney. It will be the seventh time Canada has hosted the annual gathering of advanced economies.
Global Affairs Canada did not directly respond to multiple requests for comment on the budget allocated for this summit, or whether the expanding guest list would result in a bigger bill.
In a statement, spokesperson Camie Lamarche said most of the spending will be on “required security measures,” but would also include “the planning, execution… and follow-up for all G7-related meetings, events and activities taking place over the course of Canada’s entire presidency year.”
“All actual costs related to Canada’s G7 presidency will be accounted for at the end of the 2025-2026 fiscal year,” Lamarche said.
The last time Canada hosted the G7 was in Charlevoix, Que., in 2018. That meeting, as well as related events over the course of that year, were estimated to cost $600 million.
That was double the estimated $300 million price tag the G7 Research Group placed on the 2002 Kananaskis summit.
“It is also important to note that Canada’s spending for the 2025 G7 presidency prioritized open public tenders using the services of numerous Canadian external suppliers and contractors as part of preparations for the G7 Summit — significantly benefiting both Canadian businesses and Canadian workers,” Lamarche said.
‘You get to set the agenda’
“It seems like a huge amount of money. It is,” said Paul Samson, president of the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI). “But for Canada to be part of that Group of Seven is huge. Other countries would love to have that opportunity.”
“You get to set the agenda. You get to influence the prioritization of the topics for discussion. So, it’s actually well worth the price of admission,” said Samson, who is also a former co-chair of the G20 Framework Working Group on the Global Economy.
Hosting duties rotate annually among member countries France, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, Italy and Canada, and as it is the host country’s responsibility to cover the costs to keep the entire delegation safe, it is also the prerogative of the country with the presidency to define a set of priorities for the year.
“The G7 is an annual summit of the most powerful leaders, the most powerful democratic countries with advanced economies in the world, and Canada was one of them when G7 Summits started 50 years ago, and has been ever since,” said John Kirton, director of the G7 Research Group.
“Every seven years, yeah Canada has to pick up the tab, but that’s only one seventh of the time that Canada gets a chance to influence the world when the other countries pay the bill,” Kirton said.
‘A really important moment’
Carney has selected a trio of big themes to tackle during the three-day summit:
- “Protecting our communities and the world,” which will include talk of transnational crime and wildfire responses;
- “Building energy security and accelerating the digital transition” which will see leaders discuss critical mineral supply chains and leveraging artificial intelligence; and
- “Securing the partnerships of the future” which will focus on building infrastructure and creating higher-paying jobs.
“This is a really important moment for the G7,” said Martha Hall Findlay, director of The School of Public Policy at the University of Calgary.
Highlighting notable parallels between the current global situation and the context at the time the global forum was created, Hall Findlay said that the 1970s, there was a world energy crisis, and now with Russia’s war in Ukraine, energy security is once again a leading concern.
And, the last time the summit was in Kananaskis specifically, it was on the heels of the 9/11 terror attacks, and now there are new global security concerns.
“All of these factors have historical backgrounds in terms of the G7, but they all lead to a G7 right now in 2025 that is really important,” the former parliamentarian and businesswoman said.
“For us to be at that table with these other really influential countries is incredibly important for Canada, for our own well being, for our own economic prosperities – particularly on the trade side – but also because we care about what’s happening in the world,” Hall Findlay said. “And it’s really important that we’re able to be there at that table and have that influence.”
