In a locked room deep inside Ottawa’s parliamentary precinct, officials brief a new set of MPs on Canada’s most secret files. The Secretariat that supports them has just learned it must do more with less.

This spring, the NSICOP 2026‑27 Departmental Plan confirmed a $263,220 cut to its operating budget, trimming national security oversight spending to $3.54 million. The reductions, part of a government‑wide review, will expand to $350,000 next year and nearly half a million by 2028‑29, costing roughly one staff position.

To meet the targets, the Secretariat will merge executive roles, curb travel inside and outside Canada, and reduce reliance on external experts. Yet even as resources shrink, its core tasks multiply: delivering two ongoing classified reviews, finalizing the 2026 Annual Report, and orienting a new Committee with full security clearances.

The Plan, tabled by Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon, also outlines preparations for Parliament’s five‑year review of the NSICOP Act—the law that created the Committee in 2017. The Secretariat will provide the research and logistical support for that process, a pivotal chance to evaluate how Parliament oversees Canada’s intelligence community.

Twelve employees now handle every secure file, draft, and advisory note. Forecasts show that number holding steady, but the internal risks are clear: difficulty recruiting specialists, cybersecurity threats, and pressure to maintain classified systems with lean resources.

Behind the technical footnotes lies a larger question. Can a team of 12, operating under restraint, sustain credible parliamentary scrutiny of Canada’s most secret operations? The coming year will test whether fiscal discipline and democratic oversight can coexist in the same locked room.