Bill C-648

SUMMARY

This enactment amends the Investment Canada Act to

(a) require the responsible Minister to consult with, and organize conferences of, representatives of industry and labour, provincial and local authorities and other interested persons in exercising his or her powers and performing his or her duties under this Act;

(b) set the threshold for mandatory ministerial review of investments by non-Canadians at 100 million dollars;

(c) require the Director of Investments to refer to the responsible Minister for the purposes of an investment review any representations submitted to the Director by communities, trade unions, employees and other persons likely to be affected by the investment;

(d) require the non-Canadian investor to provide the Director of Investments with a surety that may be forfeited if the non-Canadian investor fails to satisfactorily complete all of the undertakings he or she has made to the Government of Canada in connection with the investment;

(e) require the Minister, in performing an investment review, to take into account the contribution of the investment to community advancement, and its effect on contractual terms applicable to employees and retirees and to undertakings in connection with capital investment by other parties;

(f) eliminate the prohibition against the communication of information related to an investment that is under review;

(g) provide for the review, by the Investment Review Branch of the Department of Industry, of all investments that have been implemented in accordance with this Act; and

(h) extend the timeline for the Minister to perform an investment review from 45 to 90 days.