QUESTION PERIOD — Health
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
February 12, 2026
Senator Moreau, last week, we received the news that only 13.6% of grant applications to the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, or CIHR, were funded. This is the lowest success rate since CIHR was created. The number of researchers rejected for funding is an astonishing 2,680. However, most of the grants reviewed were likely good enough to be funded. The reason for this abysmal rate was not the quality of the applications; it was a lack of funding. This result was the latest in years of underfunding of CIHR. This is a death knell for our sovereign health research capabilities. Will the government find ways to increase funding for CIHR so we do not lose our health research ability?
Thank you for the question, Senator Kutcher. I don’t know where the 13.6% number comes from. I asked the question, and the government understands the significance of investment in health research and the need to support the next generation of researchers, giving them equal opportunity to succeed and providing them with the resources to tackle complex challenges and drive innovation. Canada has made a historic investment in research and innovation, which includes $1.8 billion in core research grant funding over five years, with $748 million per year ongoing. Funding rules and decisions are made by qualified scientists and researchers via the arm’s-length Canadian Institutes of Health Research to ensure that decisions are made based on facts and not politics.
Thank you, Senator Moreau. I’m very well aware of how the CIHR works, having been on the board of the Institute of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Addiction, or INMHA.
In Budget 2025, Canada established the global impact programs designed to bring new researchers here, and that’s really good. We’re very pleased with that. Yet I understand that the funding for CIHR has not increased to accommodate this new influx. They will simply add to the numbers that have to apply to CIHR. This is basic research funding. This is different than projects and direct funding. This is the core funding that our researchers depend on. Can you ask —
Thank you, Senator Kutcher.
I will bring the question to the ministers, certainly. Just for your information, the government is investing $199 million to increase the annual value of master’s and doctoral students’ scholarships to $27,000 and $40,000, respectively, and postdoctoral fellowships to $70,000, which is good, I think.
