Ottawa’s Bill S-7 would amend 31 laws at once to cut red tape, with officials pegging savings at $264 million over 10 years

The federal government has introduced a bill that would amend 31 laws at once in a bid to cut regulatory red tape across 11 departments and agencies, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat said Wednesday. Bill S-7, the Cutting Red Tape for All Canadians Act, received first reading in the Senate on Oct. 7, according to LEGISinfo, Parliament’s bill-tracking service. The government says the changes address “irritants and obstacles identified by stakeholders” and are expected to save Canadians and businesses time and money while keeping health, safety and environmental protections in place.

Senior officials briefing reporters said the government estimates the changes could produce $264 million in savings over 10 years for the government and the private sector, CBC News reported. They also said only 11 of the 500 measures are being addressed in this bill, noting that not every red tape proposal needs a change in legislation. The bill follows a cross-departmental review of all federal regulations that Prime Minister Mark Carney ordered in July 2025.

“Since launching the Red Tape Review last year, we have made progress in removing unnecessary barriers, updating outdated rules and making government work better for Canadians,” Treasury Board President Shafqat Ali said in a statement. “Today’s legislation builds on that work and supports a more modern, efficient and competitive regulatory system.” The government says it intends to introduce new legislation on a recurring basis to keep removing barriers as they emerge.

The proposed changes range widely, according to a government backgrounder. For farmers, the bill would remove more than 160 outdated farm marketing rules, let provincial marketing boards update fees through a simpler process, make farm cash advance programs more efficient and add flexibility to agricultural loans. It would also let regulations recognize trusted foreign regulatory systems for feeds, fertilizers, seeds and veterinary biologics, which Ottawa says would speed up pre-market assessments, and drop the mandatory retirement age for appointed members of farm product agencies and the Canadian Dairy Commission.

For business more broadly, the bill would create simpler bankruptcy and restructuring procedures tailored to small businesses, which the backgrounder says would cut costs, improve recoveries for creditors and give viable firms a better chance to survive. In telecommunications, low-risk wireless devices would move from certification to a simpler registration process, and the industry minister could issue radio authorizations for devices installed on spacecraft shared with foreign entities, a change aimed at helping smaller companies get access to space.

Transport and energy measures are also in the package. The bill would exclude pumped storage reservoirs from the definition of navigable water, which the government says would speed up hydro storage projects, let the transport minister issue interim zoning orders to protect airport operations, and simplify renewals of regulatory exemptions for railway companies. Other changes would let the Canada Border Services Agency grant temporary exemptions to test new technologies with industry, and would add administrative monetary penalties under the Explosives Act and for pollution prevention provisions of the Fisheries Act.

The bill builds on the Red Tape Review launched on July 9, 2025, which asked departments to examine their regulations, remove duplication, streamline permitting and licensing, and modernize outdated requirements. Departments have since published progress reports. Treasury Board President Ali said in September of last year that the exercise had turned up hundreds of ways to cut red tape, CBC reported.

Business groups have long pressed for faster action. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business estimates in its Canada’s Red Tape Report that regulation from all three levels of government cost businesses $51.5 billion in 2024, of which just under $18 billion was red tape, and that the average small business owner lost the equivalent of 32 business days to it. The group distinguishes between regulation that delivers health, safety and environmental benefits and rules that are excessive.

Sources: Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat news release (Oct. 7, 2026); Treasury Board backgrounder: Cutting Red Tape for all Canadians Act; CBC News (Oct. 7, 2026); LEGISinfo: Bill S-7 (45-1); Government of Canada: Red Tape Review; CFIB: Canada’s Red Tape Report.