TRAN Committee Report

Clause 4

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 22 on page 7 the following:

“create good-paying, unionized jobs, and”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 31 on page 8 the following:

“Parliamentary Review Committee means the committee referred to in subsection 62(1) of the Emergencies Act. (comité d’examen parlementaire)”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding before line 11 on page 9 the following:

“4.1 (1) The Governor in Council may, by order, for the purposes of section 5, define national interest.

(2) In order to promote transparency and predictability, an order made under subsection (1) must set out specific criteria that must be met by the proponent of a project in order for the project to be found to be in the national interest.

(3) If an order is not made within 15 days after the day on which this Act comes into force, the Minister must, within five sitting days of the end of that period, cause to be tabled in each House of Parliament a report that sets out the reasons for the delay and the expected timeline for the making of the order.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by replacing line 15 on page 9 with the following:

“and a detailed description of it, including the location where”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 16 on page 9 the following:

“(1.1) Before adding the name of a project to Schedule 1, the Governor in Council must cause a notice of 30 days, that includes the name and description of the project, to be published in the Canada Gazette and must consult with the government of the province in which the project will be carried out, and obtain its written consent if the project falls within areas of exclusive provincial jurisdiction.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by replacing line 18 on page 9 with the following:

“order under subsection (1) while Parliament is prorogued or dissolved or after the fifth anniversary of”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 14 on page 10 the following:

“(6.1) Before recommending that an order be made under subsection (1), the Minister must be satisfied that

(a) the proponent of the project, or any director, officer or significant shareholder of the proponent, has not been found to have committed a violation under the Conflict of Interest Act and is not the subject of an ongoing proceeding in respect of a violation under that Act; and

(b) every reporting public office holder, as defined in section 2 of that Act, who could be in a conflict of interest in relation to the proponent of the project has recused themselves under that Act to avoid the conflict.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 27 on page 10 the following:

“(10) Within 30 days after an order is made under subsection (1), details of the project in respect of which the order is made must be published in the registry established under section 5.1.

5.1 (1) The Minister must establish and maintain a public registry of national interest projects that is made accessible to the public through the Internet.

(2) The Minister must include in the registry in respect of each project

(a) a detailed description of the project and the reasons why it is in the national interest;

(b) the extent to which the project is expected to meet the outcomes set out in paragraphs 5(6)(a) to (d);

(c) detailed cost estimates; and

(d) the estimated timelines for completion of the project.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 20 on page 11 the following:

“(b.1) the Minister must undertake a national security review for all state-owned or foreign investments from hostile countries in any national interest project;”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 25 on page 11 the following:

“(d) the Minister must be satisfied that, with regard to any foreign investments in the project, all necessary measures have been taken to protect national security interests.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 25 on page 11 the following:

“(2.1) For the purposes of consultations required under paragraph (2)(c), the Minister must ensure that a process is established that allows for the active and meaningful participation of the affected Indigenous peoples and that a report of the consultation process and results is made available to the public within 60 days after the day on which a document is issued under subsection (1).”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 16 on page 12 the following:

“(9) If the national interest project has not been substantially started within five years of the issuance of the document, the document expires.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 16 on page 12 the following:

“(9) All documents and information used to issue the document must also be made public.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 30 on page 12 the following:

“(4) The Minister is not authorized to amend a condition under subsection (1) while Parliament is prorogued or dissolved or after the fifth anniversary of the day on which this section comes into force.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 30 on page 12 the following:

“8.1 (1) When the Minister establishes the conditions for issuing the document that is deemed to be each authorization that is specified in the document in respect of a national interest project under section 7, the Minister must make public

(a) all the conditions that apply to the project;

(b) the full contents of the studies and impact assessments conducted regarding the project;

(c) all the recommendations received from federal departments and agencies, provinces, territories and Indigenous peoples regarding the project;

(d) in an accessible written document, the reasons some of the recommendations were not accepted; and

(e) a description of the normal regulatory process that would have been followed if the project had not been designated as a national interest project.

