New Legal Resources: Unpacking Ontario’s Bill 5 Implementation

Access our new legal resources

Ontario is moving ahead with implementing Bill 5. We have drafted three briefing notes to help you understand these changes: 

1. Upholding the rule of law – Responding to Ontario’s Proposed Regulation to Designate Special Economic Zones Criteria
   

   Ontario’s proposed regulation setting out criteria to designate ‘Special Economic Zones’ grants the government highly discretionary power to override legal safeguards that are key to protecting Indigenous rights, nature, and the public interest.

2. Respecting Indigenous Cultural Sovereignty – Responding to Ontario’s Proposed Regulation to Exempt Sites from Archaeological Assessment
   

   Ontario’s proposed regulation to exempt projects from undergoing archaeological assessment threatens the protection of cultural heritage, jeopardizing Indigenous cultural sovereignty and evading the Crown’s constitutional duty to consult.

3. Protecting Biodiversity and Environmental Rights – Responding to Ontario’s proposals under the Species Conservation Act, 2025
   
   Ontario’s proposed regulations and guidelines under the new Species Conservation Act, 2025 would further weaken the protection of species at risk and their habitats, and remove the public’s right to have a say in decisions that will have serious ecological impacts.

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While the province’s formal public comment period is now closed, we encourage you to keep up the pressure in our call to repeal Bill 5. You are welcome our briefing notes, below, and endorse our concerns and recommendations in your comments to your elected officials.