3. Overview Documents

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Part 5 – Division 1 – Overview: Provisions Relating to the Canadian Pacific Railway Company (CPR) Tax Exemption

CPR has recently claimed a tax exemption by virtue of a provision, known as “clause 16”, in a contract between the Government of Canada and CPR’s founders in 1880 to build Canada’s first transcontinental railway (1880 Contract), annexed to An Act respecting the Canadian Pacific Railway (1881).

The Government is committed to ensuring tax fairness and a level playing field among businesses operating in Canada’s transportation industry.

Division 1 of Part 5 deems the provision of the 1880 Contract that contains the tax exemption claimed by CPR to be of no force or effect as of August 29, 1966, and extinguishes, as of the same date, any obligations and liabilities of Canada and any rights and privileges of CPR arising out of or acquired under that provision.

Part 5 – Division 21 – Overview: Amendments to the Criminal Code (Prohibition – Promotion of Antisemitism)

The Criminal Code currently provides three hate propaganda offences – advocating genocide (subsection 318(1)); public incitement of hatred (subsection 319(1)); and willful promotion of hatred (subsection 319(2)) against any identifiable group. An “identifiable group” is defined as “any section of the public distinguished by colour, race, religion, national or ethnic origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or mental or physical disability” (subsection 318(4)).

Although the Criminal Code currently prohibits the wilful promotion of hatred against certain identifiable groups, including those identifiable on the basis of religion, it does not criminalize the wilful promotion of “antisemitism” by condoning, denying or downplaying the Holocaust.

Division 21 of Part 5 would amend the Criminal Code to create an offence of wilfully promoting antisemitism, by condoning, denying or downplaying the Holocaust, through statements communicated other than in private conversation. The offence would carry a maximum penalty of two years imprisonment and would be subject to the same defences and related requirements as the existing hate propaganda offences.

Part 5 – Division 22 – Overview: Federally Appointed Judges and Prothonotaries

Division 22 of Part 5 amends the Judges Act and the Federal Courts Act to implement the Response of the Government of Canada to the Report of the sixth Judicial Compensation and Benefits Commission. The amendments provide for the continuation of judicial salaries in accordance with statutory indexation, an increase to the incidental allowance and the representational allowance, and the creation of a new medical assistance allowance for judges in receipt of the allowance for northern judges.

This Division also establishes the office of prothonotary of the Tax Court of Canada and the office of supernumerary prothonotary for all prothonotaries. It also provides for changing the title of “prothonotary” to “associate judge” in English and from “protonotaire” to “juge adjoint” in French.

Division 22 also amends the Federal Courts Act and the Tax Court of Canada Act to increase the number of judges for the Federal Court of Appeal by one and the number of judges for the Tax Court of Canada by one. It amends the Judges Act to authorize the salaries for a new Associate Chief Justice of the Court of Queen’s Bench for Saskatchewan and a new Associate Chief Justice of the New Brunswick Court of Queen’s Bench, and to authorize the salaries for the following new judges: one for the Quebec Court of Appeal, nine for the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, three for the British Columbia Supreme Court, two for the Court of Queen’s Bench for Saskatchewan, two for the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta, and one for the Nunavut Court of Justice.