Location: National
Key Messages:
- The Government of Canada recognizes that action is needed to support efficient and resilient supply chains to ensure Canada’s ongoing prosperity. Canadians need efficient and resilient supply chains.
- Bill C-33 would optimize traffic management at Canada’s Port Authorities, including anchorages, and would ease congestion by facilitating investment into inland ports. It would ensure structured relationships between ports and Indigenous and local communities to foster ongoing dialogue and inform decision making. It would also provide clarity and predictability to attract critical port investment.
- The Government of Canada is committed to ensuring that Canada has sufficient container capacity to mitigate supply disruptions and effectively transport products critical to Canada’s economy.
- The Government of Canada understands that in supporting the growth of Canada’s economy, through marine shipping activity on the West Coast, it must also consider all possible measures to mitigate negative impacts on the local environment.
- Bill C-33 would also strengthen rail safety and security, and would support the efficiency of the railway system by creating an updated framework that will help rail companies remain competitive, efficient, and sustainable.
- Furthermore, Bill C-33 would improve customs activities by reducing delays, lowering costs, while enhancing security, and will improve the safety and security of the multimodal movement of dangerous goods in Canada.
Summary of Issue / Background:
- An efficient and resilient transportation supply chain is key to expanding Canada’s economic capacity and productivity. Over the last few years, Canada has experienced supply chain challenges and Canadians have felt the associated economic impacts, first-hand. Government and industry have struggled to adapt in the face of disruptions, including the COVID-19 pandemic, extreme climate events and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
- These repeated stresses have exposed limitations and weaknesses in Canada’s transportation system, underscoring the importance of supply chain resiliency and system efficiency.
- In 2017 and 2018, Transport Canada (TC) initiated two separate, but related, reviews. Both reviews are now complete and have been strengthened by the lessons learned over the past three years.
- The Railway Safety Act Review was launched in 2017 and released in 2018. Its primary focus was to assess any gaps in the rail safety and security regime and identify issues where progress had been limited or incomplete; and,
- The Ports Modernization Review was launched in 2018 and released in 2022. The aim of this review was to optimize the 17 Canada Port Authorities’ current and future role in the transportation system as innovative assets that support inclusive growth and trade.
- In response to these reports, the Strengthening the Port System and Railway Safety in Canada Act (Bill C-33) would amend several Acts to address issues identified.
- Amendments to the Railway Safety Act seek to strengthen rail safety and security in Canada through an updated framework that will help rail companies remain competitive, efficient, and sustainable.
- Amendments to the Canada Marine Act, Canada Transportation Act, Marine Transportation Security Act and the Customs Act seek to enable Canada’s ports to better respond to an increasingly complex economic, social and environmental operating environment by providing the Government and Canada Port Authorities with enhanced tools to improve governance and operational performance, and to support a secure marine transportation environment.
- Amendments to the Canada Transportation Act and the Transportation of Dangerous Good Act, 1992, seek to further improve the safety and security of the multimodal movement of dangerous goods in Canada.
- Bill C-33 was introduced on November 17, 2022, and is expected to complete its second reading in the House of Commons when the House of Commons resumes.