TORONTO — Prime Minister Mark Carney says he wants to see private investors take over operations at Canada’s four largest airports — Toronto Pearson, Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver.

In a keynote address at the investment summit in Toronto on Tuesday, the prime minister said the federal government would retain ownership of the land and assets.

Carney said the goal is to shift federal spending on major airports’ operating costs toward smaller regional airports — a move he suggested could reduce traveller costs at those destinations.

“We will reinvest the tens of billions of dollars of capital that we raise into infrastructure that Canada needs for the next generation,” Carney said in his speech.

“That will mean investing in regional airports, providing better and more affordable regional and remote air connections. It will mean a better passenger experience.”

The prime minister said the proceeds from private investors taking over major airport operations would also go into both “nation-building” projects and local transportation infrastructure projects aimed at easing commutes.

When asked by reporters Tuesday if foreign private capital will be barred from operating Canada’s airports, Carney said in French that it would be an open competition for contracts.

Carney said the government is not looking to privatize airports but rather to change their operational structure to allow private operations to “manage the airports for a period of decades.”

“Our intention is to retain an ownership position in these concessions in our new Canada Strong Fund so that as the value of these airports, as they improve, Canadians will benefit directly in that,” Carney said.

The prime minister said all regulation and oversight would remain with Transport Canada and the details of how this could work will be discussed in upcoming consolation sessions.

Under Canada’s current airport operational structure, private, not-for-profit airport authorities lease airports from the federal government and run the facilities themselves, overseeing everything from runway maintenance and baggage handling to terminal building maintenance.

Airport authorities are financially independent and are responsible for setting their own fees and recuperating their operating costs.

During a fireside chat after his speech, Carney said he wants to hear from investors in airports like London’s Heathrow about how to transfer that model to Canada in a way that benefits both passengers and airport workers.

Deborah Orida, the CEO of PSP Investments — which owns seven airports around the world — asked Carney how he views privatization.

He said governments need to consider the “purpose” of a privatization deal.

“How is that going to make the experience of going to Pearson Airport, Calgary, Vancouver, Montreal, how is it going to make that experience better, safe, more efficient? How is it going to keep costs down?” Carney said.

Carney said Canadian pension funds already have invested in international airports like Heathrow and he wants to bring “that expertise back home.”

The overall goal of the investment summit is to attract $1 trillion in new investment to the Canadian economy over the next five years.

Carney told investors at the summit that Canada is positioning itself as a “safe harbour” for their money on a chaotic global stage.

The prime minister said in May the federal government was open to selling public assets if the proceeds could be used to fund other projects, and singled out airports as a possibility.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 15, 2026.

The Canadian Press Staff