Bill S-6

An Act respecting regulatory modernization

This enactment amends various Acts as part of the Regulatory Modernization Initiative in order to repeal or amend provisions that have, over time, become barriers to innovation and economic growth or to add certain provisions with a view to support innovation and economic growth.
Part 1 modifies the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act to, among other things,
(a) replace the requirement to publish a notice of bankruptcy in a local newspaper with a requirement to do so in the manner specified in directives of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy; and
(b) provide that, if every opposition based solely on grounds referred to in paragraph 173(1)(m) or (n) of that Act is withdrawn, a bankrupt who was eligible for an automatic discharge before the opposition was filed will be issued a certificate of discharge.
It also amends the Electricity and Gas Inspection Act to allow the Governor in Council to authorize the director, appointed under subsection 26(1) of that Act, to establish plans for the verification of meters by any means.
It also amends the Weights and Measures Act to, among other things, enable the Minister of Industry to permit a trader to temporarily use, or have in their possession for use, in trade, any device even if the device has not been approved by the Minister or examined by an inspector.
It also amends the Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 2 to, among other things, amend a provision under which certain amendments to the Trademarks Act may be brought into force.
Finally, it amends the Canada Business Corporations Act , the Canada Cooperatives Act and the Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act by replacing the term “annual return” with the term “annual update statement”.
Part 2 amends the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act and the Canada Petroleum Resources Act to repeal certain provisions that require the publication of draft regulations in the Canada Gazette .
It also amends the Canada–Newfoundland and Labrador Atlantic Accord Implementation Act and the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Resources Accord Implementation Act to
(a) update the terminology in respect of hazardous products in the workplace to ensure alignment and consistency with the Hazardous Products Act ; and
(b) clarify the regulation-making authority with respect to record-keeping requirements for occupational health and safety matters.
Finally, it amends the Canada Lands Surveyors Act to, among other things,
(a) enhance the protection of the public by modernizing the complaints and discipline processes that govern Canada Lands Surveyors;
(b) reduce the regulatory burden of the Minister of Natural Resources by enabling the Council of the Association of Canada Lands Surveyors to make by-laws respecting a broader range of matters;
(c) harmonize the French and English versions of the Act for consistency and clarity by, among other things, ensuring uniformity between both language versions in relation to the definitions of “licence” and “permit” and by addressing certain recommendations of the Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations;
(d) improve labour mobility within Canada and to better align with the Canadian Free Trade Agreement; and
(e) harmonize the text of that Act with the private law of the provinces and territories, being the civil law regime of the Province of Quebec and the common law regime in the rest of Canada.
Part 3 amends the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act to, among other things,
(a) remove the requirement for the Governor in Council to make and update regulations specifying the animals and plants that are listed as “fauna” and “flora”, respectively, in an appendix to the Convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora; and
(b) clarify that the prohibitions in subsections 6(1) and 7(1) and (2) of that Act are subject to the regulations.
It also amends the Species at Risk Act to, among other things,
(a) authorize the Governor in Council to remove a species from Schedule 3 to that Act if the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) has assessed the status of the species under section 130 of that Act or has determined that the species is not a “wildlife species” or a “species at risk” as defined in subsection 2(1) of that Act;
(b) remove from that Schedule 3 the species that have already been assessed by COSEWIC under that section 130 or determined by it not to be a “wildlife species” or a “species at risk” as defined in that subsection 2(1);
(c) clarify the timelines for preparing proposed recovery strategies and management plans that must be prepared as a result of an assessment under section 130 of that Act; and
(d) repeal Schedule 2 to that Act.
Part 4 amends the Agricultural Products Marketing Act to, among other things,
(a) provide that powers are delegated to a marketing board in relation to the marketing of an agricultural product in interprovincial or export trade by virtue of being named in the schedule to that Act, rather than by Order in Council;
(b) provide that the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food is responsible for the delegation of those powers;
(c) delegate powers in relation to the marketing of agricultural products to administrative bodies;
(d) provide for limitations and exceptions, that were previously set out in orders and regulations made under that Act, with respect to the exercise of the delegated powers; and
(e) require marketing boards and administrative bodies to make accessible to the persons with respect to which they exercise their delegated powers the requirements or other measures they establish in the exercise of those powers.
It also repeals certain Orders and Regulations.
Part 5 amends the Feeds Act to, among other things,
