Prime Minister Mark Carney addresses his caucus in Ottawa on Friday. He says the new legislation is a follow-through on the momentum of the last week.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
Prime Minister Mark Carney promised sweeping new economic legislation and a punishing pace this fall as his caucus met in Ottawa ahead of Parliament’s return on Monday.
Mr. Carney said the economic bill is a follow-through on the momentum of the past seven days: a meeting with Ukraine’s President, a landmark investment summit and a whirlwind trip to Europe to forge a new relationship with that continent.
“It’s a lot, but that was just the warm-up,” he told his MPs in a speech at the start of their caucus meeting on Friday. His benches have three new members after the Liberals won by-elections in Quebec, British Columbia and Ontario in August.
The Liberals now hold 173 seats in the House of Commons, a slim majority government.
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Mr. Carney said the legislation – which he called the Building Canada Strong Act – is the next phase of his government’s promise to speed up infrastructure and other projects.
The first phase was the Building Canada Act, which set up the Major Projects Office to shepherd along projects deemed as potentially in the national interest, including allowing them to fast-track through the regulatory process. The new legislation is expected to apply to projects that would not qualify for assessment by the MPO.
“Canada will always be a country of high standards, but high standards do not mean decisions have to be slow,” Mr. Carney said.
A Canadian flag flies on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Aug. 22. Carney called the legislation the Building Canada Strong Act.PATRICK DOYLE/The Canadian Press
Ahead of the meeting, Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon told reporters the bill will include changes to the Canada Labour Code, measures to improve supply chains, and the next steps in the government’s promise to reduce regulatory reviews for all projects to one year. He declined to provide more specifics as the legislation has not been tabled.
Mr. MacKinnon was asked Friday why a new bill was necessary, given the powers in the Building Canada Act.
“This would work across the economy in the federally regulated sectors to make sure that we’re able to attract investment, create jobs and trade with the world,” Mr. MacKinnon said.
The existing framework for reviewing major development and infrastructure projects is the Impact Assessment Act, created by a law passed by the Liberal government in 2019 called Bill C-69.
It has faced heavy criticism from Canada’s energy sector, the Alberta government, and the Conservative Party because they say it has hindered new oil and gas development and hurt economic growth.
Elements of how the act is applied were already changed through regulation earlier this month, and on the same day, the government released a report on consultations toward broader legislative reform.
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Karina Gould, an Ontario Liberal MP who ran for leadership of the party against Mr. Carney last year, was asked on Friday how the caucus will feel about undoing the regulatory process they once supported.
“I think we need to have confidence to see that we are still upholding the values that we care about as Canadians, that we’re protecting the environment, that we’re doing this in a responsible way,” she said.
A promise of faster assessments was one of several Mr. Carney made earlier this week to hundreds of executives at the global investment summit in Toronto. He also announced a major new tax deduction to spur investment and a plan to open up four major airports to private investment.
His trip to Strasbourg, France on Sept. 16 and 17 included a speech to the European Parliament as Canada and the European Union discuss forming an as-yet unspecified new alliance.
Both followed the collapse of trade talks with the U.S., and reflect the need for Canada to shore up its resiliency and sovereignty, Mr. Carney said.
“This is the pace we need. This is the tone we need,” he said.
“This is the standard we’re going to continue to set for our work ahead this fall, because in the midst of a rupture, we have to move forward.”
With a report from Bill Curry