Liberals accept Conservative proposals to limit 'immense' cabinet powers in budget bill

The federal Liberals have accepted amendments to the most controversial section of the Carney government's omnibus budget bill, effectively putting guardrails on new proposed powers that would allow the government to grant corporations the ability to bypass existing laws and regulations.

The House of Commons finance committee voted in favour of four Conservative amendments on Monday during a clause-by-clause review of C-15, the Budget Implementation Act.  

The bill as tabled granted any cabinet minister the ability create "regulatory sandboxes," temporarily exempting individuals or businesses from any federal law with the exception of the Criminal Code.

"This is an immense concentration of power and what is clear is that this concern has been widespread and consistent," said Ontario Conservative MP Sandra Cobena.

Canada is not the only country to propose this type of power — an OECD report shows that sandboxes are increasingly being deployed as a limited form of regulatory waiver or flexibility in order to spur competitive innovation in a digital age, where business models are shifting rapidly.

The report notes that sandboxes exist in countries including the United States, France, Germany and the U.K. 

However, different countries employ different levels of safeguards around the exemptions.

The Conservative amendments create a mandatory 30-day public consultation prior to making exemptions. They require dual approval from both a cabinet minister and the president of the Treasury Board.

They also apply equal rules to all participants within the sector, not just hand-picked companies, as well as a full report to Parliament within 90 days explaining the rationale for the decision and assessing whether permanent legislation is warranted.

The amendments also add clear limits on what can never be exempted, including the Conflict of Interest Act, Auditor General Act and other core accountability, safety and national interest laws.

Conservative House leader Andrew Scheer told reporters on Parliament Hill that he is "very pleased" the amendments were accepted.

"We are here to scrutinize, dispassionately, every decision this government makes to ensure Canadians' interests are served and their tax dollars are treated with respect," he said.

A spokesperson for the finance minister said the regulatory sandbox provisions proposed by the government in the bill were informed by industry leaders, innovators and international comparators.

"These regulations, as initially drawn up, were not broadly supported by the opposition and were holding up consensus on a very important bill that advances Canadian competitiveness and innovation," said the spokesperson, John Fragos, in a statement.