(a) provide that the approval and registration of feed are subject to prescribed conditions and to authorize the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, to make the approval and registration subject to additional conditions;
(b) provide that a notice requiring the removal or destruction of certain feed may be delivered by any method that provides proof of delivery or by any prescribed method; and
(c) authorize the Governor in Council to make regulations respecting the recognition of a system of any foreign state or subdivision of any foreign state relating to the safety of feeds.
It also amends the Fertilizers Act to, among other things,
(a) provide that the approval and registration of a fertilizer or supplement are subject to prescribed conditions and to authorize the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, to make the approval and registration subject to additional conditions;
(b) provide that a notice requiring the removal or destruction of certain fertilizers or supplements may be delivered by any method that provides proof of delivery or by any prescribed method;
(c) prohibit the release of novel supplements, except in accordance with the regulations, and authorize the Governor in Council to make regulations respecting any such release; and
(d) authorize the Minister to impose conditions on any authorization to release a novel supplement that the Minister may grant under the regulations.
It also amends the Seeds Act to, among other things,
(a) provide that a notice requiring the removal or destruction of certain seeds may be delivered by any method that provides proof of delivery or by any prescribed method;
(b) prohibit the release of certain seeds, except in accordance with the regulations; and
(c) authorize the Governor in Council to make regulations respecting the release of seeds, providing for the determination of varietal purity of seed crops by the Canadian Seed Growers’ Association and respecting the recognition of a system of any foreign state or subdivision of any foreign state relating to the safety of seeds.
It also amends the Health of Animals Act to, among other things,
(a) provide that a notice requiring the removal or disposal of certain animals or things may be delivered by any method that provides proof of delivery or by any prescribed method;
(b) authorize the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food to renew, amend, suspend or revoke a permit or any other document issued by that Minister;
(c) prohibit the release of certain veterinary biologics, except in accordance with the regulations, and authorize the Governor in Council to make regulations respecting any such release;
(d) authorize the Minister to approve programs developed by entities other than the Canadian Food Inspection Agency for certain specified purposes and authorize the Governor in Council to make regulations respecting the approval of such programs;
(e) clarify the circumstances under which an inspector or officer may declare that an infected place is no longer an infected place; and
(f) authorize the Minister to make an interim order if the Minister believes that immediate action is required to deal with a significant risk to human or animal health and safety or the environment.
It also amends the Plant Protection Act to
(a) provide that a notice requiring the removal or destruction of certain things may be delivered by any method that provides proof of delivery or by any prescribed method; and
(b) authorize the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food to renew, amend, suspend or revoke a permit or any other document issued by that Minister.
It also amends the Canadian Food Inspection Agency Act to authorize the use of electronic means to administer and enforce that Act and any Act or provision that the Agency is responsible for administering or enforcing.
Finally, it amends the Safe Food for Canadians Act to, among other things,
(a) clarify the definition of “food commodity” by specifying that the reference in that definition to the definition of “food” in the Food and Drugs Act is subject to an interpretation provision in that Act;
(b) provide that a notice requiring the removal or destruction of certain food commodities may be delivered by any method that provides proof of delivery or by any prescribed method; and
(c) authorize the Governor in Council to extend any interim order for a period of no more than two years.
Part 6 amends the Coastal Fisheries Protection Act to create an offence of contravening a term or condition of a licence or permit.
It also amends the Fisheries Act to remove the time limit for entry into an alternative measures agreement by an alleged offender and the Attorney General. Finally, it confirms that the provisions respecting alternative measures agreements do not limit the discretion of fishery officers, fishery guardians and peace officers in enforcing that Act.
Part 7 amends the Department of Citizenship and Immigration Act to authorize the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration to disclose, for certain purposes and subject to any regulations, personal information under the control of the Department within the Department and to certain other federal and provincial government entities.
It also amends the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to authorize the making of regulations relating to the disclosure of information collected for the purposes of that Act to federal departments and agencies.
Part 8 amends the Customs Act to authorize the making of regulations aimed at streamlining the implementation of free trade agreements.
Part 9 amends the Canada Transportation Act to provide the Minister of Transport with the authority to make interim orders to implement international standards or to ensure compliance with Canada’s international obligations.

