Special economic zones: the secret weapon in Doug Ford's Bill 5

Mike Crawley · CBC News

· Posted: May 30, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 6 minutes ago

Premier Doug Ford's justification for his arguable Bill 5 is to support Ontario's system against the threats posed by U.S. President Donald Trump by reducing reddish portion and speeding up approvals of large projects. 

Ford campaigned vociferously connected that taxable this wintertime and it carried his Progressive Conservative Party to its 3rd consecutive majority. 

However, Ford ne'er said a connection during the 29-day predetermination run astir the azygous astir almighty happening successful Bill 5: granting furniture the authorization to make "special economical zones." 

The measure would alteration furniture to designate immoderate determination successful Ontario arsenic a peculiar economical zone, and past to exempt immoderate institution oregon task successful the portion from having to comply with whichever provincial laws, provincial regulations oregon municipal bylaws the authorities chooses.

It opens the doorway for furniture to state that specified things arsenic Ontario's minimum wage rules, its biology regulations, its taxation laws oregon a city's sound restrictions don't use successful the designated zone. 

No different Canadian state has thing similar this. Asked to sanction jurisdictions that do, Ford authorities officials offered a database that includes Singapore, South Korea, Poland and Panama. 

"Essentially, the furniture could springiness corporations a escaped walk to circumvent each sorts of important protections," Anaïs Bussières McNicoll, a manager of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, said successful an interview.

WATCH | Ontario NDP, Liberals successfully stall Bill 5 with midnight filibuster:

Bussières McNicoll says the powers authorities would get to make peculiar economical zones are akin to exigency powers to override laws, and should truthful beryllium time-limited with checks and balances.

'Easier for companies to invest'

Ford and his ministers haven't been rather arsenic circumstantial successful explaining the intent of peculiar economical zones arsenic they've been with different parts of Bill 5, specified arsenic shortening the timelines for mining approvals oregon replacing Ontario's endangered taxon legislation. 

"We request to get escaped of unnecessary reddish tape, marque it easier for companies to invest, to prosecute and to grow, and that's precisely what Bill 5 is going to do," said Vic Fedeli, Minister of Economic Development, Jobs and Trade, successful question play Wednesday.

Under the bill, Fedeli is the curate who gets the powerfulness to manus retired the ineligible exemptions to companies of his choosing successful the peculiar economical zones.

There's immoderate denotation the zones are meant to pull overseas investment. There's a enactment successful the text of Bill 5 that talks of making Ontario "the champion spot successful the G7 to invest, make jobs and bash business."

What's not successful the measure are immoderate criteria for deciding which locations, companies oregon projects would beryllium eligible to beryllium a peculiar economical zone, nor immoderate limits connected which laws could beryllium taken disconnected the books successful specified zones.

The lone caveat successful the Special Economic Zones Act conception of Bill 5 was added by the authorities arsenic an afterthought, much than a period aft tabling it: a clause saying that its provisions volition beryllium accordant with existing Indigenous and pact rights nether the Constitution. 

Ring of Fire, 401 passageway are candidates 

The authorities added that clause connected Wednesday, six weeks aft Ford archetypal signalled that his apical precedence for a peculiar economical portion is the Ring of Fire mineral deposit successful the pact lands of bluish Ontario.

The authorities present says it won't really designate specified a portion successful the Ring of Fire without consulting with First Nations, but that hasn't satisfied First Nations leaders who consciousness the authorities shouldn't person plowed up with the measure without consulting first.

The different task Ford has floated arsenic a campaigner for a peculiar economical portion is his thought of gathering a tunnel nether Highway 401 done Toronto.

But there's thing successful the authorities stopping the authorities from giving immoderate task oregon concern successful Ontario the peculiar status.

WATCH | First Nation leaders archer Ford authorities to termination Bill 5:

For instance, it could state the monolithic Volkswagen electrical conveyance artillery plant to beryllium built successful St. Thomas, Ont. — described arsenic the largest car manufacture woody successful Canadian past — a peculiar economical zone, and exempt the institution from whichever laws furniture chooses.

"You tin telephone them peculiar economical zones, but what we cognize you are doing is opening up the floodgates for an maltreatment of powerfulness by government," NDP Leader Marit Stiles said.

'The powerfulness to override each law'

"The authorities is giving themselves the powerfulness to override each law," Stiles said successful question play connected Wednesday.

Ford has expressed disbelief astatine the absorption to Bill 5, insisting that his full run focused connected its measures and that the voters gave him a mandate to instrumentality action.

"I was crystal wide astir getting escaped of the reddish tape, getting escaped of the regulations, making definite that we pull investments," Ford said successful question play Tuesday.

It's existent that Ford promised during the run to velocity up mining approvals and to shrink bureaucracy, some cardinal parts of Bill 5. However, the operation "special economical zones" ne'er publically crossed his lips, nor does it look successful the PC platform.

The closest the level comes is simply a paragraph that promises to designate areas with aggregate deposits of captious minerals arsenic "regions of strategical importance" wherever prime projects would get "automatic" approvals to proceed with aboriginal phases of enactment — obscurity adjacent arsenic sweeping arsenic the blank cheque of peculiar economical zones arsenic laid retired successful Bill 5.

Labour unions accidental Ford is utilizing the Trump menace arsenic a pretext to make the zones.

"Under the cloak of an impending economical situation and the guise of warring tariffs, Doug Ford plans connected delivering workers to the chaotic westbound of moving conditions, each to the payment of large business," said CUPE Ontario president Fred Hahn successful a statement.

Greenbelt parallels

It's not a agelong to spot parallels betwixt Ford's determination to make peculiar economical zones (as a effect to the tariff threat) and his determination a fewer months aft the 2022 predetermination to let improvement connected definite properties successful the Greenbelt (as a effect to the lodging crisis.)

Both measures impact giving prime companies peculiar exemptions from existing rules, neither measurement was promised during the preceding run and it's unclear however effectual either measurement would beryllium successful achieving its stated economical goal.

Ford ultimately reversed course connected the Greenbelt.

While he's showing nary signs of backing distant from passing Bill 5, it remains to beryllium seen whether his authorities volition travel done erstwhile the authorities is connected the books by really creating immoderate peculiar economical zones, fixed the absorption they're astir definite to face.