(2) The document referred to in paragraph (1)(d) must include

(a) a comparative analysis of the conditions imposed and the recommendations received;

(b) an assessment of the risks of disregarding the recommendations that were not accepted; and

(c) any alternative mitigation measures implemented.

(3) The Minister must, not later than 30 days after the document referred to in section 7 is issued, make public the information set out in paragraphs 1(a) to (e).

(4) The Minister must table a report containing the information set out in paragraphs 1(a) to (e) in the House of Commons and, at the request of 10 or more members of the House, must appear, to explain their decisions in establishing the conditions, before the committee of Parliament designated or established for that purpose.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended

(a) by replacing line 27 on page 15 with the following:

“21 (1) Subject to subsection (2), the Governor in Council may, by order, amend”

(b) by adding after line 30 on page 15 the following:

“(2) The Governor in Council is not authorized to amend Schedule 2 to add the name of any of the following Acts of Parliament or of any regulation made under any of those Acts, or a reference to a portion of any of those Acts or regulations:

(a) the Access to Information Act;

(b) the Canada Elections Act;

(c) the Conflict of Interest Act;

(d) the Criminal Code;

(e) the Foreign Influence Transparency and Accountability Act;

(f) the Investment Canada Act;

(g) the Lobbying Act;

(h) the Official Languages Act;

(i) the Use of French in Federally Regulated Private Businesses Act;

(j) the Indian Act;

(k) the Auditor General Act;

(l) the Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act;

(m) the Railway Safety Act;

(n) the Trade Unions Act;

(o) the Explosives Act; and

(p) the Hazardous Products Act.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 30 on page 15 the following:

“(2) The Governor in Council is not authorized to make an order under subsection (1) while Parliament is prorogued or dissolved or after the fifth anniversary of the day on which this section comes into force.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 10 on page 16 the following:

“(2) The Governor in Council is not authorized to make regulations under subsection (1) while Parliament is prorogued or dissolved or after the fifth anniversary of the day on which this section comes into force.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by replacing lines 11 to 17 on page 16 with the following:

“23 The Governor in Council may make regulations generally for carrying out the purposes and provi‐”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 18 on page 16 the following:

“(2) The Governor in Council is not authorized to make regulations under subsection (1) while Parliament is prorogued or dissolved or after the fifth anniversary of the day on which this section comes into force.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 18 on page 16 the following:

“Annual Report

23.1 (1) Within 90 days after the end of each financial year, the Minister must cause an independent review to be conducted of the status of each national interest project that, in respect of each project, provides an assessment of the progress made on measurable outcomes, including in relation to timelines and budgets.

(2) The Minister must cause a report of the review to be tabled in each House of Parliament on any of the first 15 days on which that House is sitting after the review is completed.

(3) The Minister must publish the report on an Internet site that is available to the public within 10 days after the day on which it has been tabled in both Houses of Parliament.”

That Bill C-5, in Clause 4, be amended

(a) by replacing line 19 on page 16 with the following:

“24 (1) The Parliamentary Review Committee is to review the Governor in Council’s and the Minister’s exercise of their powers and performance of their duties and functions under this Act and to report to each House of Parliament the results of its review at least once every 180 days while Parliament is neither prorogued nor dissolved.

(2) Within five years after the day on which this Act”

(b) by replacing lines 21 to 25 on page 16 with the following:

“the provisions and operation of this Act and must cause a report on the review to be laid before the Parliamentary Review Committee and each House of Parliament.

(3) The review is to be based on the common good of Canada, assured in part by the pursuit of the objectives set out in section 4 relating to shared jurisdiction, public safety, national and international security, the quality of the environment, public health, transparency, public participation and the protection of the rights of Indigenous peoples and linguistic communities.”

Schedule

That Bill C-5, in the schedule, be amended by deleting item 2 of Part 1 of Schedule 2 on page 17.