CANADA Law and Practice Contributed by: Claudia Feldkamp and Chris Pigott, Fasken
tain payments made to governments in Canada and abroad. Its aim is to increase transparency and deter corruption in the oil, gas and mining space. (Quebec has similar legislation – namely, the Act Respecting Transparency Measures in the Mining, Oil and Gas Industries.) Under the ESTMA, all reporting companies are required to report on an annual basis all payments made to governments in Canada and abroad. This legis - lation is aligned with similar legislation in the EU and the UK. In June 2024, the federal government passed amendments to the Competition Act to explic - itly prohibit deceptive environmental claims (ie, “greenwashing” ). The Competition Act now includes provisions that require environ - mental claims to be based on “adequate and proper tests” . These amendments underscore a broader concern that the ESG information in sustainability reports may not always be reliable or substantiated. 2.2.7 Soft Law on Business and Human Rights Responsible Business Conduct Abroad Strategy As mentioned in 1.1 Business and Human Rights: A Summary and 2.2.7 Soft Law on Business and Human Rights , in 2022, Canada introduced the 2022 RBC Strategy. The 2022 RBC Strategy contains measures to support Canadian companies in integrating leading responsible business practices and to position Canada to advance policies and practices within the international responsible business conduct ecosystem. The 2022 RBC Strategy builds on earlier govern - ment strategies, which were then framed as cor - porate social responsibility initiatives. The stated goal of the 2022 RBC Strategy is to ensure that
“Canadian companies recognise the value of and implement responsible business practices, meeting or exceeding widely recognised inter- national standards, guidelines and frameworks” . The 2022 RBC Strategy is based on three pillars: • building awareness about responsible busi - ness conduct and its value to Canadian busi - nesses; • increasing corporate uptake of due diligence practice and ensuring accountability – this includes facilitating access to remedy and dispute resolution through Canada’s Nation Contact Point (NCP) and the CORE (see 4.3 Grievance Mechanisms ); and • positioning Canada to contribute to the global “ecosystem” of responsible business conduct norms. The 2022 RBC Strategy clearly communicates the Canadian government’s expectation for Canadian businesses to not only comply with local laws of the states in which they operate, but to adopt internationally recognised best practices and internationally respected guide - lines on responsible business conduct (eg, the UNGPs and the OECD Guidelines). The 2022 RBC Strategy does not mandate human rights and environmental due diligence and largely takes a voluntary approach to the implementation by Canadian companies of international responsible business conduct (and business and human rights) standards, but it does advance due diligence as a core compo - nent of Canada’s approach to responsible busi - ness conduct. Canadian companies are expect - ed to take steps towards fulfilling due diligence responsibilities in line with the UNGPs. However, much of this framework remains voluntary.
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