An Act Respecting Regulatory Modernization

[Stephanie Kusie, Conservative, Calgary Midnapore, AB]

Madam Speaker, I am certainly not going to let any member in this House, be they from that part of the government or the part of the government back there, deter me from a future that I believe is better for Canadians, and that is a Conservative government. These individuals can belittle me, belittle my ideas and belittle the ideas from my party, but they will not deter me, my colleagues or my leader from fighting for a government that is better for Canadians.

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Madam Speaker, with all due respect, the member never answered my question, and I really want her to bring it home on this so that I can get a straight answer to my question.

What I asked was how the proposal by the Conservatives about incentivizing municipalities is any different from the current housing accelerator fund that exists. If she is saying that we are unsuccessful and are not producing results, what she is effectively saying is that their plan would do the same.

Can she explain to me how the Conservatives' plan to incentivize building housing is different from the current housing accelerator fund that exists?

[Stephanie Kusie, Conservative, Calgary Midnapore, AB]

Madam Speaker, the government is not getting results. It is absolutely evident. We have had individuals from other parties talk about the necessity of providing housing at all different scales of the housing continuum. Our platform has done this in the past as well.

I do not know what I could even say to the member to bring to light just what a failure the Liberals' plan has been. We have to try something different and some new ideas. I believe this is a different idea and a new idea to incentivize, because I have not seen anything change in my municipality, and I have not seen—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

The hon. member for Edmonton Manning.

[Ziad Aboultaif, Conservative, Edmonton Manning, AB]

Madam Speaker, the RMB is supposed to be instituted annually, as per the government. The last one was done four years ago. I cannot believe how bad the government is at math. Something that has to be done every year is being done once every four years.

Could my hon. colleague elaborate on that failure in dealing with something such as this, which is supposed to be very important?

[Stephanie Kusie, Conservative, Calgary Midnapore, AB]

Madam Speaker, my wonderful colleague from Edmonton Manning is absolutely correct. I indicated this concern in my speech. I am very concerned what this glacial pace of re-evaluating regulations and policies means for the economic future and security future of our nation. On a daily basis in the House, we are seeing it being compromised.

I would say to my colleague that I am really looking forward to the third edition of Bill S-6 having some clauses on VCRs, beta tapes and compact discs.

[Jean-Denis Garon, Bloc, Mirabel, QC]

Madam Speaker, I would like to follow up on the question from the member for Kingston and the Islands.

Clearly, the national housing strategy has been a failure. The Conservative strategy is to get back on track and attack our elected municipal officials by judging their work and telling them that they are not capable of making the right decisions. I would like to point out that the elected officials of the Union des municipalités du Québec are in Gatineau right now. I want to say hello and let them know that we appreciate their work and their skills, and we are happy that they are here.

The member and her party say they will respect provincial jurisdictions and stop imposing conditions on them. At the same time, in their opposition motion, they said they would impose conditions on municipalities and, if they do not listen to what know-it-all Ottawa says, they would take away their funding.

How is that possible?

[Stephanie Kusie, Conservative, Calgary Midnapore, AB]

Madam Speaker, it warms my heart to see that we both care about our counterparts at the municipal level. We both have hope for more housing in Quebec and Alberta—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

Resuming debate, the hon. member for Joliette.

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Madam Speaker, I seek the consent of the House to share my time with my unique and extraordinary colleague from Abitibi—Témiscamingue.

