Lloyd's Maritime and Commercial Law Quarterly
TRANSPORTATION DEREGULATION IN THE CANADIAN MARITIME INDUSTRY
Peter G. Cathcart*
Background
In 1985, the Federal Government published a White Paper entitled Freedom to Move, setting forth its policy on the deregulation of the transportation industry in Canada. The policy was given legislative sanction in the National Transportation Act (“the NTA”), which came into effect on 1 January 1988. The NTA affects all modes of transportation, including marine, but the Act itself will have little direct effect on the majority of marine operations in Canada.
As will be indicated in this article, there is a relative ease of entry into the Canadian marine industry, particularly for Canadian-built vessels, and little regulation with respect to licences to operate, tariffs and other matters that are common to the rail, truck and air sectors. The (House of Commons) Standing Committee on Transport report on Freedom to Move recognized this fact and found:
Of all the modes of transport in Canada, marine transportation has been the least regulated. Not surprisingly, therefore, the Committee heard less testimony about the effects of the proposed deregulation of marine transportation as set out in Freedom to Move than it did about any of the other modes. It seemed to the Committee that this was because the marine industry would not be significantly affected by the regulatory reform that is proposed.1
However, 1987 did see major changes in Canadian marine legislation, arising in large part from the philosophy inherent in Freedom to Move. In addition to the NTA, the changes affected other statutes comprising the legislative framework in which shippers and shipowners operate. They include: the Canada Shipping Act; the Coasting Trade and Commercial Marine Activities Act; and the Shipping Conferences Exemption Act 1987. These statutes will be examined individually.
Canada Shipping Act
Entry into the marine industry in Canada is governed by the Canada Shipping Act (“the CSA”)2 and the Coasting Trade and Commercial Marine Activities Act (Bill C-52 or the Coasting Act: discussed below).3
The CSA, constituting some 700 sections, deals with the day-to-day operation of
* Q.C., Senior Partner, McMillan, Binch, Toronto.
1. Canada, H.C., Standing Committee on Transport, Sixth Report Freedom to Move (18 December 1985), p. 36.
2. R.S.C. 1970, c. S-9.
3. Bill C-52, 2nd Sess., 33rd Parliament, 1986–87.
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