PM Carney planning new legislation to expedite more project approvals

Conservative MP Shannon Stubbs says the government is 'creating more chaos, more uncertainty and more of a lack of clarity' on regulations on major projects.

OTTAWA – Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government intends to table legislation soon that would expedite the regulatory approval process for all big energy and infrastructure projects, CTV News has confirmed.

The intention of the coming legislation is to reduce the regulatory decision and approval process for these major development proposals down to two years, a commitment previously made by the federal Liberals.

These reforms are expected to apply more widely than the existing major projects law Carney passed just under a year ago. That legislation, Bill C-5, enabled the government to fast-track approvals for projects deemed to be in the national interest.

Without confirming plans for more policy, the prime minister today was quick to defend the government for the extent it has used these powers to approve new major projects so far.

“The important thing is that … we respect the law, and the designation requires consultations in advance of designation,” Carney said.

“We’re moving forward at speed, but we’re doing it in the right way, in consultation with Indigenous partners, with provinces, and with all stakeholders.”

Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon said he didn’t think it should come as any surprise.

“We have a lot of work to do to continue progress on reforming a regulatory process, make sure everyone is heard but also make sure they go faster,” he said. “I don’t think that’s a secret.”

Pressed for more details, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson declined to comment, as did Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Rebecca Alty.

Though, the parliamentary secretary to Industry Minister Melanie Joly said he’s expecting news from Carney imminently.

“I’m not privy to all those details, but very, very soon, the prime minister will announce a number of measures to precisely do that, to accelerate the process,” said Liberal MP Carlos Leitao.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre – who has long called on Carney to repeal existing rules that stakeholders have said hinder development – said this plan to legislate more makes the prime minister’s pledge to build at speeds not seen in generations little more than an illusion.

“He’s not removed a single Trudeau-era anti-development law,” Poilievre said in speech at the Canada Strong and Free Network conference on Thursday.

“He did pass a new law that allows him to go around the old laws, but he’s not used that new law to approve a single, solitary project.”

Alberta ‘encouraged to hear’

Alberta Energy and Minerals Minister Brian Jean – fresh off the uncontested passage of the province’s “Expedited 120-Day Approvals Act” in the legislature – welcomed the news from Parliament Hill.

“We are encouraged to hear that Ottawa may be considering following Alberta’s lead to prioritize the approval process of key energy projects,” Jean said in a statement to CTV News.

This comes as the federal government and province of Alberta have blown past their initial negotiation deadlines to fulfill certain elements of last year’s memorandum of understanding (MOU) towards new pipeline development.

That MOU contained a series commitments and measures both levels of government vowed to undertake to enable the potential building of a new oil pipeline connecting Alberta to the Pacific.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith will be in Ottawa on Friday, and Carney said earlier this week that he plans to sit down with her.

With files from CTV News’ Chief Political Correspondent Vassy Kapelos