Bill C-5 – The Building Canada Act
This week, the standing committee on Transport, Infrastructure, and Communities (TRAN) met to discuss the proposed Bill C-5, An Act to enact the Free Trade and Labour Mobility in Canada Act and the Building Canada Act. Chaired by Peter Schiefke, the members met for nearly twelve hours over the span of two days and heard 23 testimonies.
Notable Appearances
Notable appearances include three ministers of the new government: Chrystia Freeland (Transport and Internal Trade), Dominic LeBlanc (Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade, Intergovernmental Affairs and One Canadian Economy), and Rebecca Alty (Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations). Thematically, the meetings centered mostly around the concern of federal overreach of powers and the risk of undermining Indigenous rights.
One Canadian Economy Campaign
Bill C-5, introduced as part of the Liberals’ One Canadian Economy campaign, seeks to streamline the approval process for “national interest projects” so as to fast-track critical developments. Key stakeholders heard at the committee include Indigenous groups, business unions and coalitions, and representatives of critical sectors such as energy. Indigenous voices were particularly concerned that the streamlined approval process would undermine Indigenous consultation in the process, while business and sector representatives largely showed support for the bill.
Point of Contention
The greatest point of contention was the definition of “national interest projects”, which, though vaguely defined in the bill, was challenged for its potential to allow federal overreach into provincial jurisdiction. Dan Albas, member for Okanagan Lake West—South Kelowna, argued that “national interest, by its definition, has to reign over provincial interest.” This concern was shared by numerous other members who feared that Bill C-5’s vague definition of national interest would enable the federal government to impose projects onto provinces.
Criticisms and Next Steps
Criticisms of Bill C-5 extend beyond the standing committee, with the Canadian Association of Civil Rights writing that, “powers [the bill delegates to the federal government] would enable Cabinet to handpick projects for which important legal safeguards could be disregarded, without Parliament being able to intervene.” Other criticism come from Indigenous groups who fear that “once designated, projects would proceed with limited debate, reduced oversight, and minimal opportunity for First Nations to influence decisions that directly affect [their] lands, rights, and future generations.”
These concerns resulted in 23 amendments announced yesterday, including the delegation of defining “national interest” to the Governor in Council. Furthermore, amendments necessitate written consent from provinces if national projects fall under areas exclusive to their jurisdiction. Finally, the amendments require ministers establish a consultation process for Indigenous groups and publicly report results from these consultations, thus ensuring fair practice.
Despite facing opposition from multiple fronts, Bill C-5 nevertheless enjoys bipartisan support, having just passed through the House of Commons on Friday June 20th. As The House adjourns for the summer, C-5 will move into reading in the senate this week.