Former Shaw technicians in B.C. give strong strike mandate after Rogers merger raises job-loss fears
CBC
Nearly 300 former Shaw technicians absorbed by Rogers Communications Inc. during the companies’ merger have overwhelmingly voted to strike amid concerns over job security following recent layoffs and voluntary departures.
Bill C-56 is a positive step towards modernizing Canada's outdated competition law
September 21, 2023 - Today Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland tabled Bill C-56, the Affordable Housing and Groceries Act, following the government's announcement last week that they would be introducing interim amendments to the Canada's Competition Act. C-56 comes on the heels of yesterday's release of Innovation Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada's What We Heard Report, detailing the results of the government's consultation on Canada's weak competition law. Commentary from the Canadian public in that report lays out the situation plainly, pointing out "the ineffectiveness of the Act in preventing corporate monopolies and oligopolies, leading to challenges for Canadians such as higher costs, reduced choice, decreased innovation, and increased political power for large corporations."
"This is a welcome step and evidence that the government is ready to take reform of Canada's weak competition law seriously," said Keldon Bester, Executive Director of the Canadian Anti-Monopoly Project. "We let big business write our competition law four decades ago and the results have been as expected: high concentration, high prices, and nowhere for Canadians to turn. The government has engaged in a meaningful consultation process, and we are glad to see them moving quickly to address longstanding issues with our law. Opposition parties are also making important contributions to this policy dialogue, with Ryan Williams' Bill C-339 targeting the efficiencies defense for harmful mergers, and Jagmeet Singh's Bill C-352 proposing material reforms to the Competition Act."
Canadians are ready for stronger competition laws. Polling done earlier this year by advocacy groups OpenMedia and Ekō showed that 92% of Canadians believe that monopolies are driving up prices, and only 7% of Canadians believe our competition laws benefit consumers. Let's hope Parliament listens.
CAMP Statement on the NDP's proposed amendments to the Competition Act and the Competition Tribunal Act
September 19, 2023
Today the federal NDP released the text of their bill, C-352 or the Lowering Prices for Canadians Act, aiming to reform Canada's Competition Act and Competition Act. Highlights of the proposed legislation include:
- Giving the Competition Bureau the ability to study and report on competition issues in markets
- Introducing structural presumptions against mergers in already concentrated markets
- Expanding abuse of dominance provisions to deter anticompetitive conduct by dominant corporations
In response, the Canadian Anti-Monopoly Project released the following statement.
"It is very encouraging to see the NDP propose such a strong set of reforms to Canada's competition laws," said Keldon Bester, Executive Director of the Canadian Anti-Monopoly Project. "The NDP are proposing comprehensive reforms to our law that will help deter harmful mergers and anticompetitive conduct in our economy. No party has a monopoly on building an effective competition law for Canadians, and we appreciate the NDP's contribution. We are glad to see political parties competing to make life more affordable for Canadians."
Trudeau Takes Aim at Corporate Canada as Inflation Sinks His Popularity
Yahoo! News
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s proposed reforms to competition law are being welcomed by some advocates as a step toward making Canada’s corporate sector more competitive. Whether his move will quell voters’ frustration about prices is another matter.
“We’re not going to wake up tomorrow to a capitalist paradise, but these are important fixes to some of the problems that have been in our law for a long time.”
CAMP Statement on the Government's Proposed Amendments to the Competition Act
September 14, 2023
Today the Prime Minister announced the government’s intention to introduce material amendments to the Competition Act to help address the ongoing cost of living crisis facing Canadians. If passed, the amendments would:
- Allow the Competition Bureau to conduct actual market studies by giving them the power to compel information rather than rely on the good will of Canada’s largest corporations
- Remove the efficiencies defense to mergers that allows harms to Canadians to be traded off for alleged cost savings
- Strengthen the Competition Bureau’s ability to pursue agreements that harm competition, including restrictive covenants such as those recently uncovered by the Halifax Examiner
In response, the Canadian Anti-Monopoly Project released the following statement.
“The amendments proposed today are an excellent step towards protecting the future of competition in Canada,” said Keldon Bester, Executive Director of the Canadian Anti-Monopoly Project. “By strengthening our merger law, giving the Competition Bureau the power to truly study the state of competition in markets, and enhance the ability to stop agreements that harm competition, the government lays the foundation for a more competitive Canada. Though there is still work to be done, this is a great start to modernizing Canada’s competition laws to deliver fair competition to Canadians.”
CAMP's submission to the Department of Finance consultation on the RBC-HSBC Canada merger
July 7, 2023 - A competitive banking sector is the bedrock of a free, fair and democratic economy, responsible for safekeeping the savings of Canadians, providing pathways to home ownership, and opportunities for entrepreneurs to start and grow their businesses. The acquisition of HSBC Canada by RBC would remove an aggressive competitor and further entrench an incumbent in Canada’s oligopoly banking market.
In its submission to the Department of Finance’s consultation on the proposed acquisition, CAMP stresses three points of opposition:
- Canadians are seeing record mortgage payment increases as more borrowers refinance in a higher interest rate environment. In this economic climate, the loss of HSBC Canada, an aggressive and consistent competitor in the residential mortgage space, would worsen the ongoing housing affordability crisis.
- Small businesses, still recovering from the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, depend on a competitive banking market to operate and expand their businesses. Feedback from the small business community in Canada shows a lack of competition in Canada’s concentrated banking market, a situation that will only intensify with the removal of HSBC Canada.
- Canada’s permissive merger enforcement framework alone cannot be relied upon to protect competition absent intervention on the part of the Minister of Finance
Amid a cost of living crisis and persistent economic uncertainty, the Minister of Finance has an opportunity to protect Canadians by protecting competition in the banking sector.
Read the full submission here.