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

Does the hon. member have consent?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Madam Speaker, over the past few days, my area has had significant rainfall. As a result, numerous rivers are overflowing and there is major flooding, damage and all sorts of issues. Many houses are flooded. People in my riding have lost a lot. Many roads were cut off and are still not passable. A number of communities are isolated. It is a sad state of affairs, and I am deeply distressed. My thoughts go out to the people of Saint-Côme as well as Sainte-Émélie-de-l'Énergie, Chertsey, Saint-Alphonse-Rodriguez, Entrelacs, Rawdon, Saint-Michel-des-Saints and Saint-Zénon, and of course the Atikamekw community in Manawan. I am also thinking of the people of Saint-Donat, Notre-Dame-de-la-Merci and Sainte-Béatrix.

Everyone is hoping that the rain will stop soon and that we can carry on with the repair work. I would like to thank the municipal elected officials, their teams on the ground and the many volunteers who are doing an incredible job under the circumstances. I would also like to thank Quebec for its involvement. Finally, I would like to acknowledge the personal commitment of the Minister of Emergency Preparedness. I had the opportunity to speak with him and he, too, offers his full co-operation and is very saddened by the situation.

Obviously, we also stand in solidarity with the people of other municipalities in Lanaudière, as well as in the Laurentians and the Outaouais, and of course those in the Charlevoix region and Baie-Saint-Paul in particular. Our thoughts are with them. We are terribly saddened by the tragic accident involving the two firefighters who were on a rescue mission.

As we can see, climate change is generating more extreme weather events. We need to start adapting to this new reality now. Clearly, infrastructure upgrades are now urgent. Ottawa must contribute. I also invite this government to listen to the needs of municipalities to bring all small dams up to standard.

Let us get back to Bill S‑6.

As members know, this regulatory modernization bill is introduced annually. It includes minor changes to ease the administrative burden on businesses, facilitate digital interactions with the government, streamline regulatory processes, provide exemptions from certain regulatory requirements for testing new products and facilitate cross-border trade. It updates 29 laws with 46 amendments and affects 12 government departments and agencies. I did say minor changes.

Bill S-6 helps ensure that the regulatory environment evolves in step with technologies and takes into account the realities of businesses. That is a very good thing, even though it is a bit late. The government announced its intention to introduce this bill in 2018, or five years ago. We know that there was a pandemic, but we also know that this government does not move very quickly.

In short, we are studying a bill to modernize regulations. The amendments are minor and we find most of them to be pertinent.

However, as long as we will be doing that, I would have liked the bill to go much further. For example, it could have addressed the regulations buried in the Income Tax Act, which legalize the use of tax havens to avoid paying what is owed. We have recognized that for many years. It is high time we withdrew them. I am referring here to section 5907 of the Income Tax Regulations, which allow banks, web giants and multinationals to report their profits made here in a tax haven to avoid paying tax. It is about time to make illegal what is immoral. This is an opportunity to withdraw regulations that contravene the very spirit of the law.

The use of tax havens is a scourge that undermines our public services. Globally, it is estimated that $12 trillion in assets are hidden in tax havens. This situation is only possible because of the hypocrisy of western governments, starting with England and the United States. In Canada, the examples of Paul Martin and Bill Morneau speak for themselves. While Ottawa was legalizing using Barbados as a tax haven, Paul Martin, the then minister of finance, was registering his company there to avoid paying taxes. The Morneau Shepell family business publicly offered its services to retirement funds and insurance companies to help them use tax havens, even though he was serving as finance minister for the current government.

According to expert Renaud Van Ruymbeke, despite the efforts of the OECD and the G20, tax havens have never been used more often.

A world of shell companies, trusts, front men and straw men, financial advisors and legal experts, also known as “trustees”, is protecting the perpetrators of massive fraud, certainly tax fraud, but often also criminal fraud. There is a mix of drug traffickers, CEOS of multinational corporations looking to evade taxes, oligarchs, of course, mobsters, greedy and corrupt dictators...

