Summary#

Bill 56, the Building a More Competitive Economy Act, 2025, is an enacted Ontario law that amends several existing laws; it does not create a new agency. Its stated goal is to improve Ontario’s competitiveness, support workers and businesses, and streamline permits and approvals. The schedules have different start dates, and some require a later order to take effect.

• Drinking water plans: The amendments limit which policies may address certain activities identified as significant threats to drinking water. For some plan amendments, they also set a 120-day deadline for the Minister to act, after which the amendments may be deemed approved.
• Forests and species: Forest management plans may cover more than one management unit, and the requirement for annual ministerial approval before harvesting is repealed when that change takes effect. The law also creates an exception to some species protections for specified forest operations carried out under approved plans.
• Automated speed enforcement and school signs: The law repeals the Highway Traffic Act part authorizing automated speed enforcement. Separately, the Minister may direct a municipality to install school-zone signs; if it does not comply, the Minister may install them.
• Health professions: Regulations may allow prescribed people to do certain work or use certain professional titles. New, limited registration rules also apply to applicants with equivalent out-of-province certificates at Colleges prescribed by regulation.
• Labour mobility: People deemed certified in Ontario under the labour-mobility law are generally treated as certified for that period, with the rights and duties that go with certification. The law also makes technical and related changes to other statutes.

What it means for you#

• Municipalities: A municipality must install school-zone signs if directed by the Minister and provide information the Minister requests for an installation. If it does not comply, the Minister may enter a municipal highway and install the signs, despite other approval or permit requirements. The bill does not say who pays for installation.
• Drivers and speed-enforcement suppliers: The law repeals the statutory authority for automated speed-enforcement systems under Part XIV.1. It also bars most claims against municipalities, the Crown and related people over the resulting breach or ending of supplier contracts. Judicial review and constitutional claims are excepted from that bar; proceedings brought by the Crown are not barred.
• Forest licence and permit holders: Once the relevant changes are in force, a forest plan may cover multiple management units, and the annual ministerial approval before harvesting is removed. The law still refers to harvesting under a licence or permit. Stop-work powers and certain penalties are extended to permits as well as licences.
• People working in regulated health professions: Some changes only give the Minister power to make regulations; they do not themselves name who is exempt or authorize a particular person to practise. For applicants at prescribed health Colleges with equivalent out-of-province certificates, the College generally cannot require material additional training, experience, examinations or assessments. The Registrar must register or refuse and refer the application within two business days. An interim suspension can be ordered in specified circumstances.
• People deemed certified through labour mobility: They generally receive the rights and duties of certification during the deemed-certification period, but do not have to meet application requirements during that period and are not entitled to renewal or extension. Regulations may change or create exceptions to these rules.
• People and organizations involved in source protection: Prescribed decision-makers must follow the relevant plan policy when issuing, creating or amending a prescribed instrument. If an existing instrument is covered by a policy, its decision-maker must review it and amend it if they determine an amendment is needed. The law does not itself require every instrument to be changed.

Money#

No publicly available information.

• The materials give no estimate of public costs, savings, lost automated-enforcement revenue, or municipal costs.
• The law requires municipalities to install signs when directed, and may require source protection authorities or decision-makers to review plans or instruments. No staffing or cost estimates are provided.

What is unclear#

• Which provisions have taken effect: schedules have different commencement rules, and some start only on a date set by a later order. The supplied material does not give all relevant orders.
• Which people may receive health-profession exemptions, and what conditions will apply, depends on future regulations.
• Regulations can set exceptions and details for the source-protection changes, including periods, wording and which instruments are covered.
• The supplied material does not include the full amended Acts. I could not verify every change against current law or check how all the amendments interact with existing programs.
• The material does not explain the practical cost or consequences of ending automated speed enforcement contracts, or who will pay for school-zone signs.

Case for#

• The bill appears intended to reduce some approval steps: forest plans can cover multiple management units, and annual ministerial approval before harvesting is removed.
• Deemed approval after a ministerial deadline may prevent some source-protection plan amendments from waiting indefinitely, while requiring notice of approval.
• A possible argument for the labour-mobility changes is that qualified out-of-province applicants could face fewer extra registration requirements.
• Minister-directed school-zone signs provide a way to require installation if a municipality does not act.

Case against#

• Ending automated speed enforcement may remove a tool authorized by the Highway Traffic Act; the supplied material does not explain what replaces it.
• The law bars most claims over the effect of that repeal on supplier contracts, which limits remedies for affected parties.
• Some health-profession exemptions and key source-protection details are left to regulations, so the law itself does not show who will qualify or what safeguards will apply.
• The forest-operation exception removes specified species protections and orders for qualifying operations. The text does not set out additional case-by-case review for those operations.
• The bill gives the Minister significant powers over school signs and source-protection rules, but the supplied material does not describe a general appeal or review process for all uses of those powers.