On September 21, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government tabled a sweeping omnibus bill in the House of Commons that Transport Minister and Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon introduced as “one of the most important economic pieces of legislation in a generation.” The bill, titled Building Canada Strong Act, is a 246-page piece of legislation that the government touts as key for bolstering Canada’s economy through overhauling the process for major project approvals and changing collective bargaining rules.
The bill seeks to cap the time for federal reviews and decisions of major projects at one year and small-to-medium-sized projects at six months. This would be done by streamlining the federal review process, thus shifting the responsibility for project approvals to one assessor who will deliver one decision. The changes have garnered wide support from business groups such as the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce and the Business Councils of British Columbia, Alberta, and Manitoba, who praise the new, predictable timelines as reassuring and long-needed.
Bill C-39 also introduces Regions of National Interest: designated geographical areas in which new projects can use accelerated government approval pathways to kickstart development, even before a full federal impact assessment is complete. Examples include transportation and energy corridors, telecommunications networks, energy production and transmission systems, and industrial regions.
These changes have been harshly criticized by many environmental groups, who argue that the legislation rolls back environmental protections and creates “sacrifice zones” where the federal government can circumvent environmental impact reviews. “We all want a strong Canada, but truly building Canada strong means respecting nature and staying within ecological limits,” said Margot Venton, Director of Nature at the Canadian environmental law charity Ecojustice.
“When large corporations are cheering new government powers to shut down legal strikes, workers should be alarmed.”
The bill is also receiving widespread backlash from labour groups due to a provision implementing a major change to the Canada Labour Code. Under the new amendments proposed in C-39, the federal labour minister would have the explicit power to direct the Canada Industrial Relations Board to order a return to work. They would also be able to extend collective agreements, or impose a binding dispute resolution process should the minister conclude, after reviewing a report by a government-appointed mediator, that the strike is significantly adverse to Canada’s national interest. If a deal is not reached, the mediator’s report would be issued to the public after five days.
“When large corporations are cheering new government powers to shut down legal strikes, workers should be alarmed,” said Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “Bill C-39 gives one minister unchecked power to override workers’ constitutional right to strike, with no independent body required to agree and no one with the power to stop them.”
The government maintains that the bill protects labour unions, and that the report system grants new leverage to workers. “It’s meant to provide, first of all, another tool to parties to understand what the dynamics are and why they’re struggling to get to that deal,” Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu said in an interview with Rosemary Barton on CBC.
The bill cleared its second reading vote on October 8 and has been referred to a legislative committee for further study.