Let us not forget that Mr. Van Ruymbeke was an investigative judge in the financial division of the Paris court. In a recent book, he explains how tax havens are used to hide assets and evade taxes.

Based on his investigative experience, he describes the complex techniques implemented by banks, firms and specialized offices. He also lists the main offshore financial centres, such as Delaware, the City of London, the British Isles, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Cyprus, Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai, and so on.

According to this expert, international agreements yield almost no results. As he explained, and I quote, “these reforms have a flaw: They assume that bankers, trustees and consulting firms under the jurisdiction of tax havens will co-operate, under threat of sanctions. However, they live off this hidden money. Why would they report their clients, which would make them flee to other jurisdictions?”

In fact, he explains that these managers are continually adapting to new rules to continue protecting their clients' identities and assets, which makes it difficult to make any real changes.

Fortunately, there have been many leaks from whistle-blowers. They have shown just how widespread the use of tax havens is and they have mobilized us to take collective action. I want to once again quote Mr. Van Ruymbeke, who said, “The papers have thus become recurring global scandals. No financial centre is immune to these continuous revelations. I find that reassuring. There are cracks in even the thickest armour. Dubai, which never responded to my requests, is at the mercy of computer leaks and the Papers whistle-blowers, just like all of the financial centres.”

Names of the beneficiaries can been revealed and some evaded taxes can be recovered, but the judge reminded us that this is the exception. To really eliminate those privileges, we need to put an end to the complacency that currently exists. That takes political will. To accomplish this, every government needs to implement a centralized registry of all the accounts on its territory and create a list of the real beneficiaries.

Again according to Mr. Van Ruymbeke, “Every country also needs to create a registry of all of the corporations and make it accessible to everyone. We need to eradicate the fake Liechtenstein foundations and other shell companies.” He goes on to say, “Every country must ensure that the banks do not just go through the formalities but actually verify their clients' assets, particularly those of any front men whose personal resources do not justify the tens of millions of euros flowing into their accounts.”

Banks must be required to report suspicious transactions or face real penalties. The government needs to stop being soft on trustees and legal advisers who help arrange fraud. Banks that participate in tax evasion must be severely punished.

Shell companies should be prohibited altogether. If the sole purpose of a company is to conceal the identity of its owner, it should be illegal. This must be the case for shell companies in the Bahamas, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Panama and Delaware. Their sole purpose is to be used in offshore arrangements. This should also apply to Liechtenstein foundations, Anglo-Saxon trusts, and so on.

All countries that allow multinationals, banks and individuals with personal fortunes to escape taxation by using tax havens have an elephant in the room. How can we legitimately impose austerity policies, cutting public services or raising the retirement age, when we allow the wealthy to evade taxes? It is high time we addressed this, including the regulations in section 5907 of the Income Tax Regulations.

[Jean-Denis Garon, Bloc, Mirabel, QC]

Madam Speaker, I know that my colleague from Joliette is very passionate about the issue of tax evasion. I understand, because we are constantly told that there is not enough money for health transfers. We are told that there is not enough money for the provinces. However, at the same time, we are depriving ourselves of important sources of revenue.

That said, with respect to tax evasion, there is always one country saying that it cannot be the first to make changes, because it must wait for the others to do so. Ultimately, no one ever does anything.

I would like to ask my colleague the following question: In this matter, why is Canada not showing any international leadership?

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Madam Speaker, Canada is lagging behind when it comes to dealing with tax evasion and tax avoidance. In the United States, the equivalent of the Canada Revenue Agency, or the IRS, has taken legal action. There have been criminal judgments and sentences have been imposed. This has never been done in Canada for tax evasion. More needs to be done.

The government says it has more means. Now, we are going to have better laws, but it also takes political will. We are still far from seeing results.

In the latest leaked “papers”, Radio-Canada reported that Revenu Québec had recovered more money than the Canada Revenue Agency, which had recovered 20 or 30 times less than its friends in Europe such as England, France and Germany.