Canada's New Government Tables Proposed First-of-its-Kind Policy Direction on Telecommunications to CRTC Calling for Greater Reliance on Market ForcesOTTAWA, June 13, 2006 — The Honourable Maxime Bernier, Minister of Industry, today tabled in Parliament a proposed policy direction to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC). It is the first time since the adoption of the Telecommunications Act that such a policy direction has been issued to the CRTC. This is the first step in the government's plan to issue a formal policy direction to the CRTC.
"Tabling this document signals the government's intention to direct the CRTC to rely on market forces to the maximum extent feasible under the Telecommunications Act and regulate — where there is still a need to do so — in a manner that interferes with market forces to the minimum extent necessary," said Minister Bernier. "All Canadian consumers will benefit from a stronger competitive environment that will bring greater choice and even lower prices and better services."
A policy direction is a tool available to the government through the Telecommunications Act to provide policy guidance to the CRTC on how it should exercise its regulatory mandate. The document tabled today would direct the CRTC to take a more market-based approach to implementing the Act. The proposed policy direction also responds in part to the recent recommendations by the Telecommunications Policy Review Panel, which called on the government to issue such a direction to the CRTC as soon as possible.
"It is a significant step forward in making Canada's telecommunications regulatory system more modern, flexible and efficient," added Minister Bernier. "We want to ensure that Canada's telecommunications industry is internationally competitive and successful and is shaped to best support our ever-evolving and rapidly changing telecommunications needs."
On March 22, 2006, the Telecommunications Policy Review Panel (the Panel) publicly released its final report, which contained over 120 recommendations aimed at improving Canada's telecommunications policy and regulatory framework and ensuring that Canada has a strong, internationally competitive telecommunications industry.
"The Panel noted that some of the policy objectives set out in the Telecommunications Act have been interpreted in contradictory ways over the years," said Minister Bernier. "This initiative will help clarify the meaning of these objectives when they are debated again in the regulatory proceedings of the CRTC," added Minister Bernier.
The text of the policy direction can be found in the attached backgrounder and will be published shortly in the Canada Gazette — Part I for public comment. The wording of the policy direction will be reviewed in light of comments and submissions received through the Gazette process and through parliamentary debate. Following this process, the policy direction will be finalized through an order-in-council and then sent to the CRTC for implementation.
For more information, please contact:
Isabelle Fontaine
Office of the Honourable
Maxime Bernier
Minister of Industry
(613) 995-9001
Media Relations
Industry Canada
(613) 943-2502
Backgrounder
Proposed Policy Direction to the CRTC
Under the Telecommunications Act, the government has the authority to issue a policy direction to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) on broad policy matters with respect to the telecommunications policy objectives set out in the Act.
Listed below is the exact text of the proposed policy direction that was tabled in Parliament today and which will be published shortly in the Canada Gazette — Part I:
Proposed
Order under section 8 of the Telecommunications Act — Policy Direction to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
1. In exercising its powers and performing its duties under the Telecommunications Act, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission shall interpret and implement the Canadian telecommunications policy objectives set out in section 7, and particularly in paragraphs 7(c) and (f), in accordance with the following principles:
(a) the CRTC should:
(i) rely on market forces to the maximum extent feasible as the means of achieving the telecommunications policy objectives; and
(ii) when relying on regulation, use measures that are efficient and proportionate to their purpose and that interfere with the operation of competitive market forces to the minimum extent necessary to meet the policy objectives;
(b) when it is determined that regulatory measures are required, then that regulatory measure should satisfy the following criteria:
(i) each regulatory measure should specify the telecommunications policy objective that is advanced by the measure and demonstrate compliance with this policy direction,
(ii) economic regulation, when required, should neither deter efficient competitive entry nor promote inefficient entry,
(iii) regulatory measures designed to advance non-economic objectives of regulation should, to the greatest extent possible, be implemented in a symmetrical and competitively neutral manner, and
(iv) interconnection arrangements and access regimes, including access to buildings, in-building wiring and support structures, should, to the greatest extent possible, be technologically and competitively neutral, in order to enable competition from new technologies and not to artificially favour either Canadian carriers or resellers;
(c) in order to promote efficient, informed and timely operations the Commission should adopt the following operational practices:
(i) provide for maximum efficiency in regulation by using only tariff approval measures that are as minimally intrusive and as minimally onerous as possible,
(ii) with a view to providing increased incentives for innovation, investment in and construction of competing telecommunications network facilities, conduct a review of its regulatory framework regarding mandated access to wholesale services, in order to determine the extent to which mandated access to wholesale services that are not essential services should be phased out and the appropriate pricing of mandated services to encourage investment and innovation in network infrastructure,
(iii) maintain and publish service performance standards for the various forms of regulatory proceedings it undertakes to ensure that regulatory measures, when required, are efficient, and
(iv) continue to explore and implement new approaches for streamlining its regulatory process to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of regulatory measures.
2. This Order comes into force on the day on which it is registered.
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