As Canadian politicians talk more military spending, how could that benefit London, Ont.?

For 19 years, Robin Claessens has worked at General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada (GDLS) in London, Ont., in a good-paying union job she'd like to keep until the end of her working career.

She started as a painter before moving on to an assembly position, later transitioning into her current job as a union representative. 

The company, which has contracts to produce light-armoured vehicles for the Canadian military and other clients, has been good to her, but Claessens fears the work could taper off by next year. 

"We see a lull in our production schedule for 2026," she said. "So we're hoping the federal government will step up and order more Canadian vehicles from us to keep everybody employed."

The potential lull that concerns Claessens is the company's current contract to build 360 Armoured Combat Support Vehicles (ACSVs) for the Canadian Armed Forces. It's expected to reach the end of production next year. 

A controversial contract to build armoured vehicles for Saudi Arabia's military has now completed production. 

New concerns about the availability of work at GDLS comes with Canada in a snap federal election and a changing relationship with the United States, given President Donald Trump's threats of annexation. 

More than in recent elections, federal politicians are talking more openly about increasing military spending. 

"Now would be the time that we wrap the Canadian flag around our military and the Canadian men and women that can build for a military," said Jeff Skinner, a chair with Unifor Local 27, the union that represents workers at the London plant on Oxford Street East. "I'm honestly not sure who would be more supportive, whether it's Liberal or Conservative." 

Trump has criticized Canada for falling short of NATO's defence spending target of two per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).

Liberal Leader Mark Carney has said he will hit that mark by 2030. On Monday, in addition to that, he renewed a commitment to defence spending, including new submarines and heavy icebreakers. Carney didn't mention GDLS-Canada or armoured vehicles specifically. 

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said last year he won't commit to NATO's defence spending target.

But if defence spending does increase, could any of it trickle down to GDLS in London? 

Erika Simpson, a Western University associate professor of international relations, said it could lead to more armoured vehicle production at GDLS. However, she said, that will have to be weighed against other defence spending priorities in a political climate that changes almost daily.