Dan Albas

“Mr. Speaker, Bill C-39, the building Canada strong act, would put forward important legislative changes that build on our government’s efforts to protect Canada’s economic future by reducing the regulatory burden faced by the Canadian transportation sector. Last year, the House passed the Building Canada Act, which focused on accelerating the development of projects of national interest and removing barriers to international trade and labour mobility. Today, I am pleased to say that we have worked diligently in the past months on new projects and streamlining processes. For much of our history, Canadians were able to count on favourable trade connections and conditions, including a stable relationship with the United States. That has shifted. The decades-long economic integration is over. Tariffs are being treated as leverage and supply chains as vulnerabilities. In a rapidly changing world, Canada’s new government is focused on what it can control. We are building strength at home and diversifying our partnerships abroad. We are on track. Transportation is the vital link. We cannot diversify trade, build the strongest economy in the G7 and strengthen Canada’s competitiveness without a transportation system that works. Canada’s trade corridors connect Canadian business to markets and supply chains both at home and around the world. We heard directly from Canadians about what is needed to build stronger, more efficient and more resilient supply chains. As such, we are taking action to reduce red tape, strengthen supply chains, accelerate infrastructure development and attract investment to grow Canada’s economy and create new jobs. For too long, red tape and underinvestment hindered innovation and productivity in Canadian companies. We often heard that we are not modern, that we are too bureaucratic, that we have not invested enough in our infrastructure and that other countries were finding us to be unreliable. These issues have to be addressed. That is why we are providing regulatory certainty to modernize the rules that govern how we build and invest to compete, while protecting the health and security of Canadians and the environment and respecting indigenous rights. To support our commitment to lower costs and build a stronger economy, this government launched a red tape review in July 2025. Federal departments and agencies identified approximately 500 actions to reduce regulatory red tape. This bill would begin the implementation of some of these forward-looking actions, showing how the government will deliver on its commitment to address barriers that limit trade and restrict competition. Canada is and needs to be seen as a reliable and beneficial place to invest and do business. Inefficiencies in our trade processes and supply chains are costly and hurt our reputation as a reliable trading partner. To maximize the full value of our budget 2025 investments, we must address long-standing constraints in the system that limit investment and productivity. This will support a more modern, responsive transportation system that can handle economic pressures, improve performance and unlock new capacity across our supply chains. A critical piece of the bill addresses coordinated reviews and securing timely approvals. Delays deter investment in our nation-building projects. The bill includes measures to reduce red tape and regulatory burden through a new transportation project office. This would complement efforts being led by the Major Projects Office and the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada. We need to expedite permits. Our government’s commitment of one project, one review, within one year of receiving all necessary information from a proponent, is key. These changes would enable industry to advance large-scale projects more efficiently and with greater certainty, and would help attract investment. The transportation project office would work to reduce bottlenecks, improve coordination and offer a one-window approach for proponents. All the while, this improved approach would maintain existing safeguards to ensure the integrity of those project reviews. The objective is to unlock greater efficiency, not more risk. Equally important is our government’s commitment to having indigenous partnerships that shape how projects are developed and carried out. We also remain committed to upholding those indigenous rights, including rights stemming from section 35 of the Constitution, to work with indigenous peoples during the implementation phase. The bill would also give Canada tools to rapidly align with international standards and strengthen how we collect, use and protect our industry data to better protect critical Canadian assets. Following the “tell us once” principle, government efforts on trade digitization would make it simple for Canadian business to submit the information. I want to specifically highlight this last point. Today, industries fulfilling regulatory requirements are routinely required to submit the same or similar data to multiple departments in various formats and on different timelines. This imposes real costs and administrative burdens on businesses. Canadian businesses expect clear communication, faster turnaround times and the ability to track the status of their requests. By reducing duplication and streamlining reporting, our trade digitization initiative, once implemented, would lower costs, save time and let businesses focus on what they want: growth and innovation. For example, in the marine sector, vessels arriving at Canadian ports must file 12 distinct forms with five different federal departments and agencies, often in duplicate. Approximately 90% of Canada’s trade with non-U.S. countries is carried by marine vessels. Making it easier to file the data once and have it shared securely across departments would meaningfully cut red tape as we diversify trade. The bill would also align with trusted international standards, giving industry the certainty it needs to plan and invest with confidence, especially as Canada seeks to grow its trade. When rules and regulations move at the same pace as international partners, Canadian innovation and productivity are unleashed, and Canadian companies can compete on a level playing field with their international competitors. I am looking forward to the discussion and the debate on this consequential bill.”