Canada unleashes 'landmark' bill C5 as liberals and conservatives unite to fast-track billion-dollar projects amid US trade war and internal tensions
One aims to eliminate internal trade barriers, allowing for freer movement of goods and labour between provinces.
The second, and more controversial, component allows the federal cabinet to fast-track infrastructure projects deemed in the 'national interest.'
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Canada's House of Commons passed Bill C‑5, also called the 'One Canadian Economy Act', on Friday evening(June 20), paving the way for major infrastructure projects to be fast-tracked as the country faces increasing economic pressure from the US. Prime Minister Mark Carney hailed the legislation as a cornerstone of Canada's economic strategy, saying, 'This is what makes us more independent from the United States, this is what's going to move us forward.' He defended the rapid passage of the bill, arguing that 'we are in a crisis,' pointing to struggling industrial cities like Sault Ste. Marie, Hamilton, and Windsor Introduced only two weeks earlier on June 6, the bill passed after just eight hours of committee review, thanks to Conservative support . It now moves to the Senate, which is expected to sit until June 27, leaving a tight window for it to become law before Canada Day.Because of their distinct focuses, the House Speaker ruled that two separate votes were required. The NDP and Bloc Québécois supported the first part but opposed the second.While the Canadian Chamber of Commerce praised the bill for 'rising to meet the moment' of the economic downturn, Indigenous leaders and environmental groups expressed concern.Critics argue the bill grants too much unchecked power to the federal cabinet and risks overriding constitutional Indigenous rights.The government amended the bill to ensure it no longer allows the cabinet to bypass the Indian Act. Carney further promised that a new Indigenous advisory council would oversee implementation and announced plans for full-day summits with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis leaders alongside key cabinet ministers.'This is a serious sign,' said Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Rebecca Alty, 'that we will honour our constitutional commitments.'Tensions between provinces are also simmering. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is advocating for a pipeline through British Columbia, but BC Premier David Eby warned there is no project proponent or funding, and emphasized BC's critical role in Canada's trade strategy.'The real work begins now,' Carney said, acknowledging the challenges and path ahead.
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First Post
an hour ago
- First Post
Canada's Carney seeks to mend ties, but Khalistan issue requires India to be cautious
Unlike other Canadian leaders such as Justin Trudeau and Pierre Poilievre, Prime Minister Mark Carney understands the importance of India as a country whose global influence is growing by the day, but Delhi must not lower its guard on the Khalistan issue read more In this season of geopolitical flare-ups, it seems at least one relationship is back on track. Years after the Justin Trudeau administration played sinister games with India trying to appease its domestic Khalistani vote bank, the India-Canada equation under newly elected Prime Minister Mark Carney is now becoming friendlier with each passing day. A good example of this was on display during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Canada last week for the G7 summit. Earlier India had downgraded its diplomatic ties with the country and had even recalled its diplomats after a controversy had broken out during the previous administration when then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had accused Indian agents of the assassination of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil. But now on the sidelines of the G7 summit, both PM Modi and Carney have not only agreed to the reinstatement of High Commissioners between India and Canada, but they have also decided to resume the long-stalled trade talks between the two countries. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD While speaking to media on the occasion of the G7 summit, PM Carney was all praises for PM Modi's leadership, calling his meeting with him a 'great honour' in addition to asserting how Modi has become a permanent invitee to the summit since the year 2018 and would also likely make an appearance at the next summit scheduled to be held in France. While the conciliatory notes extended by Carney towards India are a significant break from the past, what is also important to note is that the whole Canadian dispensation seems to be undergoing a shift of position towards India even on the much-controversial Khalistan issue as well. Around the same time that Carney and Modi held a meeting on the sidelines of the summit, an interesting report was released by the country's top intelligence agency, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS). While the report has again made an unsubstantiated assertion over alleged Indian foreign interference in Canada, in a big break from the Trudeau era, the report has also conclusively noted that Khalistanis are indeed using Canadian soil to 'promote, fundraise and plan' violent activities primarily targeting India since the mid-1980s. This has to be the first time that a Canadian agency has made such an open and honest admission of Canada serving as a base for the Khalistani terrorists for almost four decades now. Looking at the changing tunes in Canada, one really wonders if the future of India-Canada ties will be bright now onwards, with the biggest irritant of extending state support to Khalistanis by Canada a thing of the past? Well, the truth is that it will be a constant cost-benefit analysis that will determine Canada's attitude towards India in the long run, no matter how friendly and favourable the Carney government seems at the moment. One may say that unlike the Trudeau government, which was at the mercy of noted Khalistani Jagdeep Singh's New Democratic Party (NDP), this time the Liberal Party government faces no such compulsions. NDP is now a politically spent force and Jagmeet a practical nobody in the Canadian political scene, allowing Carney to dictate terms more freely. This explains why, for the first time, a Canadian intelligence report has so openly indicted the Khalistanis for targeting India using Canada as a base. The last time an attempt towards this was made, the Trudeau administration had made sure to redact those portions. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In addition to the reduced political dependence on the K-factor, Carney, unlike Trudeau, is a pragmatic leader who is choosing to see the big picture when it comes to the India-Canada relationship instead of pandering to the Khalistanis. This signalling was impossible to miss on the eve of the G7 summit when Khalistani groups were threatening to disrupt PM Modi's visit with charged-up protests taking place in Calgary, but Carney refused to budge to the threats and went ahead with his plans to host PM Modi. Carney's logic was simple: his predecessor had thrown an important diplomatic relationship to the wolves due to his political myopia, and G7 was a great opportunity to reset ties with India, a dynamic emerging economy. Maybe this is why Carney's dissociation with Khalistan was early to spot, as not even a single campaign rally of his had allowed the separatists to wield their flag or raise their cause. In comparison, opposition leader Pierre Poilievre had pandered fully to the Sikh separatists. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Unlike other Canadian leaders such as Trudeau and Poilievre, Carney understands the importance of India as a country whose global influence is growing each passing day. In a press query, he noted India's leadership on the world stage and called his meeting with PM Modi a 'foundational' necessary first step towards much-needed repair of bilateral ties. As per him, India is the fifth largest economy in the world and the most populous country, which is also central to the global economic flow by being at the heart of crucial supply chains. Carney's own recognition of India's economic significance was also driven by the diplomatic pressure that his administration faced from the other G7 countries. In an interview with a Canadian network, Vina Nadjibulla from the Asia-Pacific Foundation of Canada noted that there was a strong push from other countries to invite India to the G7 summit, leaving Canada with little choice. Now that Carney has finally embraced a friendlier approach towards India as a sign of his political maturity, Canada stands to benefit a lot from the relationship. India, after all, is Canada's tenth largest trading partner with an emerging market of 1.4 billion people for its agriculture, hi-tech and educational services offerings. There is also a two-million-strong Indian diaspora in Canada, of which the Khalistanis are just a small fringe. At a time when even big players in the West are looking to court India, Trudeau's alienation of India was a strategic suicide. It seems Carney for now has done a great job in mending the bridges. But will the Khalistan issue disappear from the Canadian political landscape and also become irrelevant in the India-Canada bilateral relationship? STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Well, hardly so because the Western countries, especially their deep states, have carefully nurtured the K-elements as an asset to balance a rising India. Whenever India will not follow their preferred course of diplomatic action, they will not take a moment to deploy the Khalistani separatists. On this matter, even Carney would not be any different from Trudeau. Not to forget that Khalistanis not only remain a strongly funded cause in Canada, but their activities to canvass support domestically are still continuing in the garb of freedom of speech even today. For now, the Canadian leadership seems to have understood the importance of India as a key partner, so we should make the most of it. But India's own efforts to keep the Khalistanis in check in the Western societies, including Canada, must go on without an iota of hesitancy. The author is a New Delhi-based commentator on geopolitics and foreign policy. She holds a PhD from the Department of International Relations, South Asian University. She tweets @TrulyMonica. The views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost's views. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
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Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Modi ji has mastered the art of slogans, not solutions: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi criticises 'Make in India'
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel The Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Saturday criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying that despite promises of a " Make in India " factory boom, manufacturing in the country is at a record low and youth unemployment is very questioned the effectiveness of the "Make in India" initiative, highlighting that manufacturing in the country has fallen to a record low of 14 per cent of the economy since also pointed to rising youth unemployment and a doubling of imports from China, accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of focusing on slogans rather than real a post on X, Rahul Gandhi shared a video and wrote, "Make in India" promised a factory boom. So why is manufacturing at record lows, youth unemployment at record highs, and why have imports from China more than doubled? Modi ji has mastered the art of slogans, not solutions. Since 2014, manufacturing has fallen to 14% of our economy."He highlighted the challenges faced by India's youth, sharing in a post that he met two talented young men, Shivam and Saif, in Nehru Place, New Delhi, who remain unable to fulfil their criticised the country's current economic model and said, "In Nehru Place, New Delhi, I met Shivam and Saif - bright, skilled, full of promise - yet denied the opportunity to fulfil it. The truth is stark: we assemble, we import, but we don't build. China profits."He said that Prime Minister Modi has no new ideas and has given up on growing India's added that even the important PLI scheme is being quietly called for big changes to help Indian producers with honest reforms and financial support, warning that if India doesn't build its industries, it will keep buying from other countries."With no new ideas, Modi ji has surrendered. Even the much-hyped PLI scheme is now being quietly rolled back. India needs a fundamental shift - one that empowers lakhs of producers through honest reforms and financial support. We must stop being a market for others. If we don't build here, we'll keep buying from those who do. The clock is ticking," the post readsThe Make in India initiative was launched by the Prime Minister in September 2014 as part of a wider set of nation-building initiatives.
