Nunavut is bracing for a wave of federal defence spending. 

Premier John Main told Vanguard the territory wasn't consulted on where new military infrastructure would go but he's counting on a strengthening relationship with the Department of National Defence to make sure the buildup addresses Nunavut's chronic infrastructure gaps, not just Ottawa's strategic ones.

Main laid out what he wants scoped into the work: local jobs, local power, and a plan that doesn't leave communities holding the bag. The following is one segment of a three-part series interviewing the Northern premiers. 

What does this investment actually look like on the ground in your territory? Is it making a material difference?

It's welcome investment, long overdue. The context we're dealing with in Nunavut is that we have this massive infrastructure deficit everywhere you look — everything from healthcare to schools to runways to power generation and drinking water. Everything is stretched in terms of our ability to support development. But the relationship between us and DND has been an ever-strengthening communication link, and that's been really important — so that we can help guide development in a way that's beneficial, not just for defence interests, but for civilians.

Do you feel the federal government is consulting you early enough on these projects, or do you typically learn about them after decisions are made?

In terms of the military considerations — locations of bases and so on — we were not necessarily consulted on that, and we understand that. But I think the important thing will be how things are built, and what specific needs are scoped in as part of development. Look at power generation, for example. You look at adding infrastructure into Resolute Bay, one of the locations for the Northern Operational Support Hub — we can tell DND that we don't have a lot of excess power available there. We have existing assets that are very old and at the end of their lifespan, so we're in a jam. That's where the consultation and the relationship matter, because we can flag that power generation is going to be one of the stumbling blocks for residents. Then you look at somewhere like Cambridge Bay, and we have needs around the runway there. So I'm encouraged, but at the end of the day it's going to depend on what's scoped into the work on these pieces of infrastructure.

What's the biggest strain on local infrastructure from all of this?

Housing, power, roads, logistics — not to mention healthcare and drinking water. We don't want to be left holding the bag, so to speak, expected to accommodate a large influx. That needs to be scoped into the work to develop these pieces of infrastructure.

How much of the economic benefit — jobs, contracts — do you expect to stay in the north?

Time will tell. Our preference would be to maximize the benefits in terms of both contracting and labour. It's going to be a big labour requirement. We look at other major developments — say a gold mine getting commissioned or built — and the expectation is that there's a detailed, focused training and labour force plan that brings in as many Nunavut residents as possible, as many Inuit as possible. We don't want to see those paycheques fly south. If you have a major piece of infrastructure being built, that's an opportunity for somebody to make it through an apprenticeship. We want to encourage more employment and labour force participation — it's very much in line with our interests beyond the military.

When Ottawa talks about Arctic sovereignty, does that match how you'd define it for your territory and residents?

I think we have different perspectives. Our sovereignty and security strategy, released in 2025, states that sovereignty and security is much bigger than just defence and a hard militaristic perspective — it boils down to the health of the communities and the health of the people in those communities. We have a lot of work to do. I'm not going to sugarcoat it — we are very much challenged in terms of healthcare, cost of living, food security. These basic things go to our identity as Canadians. We understand the need for the military and hard security aspect, and we appreciate that in the global context. But at the same time, communities can't be left behind — communities need to be uplifted. Our communities are struggling, and the military needs to understand that and hopefully play a role in helping us address these challenges. Not that we expect the military to single-handedly solve healthcare issues or eliminate poverty, but we expect a partner that understands and appreciates the challenges.

If you had one specific change to how the federal government plans to deliver Arctic defence investment, what would it be?

That the approach is tailored for the north. You're not building a piece of infrastructure in southern Canada — you're building it in Nunavut, which is part of the Inuit homeland. My wish would be a northern-specific approach that maximizes benefits to local residents and businesses and leaves a lasting positive legacy. If we just go with the status quo, business as usual, we're going to build this infrastructure today and leave people behind — that's my concern. But I think we can chart a better course, and our government wants to be a partner in this. We have programs and resources that can help achieve better outcomes.

Is there a shared northern position among the three territorial premiers, or do you see this differently?

We very much communicate on these issues these days. We have what's called the Northern Premiers' Forum, and it's been a hot topic — we share approaches and intelligence back and forth. There's a lot in common across the three territories, but the context is a bit different. When you look at the Northwest Territories, they're talking about roads we're not yet at as a territory. But there are things we can learn from each other.

Anything else you wanted to add?

It's great to see National Defence engaging with Inuit organizations — they're a big stakeholder, a big part of the foundation of the territory. As a public government, we represent everyone in the territory and speak with that voice for everyone. But we also recognize that, as laid out in the Nunavut Agreement, Inuit organizations have a really important role to play and important perspectives to share. That's something we absolutely support, and I'm glad to see the department engaging not just with us but with other partners like Inuit organizations and municipalities.