The main advantage would be clarity. Today, there are three statutes we must refer to, the Canada Elections Act, the Referendum Act and implementing regulations. We have noted that the Canada Elections Act regularly evolves as a result of amendments passed by Parliament, whereas the Referendum Act has remained static since 1992, more or less. I believe there has only been one set of amendments.
The idea of merging the two and of having a complete code governing referenda and elections would provide greater certainty as to applicable rules, and insure that when we update the Canada Elections Act, we also consider adapting the legislative regulations that apply to referenda.
Essentially, it would insure greater certainty and better updating of both.