Bill C-5 would enact the One Canadian Economy Act, creating the Free Trade and Labour Mobility in Canada Act and the Building Canada Act. The supplied text does not establish whether these provisions are now in force. The first Act’s start date would be set by a Governor in Council order; the supplied text does not include a start-date rule for the Building Canada Act. The stated goal is to reduce federal barriers to trade and labour mobility and speed up projects judged to be in the national interest.
For goods and services moving between provinces or territories, comparable provincial or territorial requirements would count as meeting comparable federal requirements, subject to regulations and conditions in the bill.
Federal regulators would have to recognize provincial or territorial occupational authorizations as comparable and, if the holder applies, issue a federal authorization, subject to regulations.
The Governor in Council could add projects to the Building Canada Act’s schedule as national interest projects, subject to notice, consultation and, for projects in areas of exclusive provincial or territorial jurisdiction, written consent from the relevant government.
For a listed project, required findings and opinions would be deemed to favour allowing it to proceed. The proponent would still have to take required steps, and the minister would have to issue a document setting out applicable authorizations and conditions.
The minister could amend that document, and the Governor in Council could make regulations exempting or varying some requirements in listed federal laws for national interest projects. The bill also requires public information and independent annual reviews of project progress.
Businesses moving goods or providing services across provincial or territorial borders: A comparable provincial or territorial requirement could satisfy a federal one if the requirements concern the same aspect, aim at a similar objective, and meet any regulatory conditions. The relevant federal regulator may decide whether requirements are comparable.
Workers with provincial or territorial occupational authorizations: A federal regulatory body must recognize a qualifying authorization and issue a federal one if the holder applies. Regulations may create exceptions or conditions.
Project proponents: If their project is listed, the minister must issue a document that is deemed to be the authorizations specified in it, once the bill’s conditions are met. Proponents must still provide required information, pay required fees and take other required measures. The document must set out conditions.
Indigenous peoples whose section 35 rights may be adversely affected: The minister must consult them before recommending a project’s addition to the schedule and before issuing or changing an authorization document. For the latter consultation, the minister must ensure active and meaningful participation and publish a report on the process and results.
Provincial and territorial governments: They must be consulted before a project is added. Their written consent is required if it falls within their exclusive jurisdiction.
General public: The bill does not itself guarantee a project will proceed. It changes how specified federal requirements apply to listed projects; it does not directly change provincial rules.
The bill requires project cost estimates to be published, but no overall public cost estimate is provided in the supplied material.
The minister must maintain a public project registry and arrange independent annual reviews. The bill gives no cost estimate for this work or the staff needed.
Project proponents must pay fees required for the authorizations specified in their document.
The text does not provide project spending amounts, savings, or expected returns.
The supplied material does not include the schedules listing projects and federal laws covered by the Building Canada Act. The projects already listed and the full set of potentially affected requirements cannot be verified from it.
Regulations could define comparability, set conditions or exceptions, and impose obligations or restrictions. Their content is not provided.
The bill does not set out a full application, decision, appeal or dispute process for determining whether requirements are comparable or issuing occupational authorizations.
The national-interest criteria must be set by order, but the criteria themselves are not supplied. The text allows the Governor in Council to consider any relevant factor.
The bill allows some project requirements to be exempted or varied, but the supplied material does not show which requirements would be changed for a particular project or how conflicts with existing programs would be handled.
The material does not establish the bill’s current legal status or provide the Building Canada Act’s commencement rule.
The bill appears intended to reduce cases where businesses and workers face separate federal requirements after meeting comparable provincial or territorial ones.
A possible argument for recognizing occupational authorizations is that it could make it easier for workers authorized in one jurisdiction to practise in a federal context.
A single document containing specified project authorizations could make federal requirements more coordinated and predictable for project proponents.
The bill requires public project information, explanations of conditions, and independent annual reviews, which could help Parliament and the public track progress and costs.
The bill would deem required findings and opinions to favour a listed project. A concern is that this could reduce the role of ordinary federal decision-making, even though proponents must still meet required steps and the minister must set conditions.
The Governor in Council could exempt or vary requirements for listed projects. The scope and effects would depend on future regulations and project-specific decisions.
The minister must issue the authorization document when the stated conditions are met, but can amend its conditions and add authorizations. The bill’s design therefore gives the minister an important role in setting project terms.
It is unclear how regulators will decide that requirements are comparable, and regulations could create exceptions to recognition of goods, services or workers.
The bill requires staffing, public reporting and reviews but gives no estimate of those costs.