Copyright 2011, Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Originally published in Blakes Bulletin on Competition, Antitrust & Foreign Investment, March 2011
Future policies under the Competition Act and the Investment Canada Act may be impacted by the outcome of the election; both statutes remain in full force and the review of pending transactions will continue.
On March 25, 2011, the House of Commons voted in favour of a non-confidence motion signalling the fall of the Conservative minority government. The ensuing federal election is now scheduled for May 2, 2011, and the outcome of the election may impact future policies under both the Competition Act and the Investment Canada Act.
Following the last election, the current federal government, led by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, ushered in wide-ranging statutory amendments to the Competition Act and the Investment Canada Act. The amendments to the Competition Act included substantial revisions to the merger review process and significant changes to the provisions dealing with agreements between competitors. Amendments to the Investment Canada Act included the introduction of a new national security review regime.
With the fall of the government last week, however, three other bills before the House of Commons proposing amendments to the Competition Act died. Included among them was Bill C-452, which proposed to confer on the Commissioner of Competition the power to initiate formal inquiries into entire industry sectors on a lower standard than is currently prescribed in the statute.
Moreover, for the past month, the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology has been holding hearings regarding the provisions governing foreign investment review under the Investment Canada Act, and at which the co-chair of Blakes Competition Group, Calvin Goldman, Q.C., participated. The Committee had been considering whether to recommend changes to the Act. With the fall of the government, the Committee may now be unable to complete its deliberations until Parliament resumes sitting.
Both the Competition Act and the Investment Canada Act remain in full force and will continue to be administered during the election campaign. However, it remains to be seen whether either of those statutes will become a major issue in the campaign and, if so, whether the outcome of the election will lead to any new policies under either review regime.
Blakes Competition, Antitrust & Foreign Investment Group intends to provide additional updates as developments concerning the Canadian federal election, and its impact on competition and foreign investment policy, continue to unfold.
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