July 8, 2026
The Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, P.C., M.P.
President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade, Intergovernmental Affairs, Internal Trade and One Canadian Economy
55 Metcalfe Street
Ottawa, Ontario, K1P 6L5
(submitted via email to engagement@pco-bcp.gc.ca)
Dear Minister LeBlanc,
Thank you for providing the opportunity to comment on the federal government’s “Getting Major Projects Built in Canada — Discussion Paper on Proposed Legislative, Regulatory, and Policy Reforms” (hereafter, “Discussion Paper”).
The Business Council of Alberta (BCA) is Alberta’s leading business coalition, representing CEOs from across the province’s diverse industries. We offer pragmatic, non-partisan solutions to improve Canada’s investment climate and prosperity. Our members represent the majority of Alberta’s private sector investment, job creation, exports, and research and development.
Investments in major projects represent billions of dollars in potential economic stimulus. This means more Canadian jobs, higher wages, improved competitiveness, better services, and, importantly, a greater national capacity to respond to external economic and geopolitical threats. By making Canada’s project review system our competitive advantage, we can pave the way toward growing our economic and social prosperity, and our national self-reliance.
That’s why, in March, BCA released Restoring Confidence in Major Project Reviews Part I and Part II as part of our From Barriers to Breakthroughs initiative. Together, these reports propose a framework for amending the Impact Assessment Act (IAA) and Canadian Energy Regulator Act (CER Act) to get more projects built at pace. We believe the detailed recommendations in these reports provide the template for advancing our shared project review reform goals.
For this reason, BCA is very pleased to see that many of those policy recommendations have been directionally and substantially reflected in the Discussion Paper. We are particularly glad to see a commitment to faster review timelines and a recognition that the appropriate lifecycle regulators are best positioned to review projects under their own legislation.
BCA is committed to working closely with your government as it prepares to enact these and other changes to Canada’s system of project reviews. Our goal is to advance meaningful, durable changes that instill confidence in the business community to invest in Canada.
This is especially important given how much major project assessment legislation has already changed over the last decade. We need to create a stable, predictable review and permitting system that businesses can count on for years to come. This is not about cutting corners on environmental, social, safety, or Indigenous cultural protections. Rather, it is about designing a review process that achieves these important goals while maximizing the nation-building potential of game-changing investments in major project developments.
To these ends, the Appendix attached to this letter contains a series of questions about the content of the Discussion Paper that, if answered, can provide the business community with more clarity about the details of the government’s proposals. We also provide our high-level policy recommendations to assist the government in achieving its broad policy objectives.
We would also like to thank senior officials from your ministry, the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC), and the Major Projects Office for making themselves available to answer our questions, accept our input, and have candid, meaningful conversations in the interest of advancing our shared policy objectives.
BCA appreciates the opportunity to participate in this consultation and welcomes continued engagement as reforms are considered.
Sincerely,
Adam Legge
President, Business Council of Alberta
cc: Hon. Tim Hodgson, P.C., M.P., Minister of Energy and Natural Resources
Corey Hogan, M.P., Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources
Claude Guay, M.P., Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources
Michael Sabia, Clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary to the Cabinet
Greg Orencsak, Deputy Minister, Natural Resources Canada
Eamonn McGuinty, Chief of Staff, Natural Resources Canada
Brandan Rowe, Chief of Staff, Intergovernmental Affairs
Dawn Farrell, Chief Executive Officer, Major Projects Office
Terence Hubbard, President, Impact Assessment Agency of Canada
Peter Feldberg, Vice President, Regulatory Affairs, Major Projects Office