CRFA's Federal Lobbyists
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Joyce Reynolds Executive Vice President, Government Affairs T: 1-800-387-5649 ext. 4219. E: jreynolds@crfa.ca |
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Justin Taylor Vice President, Labour and Supply T: 1-800-387-5649 ext. 4214 E: jtaylor@crfa.ca |
How to reduce red tape today and tomorrow
(Mar. 18/11) After members identified red tape and bureaucracy as a major problem, CRFA applauded the establishment of a federal Red Tape Reduction Commission in mid-January. In March, CRFA shared red tape issues impacting restaurants with Commission Chair, Hon. Ron Moore, Minister of State (Small Business and Tourism) and other Commission members. (Click here (PDF) to read Minister Moore’s letter to CRFA, pledging to work with us on initiatives moving forward.)
Issues we discussed include:
- inconsistent program administration from region to region e.g. the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) Program, where Service Canada can reject Labour Market Opinion applications that meet all program criteria at its discretion;
- laborious paperwork that often requires accountants or other outside expertise e.g. G20 compensation forms and Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) surveys;
- completing the same or similar forms multiple times – a positive example that can be applied across Canada is the federal government’s agreement with Nova Scotia that allows operators to use the same process for remitting Workers Compensation Board (WCB) payments and making Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Employment Insurance (EI) contributions;
- regulations incompatible with local requirements and regulatory bodies, e.g. where provinces prohibit expiry dates on gift cards but the CRA insists on write-offs;
- lack of federal standards on supply chain issues resulting in unwieldy provincial or municipal regulations directed at restaurants instead of food sources, e.g. trans fat;
- Food and Drug Regulations that make it difficult for restaurants to communicate the healthy attributes of their menu offerings; and
- rules that force restaurants to use superfluous menu descriptors not understood by consumers.
In addition to addressing the current administrative burden, government must commit to an ongoing red tape review – not just a one-off process. CRFA emphasized that government must continuously measure the red tape burden and discourage new regulations that intensify it. We pushed them to ensure the regulatory process considers industry innovation and keeps up with technological change.
Tell us what you think
What unnecessary federal regulations irritate you? Share them with CRFA at redtape@crfa.ca.
Until March 31, participate in the government’s online consultation process at www.reduceredtape.gc.ca.