May 3, 2026

Welcome to Letters from CAMP, a newsletter on anti-monopoly activity in Canada and abroad, brought to you by the Canadian Anti-Monopoly Project. In this instalment we have:

• Spring Economic Update talks a good game on competition but we’re looking for more
• Why competition, not privatization, is the path forward for lower airfares in Canada
• CAMP and our allies get a word into Canada’s National Anti-Fraud Strategy consultation

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Now let’s dive in.

Spring Economic Update’s Big Font, Low-Calorie Approach to Competition

Like so many think tanks, we engage in the time-honoured tradition of opening government announcements and slamming Ctrl + F for watchwords of choice like “competition” and “monopolies.” Though we’re familiar with the heartbreak of these efforts delivering “Not found,” this week’s Spring Economic Update was different, with an entire heading dedicated to Driving Productivity and Affordability Through Competition. A good start if we’ve ever seen one. But after properly digging in, now years into a cost-of-living crunch only set to worsen in the coming months, the federal government is still wrapping its head around how to walk the walk on competition.

First, what was under this august title? A commitment to address red tape that restricts competition, a recap of already ongoing efforts in the telecoms sector, and a recap of already ongoing efforts in the banking sector, and mention of a Whole of Government approach to competition. The Whole of Government approach is welcome news, echoing the efforts of the Biden Administration and recommendations of CAMP allies Vass Bednar and Denise Hearn. All that’s missing is a Whole of Government approach. While more is promised “in the coming months,” it’s an unfortunate sign that we’re still at this stage of the process.

So, what should this announcement have included? New resources for the Competition Bureau and a new mandate for the next Commissioner of Competition to focus their efforts on driving affordability. Direction to the CRTC to use its powers to support independent competitors, instead of slowly unwinding the system as it’s currently doing. New support for financing alternative infrastructure in key agricultural markets like processing, distribution, and wholesale. Stronger penalties for, oh we don’t know, continuing to lie to consumers about the products they’re purchasing. Going beyond whole of government, we should have a whole of governments approach that enlists provinces and municipalities in targeting the issues they’re best suited for, like Manitoba’s ongoing fight to unleash grocery competition.

Taking a step back, while the lack of detail is frustrating, it is an important win that the federal government has the right diagnosis for the problems facing Canadians today. Now we need to do the hard work of filling in the detail under the headline.

📰 CAMP in the News 📰

• ​How to address the demand for online gambling (Shaye Ganam)
• ​Rogers Becomes a Tire Fire Through Customer Complaints and Job Cuts (Do Not Pass Go)

How to (Actually) Fix Flying in Canada

In the chatter following the Spring Economic Update, one idea caught the imagination of the Canadian commentariat: the possible privatization of Canadian airports. The idea of selling off these public assets is not a new one. The previous government mulled the same decision during the Morneau era, and the topic periodically rears its head in Canada’s policy discussion. While in this round the move is primarily pitched to fund Canada’s new Sovereign Wealth… Fund, it’s worth digging into the complementary claim that it would reduce prices for air travelers.

Brace yourselves, but CAMP’s position is that private capital works best when exposed to competition. Outside of Canada’s largest cities – Toronto and Montreal – Canadian cities do not have meaningful airport competition. The premise of privatization lowering costs is that airports will be run more efficiently and pass those savings on to consumers. But businesses are in the business of making money, and we depend on competition to channel that to positive outcomes. Without meaningful competition, any gains will go to shareholders first, not travelers.

CAMP knows how Canada can actually lower the cost of flying and more competition rather than a fire sale is the answer. We can change the fees that fund our air travel infrastructure to support regional and low-cost carriers, including having the federal government stop collecting rent from airports as it did during the pandemic. We can also bring in foreign players who invest in Canadian operations and adhere to our transportation safety standards. Finally, we can create a system that offers utility service to regions reliant on dependable air travel service. Changing owners doesn’t matter when the players on the field are the same. If Canadians want cheaper flights, we need to create the conditions for competition.

📚 What We’re Reading 📚

• Goff and Fitz-Gerald, Canada’s USMCA advisory panel is a smart move – but it’s missing the economy that now matters most (The Globe and Mail)
• Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy, Gen(Z)AI | Youth Voices, AI Futures​
• Raman, Tax break to help business owners sell to employees to be made permanent (The Globe and Mail)

Axe the Scam Tax

Another Easter egg in the Spring Economic Update was mention of the government’s national anti-fraud strategy, the public consultation for which wrapped up this week. Each year, online fraud and scams affect tens of thousands of Canadians, costing us a reported $700 million and with a likely much higher price tag given the level of underreporting. In response, the federal government says it wants to increase resources for combatting these scams and to introduce regulation that imposes duties on the payment processors, telecoms, and online platforms who each have a role to play in stopping the spread of scams.

​CAMP’s submission to the consultation follows the release of our World of Scams report focusing on the role of the advertising platforms run by Google and Meta in facilitating this tidal wave of scammers. We’re in good company. Just this week, a new report out from GoodBot and Check my Ads contributes Canadian-specific research alongside robust policy recommendations for addressing Canada’s scam tax. The authors detail the range of scams lurking on advertising platforms, and the tactics tech companies use to resist regulation and capture industry associations while profiting from the scammers on their platforms.

As the government gets serious about scams, we’re seeing commonalities emerge on a path toward a scam-free future. We need regulation to change the incentives that make it profitable for online platforms to turn a blind eye to scams. This means advertiser verification and access to ad libraries and APIs, meaningful fines for a lax approach to scam ads, and potentially even a new regulator. It should be in these companies’ interest to address the tsunami of scams on their platforms, but the sheer volume of fraudulent content online shows the current model isn’t up to snuff.

If you have any monopoly tips or stories you’d like to share, drop us a line at hello@antimonopoly.ca

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