Canada Parliament has adopted a remarkable bill that gives the government of Prime Minister Mark Carney for new powers to quickly track major national projects.
The Canadian Economy Act was passed by the Senate on Thursday and allows the cabinet to optimize the processes of approval and to bypass certain provisions of federal laws on projects that can strengthen the economy.
Proponents say the legislation is a critical step in reducing Canada's dependence on the United States against the background of trade tensions caused by President Donald Trump's rates.
But this is criticized by indigenous groups and environmental activists who say that acceleration of projects can suffocate opposition voices.
Legislation does not determine what will be builtBut before that, the Prime Minister had signaled that it could be used to build energy corridors, such as pipelines and electrical networks and expansion of mines and ports.
The act will “remove commercial barriers, accelerate projects to build a nation, and unfold economic growth, with the indigenous partnership at the center of this growth,” Carney said last week.
The government said the law would reduce the barriers for domestic trade and mobility of labor. It will also give government healthy powers to approve projects “that are in national interest.”
This has worried local leaders who are afraid that they will not be adequately consulted before such projects were approved.
The adoption of the bill in the law is a significant victory for Carney and supports the promise of elections to remove inter -law barriers until Canada's day on July 1.
Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminum and its automotive sector. Carney was a campaign strongly to strengthen the country's economy to counteract the US tariff threats with which Canada makes the bigger part of its trade.
Paul Prosper, Senator of Nova Scotia, belonging to the Mi'kmaq root group, is unsuccessfully trying to insert a change that requires consent from the root groups before a project continues.
He criticizes the speed at which the legislation was accepted, stating that rights holders could be consulted by “investing a few more months”.
He said he supported development, but the law could allow governmental and industrial leaders to ignore the rights of the indigenous population.
“Nobody wants to watch our children grow in the collection without access to clean drinking water, there is no opportunity for well -paid jobs and there is no support for our patients and dying. However, we do not want success and progress to appear on the back of the indigenous population,” he said in the Senate, quoted by CBC.
However, supporter of the bill, Senator Hasan Yussuf said it was a response to an “emergency and immediate crisis” in comments reported by CBC.
The legislation states that the government will consult the indigenous population before quickly tracking a project.