Opinion piece published in The Hill Times on February 11, 2026.
The omnibus budget bill gives unprecedented power to federal ministers to exempt virtually any entity from all federal laws and regulations—except the Criminal Code.
Someone builds a dangerous new device and asks you to trust them and everyone else who will use it in the coming years. You don’t know who will get to use this device, or to what end. This information is provided on page 300 of a 600-page document. Deeply worried? So are we.
Introduced in Bill C-15, a budget-implementation legislation, that “device” is an unprecedented power given to federal ministers to exempt virtually any entity from all federal laws and regulations—except the Criminal Code. In other words, “no one is above the law”…unless a federal minister decides otherwise.
The federal government is trying to downplay concerns by comparing this extraordinary new power to the use of so-called “regulatory sandboxes.” Regulatory sandboxes are targeted, highly transparent, tightly controlled and temporary environments for testing new technology to better understand their implications without facing strict legal liability. They have been precisely designed this way in Canada, Europe, South America, and elsewhere to be used in specific areas of public policy such as fintech, vehicle safety, aeronautics, innovative legal services and privacy protection.
Alas, the federal government is not identifying a list of specific regulatory hurdles that are ill-adapted to a new set of technologies and can be waived to allow small-scale pilots. Instead, the government is giving itself the sweeping power to sideline almost all federal laws and regulations, including the Canada Labour Code, our two federal privacy laws, the Hazardous Products Act and the Explosives Act.
While Bill C-15’s new power is temporary—it has a six-year cap—it has none of the other essential characteristics of a regulatory sandbox, nor is it limited to innovation.
Far from creating a regulatory sandbox, the federal government is designing a potentially boundless desert where any person, company, or individual, private or public, of any size, in any industry, in any sector, could seek authorization to bypass federal laws in the name of “competitiveness” or “economic growth.
We are told not to worry because only projects that meet stated criteria could benefit from this unprecedented free pass. This is of little comfort when the criteria are so broad and vague that countless projects could be considered eligible—without any requirement to consult impacted stakeholders. Will this new power be used for high-risks areas such as nuclear energy, weapons, artificial intelligence, or carbon capture? Will it be used to waive immigration and refugee protections or workers rights? The answer could be all of the above, if a handful of ministers say so.
Bill C-15 undermines our democracy. The separation of powers is a fundamental principle that divides state authority into three branches. The legislative branch makes laws, the executive branch implements and enforces those laws, and the judicial branch interprets them and administers justice. This principle prevents any single branch from becoming too powerful, ensuring a system of checks and balances that prevents tyranny. As for the rule of law principle, it guarantees that everyone, including the government and powerful individuals, is subject to and accountable under the same publicly known, equally enforced and independently adjudicated laws.
Laws adopted by democratically elected officials should not be seen as an inconvenience. Some of them are the result of hundreds of years of advocacy, debate, and hard-won reform. While laws must be capable of adapting as values evolve and as new challenges emerge, they also need to remain grounded in collective experience and respect values that have long defined the social contract—such as justice, dignity, and fairness. Canada’s core fabric, including its economy, climate action, health and environment are all at risk if the laws that structure and protect them can so easily be set aside by the executive branch of government.
With nearly a century of combined experience, our organizations are accustomed to confronting abuses of state power and advocating for accountability. We are also well aware of the broad and deeply troubling trend in Canada of governments eroding the rule of law and the checks and balances that protect us all. But even we were stunned by Bill C-15.
Long ago, the people of Canada decided that a small group of people in a position of power should not make decisions behind closed doors that benefit the select few who have their ear. Division 5 of Bill C-15’s Part 5 directly threatens this fundamental principle. For the sake of our democracy, and for as many reasons as we have laws, this division must be removed from Bill C-15.
Geneviève Paul, executive director of the Quebec Environmental Law Center.
Anaïs Bussières McNicoll, director of the Fundamental Freedoms Program at the Canadian Civil Liberties Association.
