Bill C-300 and CSR: The Canadian Approach

The private member’s bill, an Act respecting Corporate Accountability for the Activities of Mining, Oil or Gas in Developing Countries (C-300) was defeated in Parliament on Wednesday (October 27th). While it was a close vote, 140-134, it was not a surprising outcome, considering that even Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff, whose own party brought the bill forward, claimed that the bill ‘had problems’ and did not show up for the vote. The question thus remains, what is Canada’s commitment to corporate responsibility in terms of international activities?

The stated purpose of the Act was, “to ensure that corporations engaged in mining, oil or gas activities and receiving support from the Government of Canada act in a manner consistent with international environmental best practices and with Canada’s commitments to international human rights standards.” In other words, the bill hoped to codify what is currently considered, insofar as international law is concerned, to be soft law. Despite the fact that some of the biggest Multinational Enterprise (MNEs) are technologically and financially stronger than some of the countries in which they operate, they are not recognized as having international legal personality.

Several international declarations demonstrate a consensus on behalf of the majority of states that the bottom line should not be companies’ sole prerogative; human rights must also be taken into account. The 2002 Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development states that the private sector,…

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Multinational Corporations, International Trade and Morality. “Do No Evil”?

The activity of multinational corporations in the international arena is an important engine of development. It is within the ability of multinational corporations to create jobs, to invest in expensive research, to transfer knowledge and technology around the world and to promote progress in many fields. Indeed the international community support such activities through the regulation of both international trade and investment. These rules are mostly designed to facilitate international economic activity by ensuring easy access to foreign markets and warranting fair treatment to aliens by host states.

The opening of borders to international activity has also brought about certain illnesses, some of which are not easy to confront. On the environmental front for example, it seems as if fears of losing economic competitiveness inhibit countries like the United States from passing a significant climate change bill. With regard to labour standards, competition for foreign investment may encourage countries to relax their labour laws and to use lower standards as an enticement for foreign economic actors. International economic activity is a complex, multilayered issue, one that touches (and often clashes with) a multitude of global issues.

A somewhat complicated relationship exists between international economic activity of multinational corporations and morality. The different concepts of moral behaviour, the notion of companies as entities that should act according to guidelines of morality (rather than just acting according to laws) and the role…

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Special Contribution : Moving Forward with Corporate Environmental, Social and Governance Disclosure

Whether the issue is climate change, biodiversity, labour and supply chains, or international human rights, corporate sustainability disclosure is of increasing relevance to shareholders.  In a recent report submitted to Ontario, Canada’s minister of finance, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) made various recommendations regarding corporate reporting that may be controversial to some, but are a step in the right direction.

The report follows the Ontario Legislature’s unanimous approval of a private member’s resolution calling on the province to review existing reporting requirements and issuers’ compliance.

The resolution asked the OSC to undertake a broad consultation in order to “establish best practice corporate social responsibility…and environmental, social and governance…reporting standards”. In response, the OSC – supported by the Hennick Centre for Business and Law at York University – convened a multi-stakeholder roundtable and held various consultations with interested parties.

The reporting of material environmental, social and governance (ESG) information should be viewed as an integral part of a businesses’ overall risk management strategy. With this information, shareholders are in a better position to assess financial risks and to allocate capital to firms best suited to mitigate these risks. Disclosure also encourages stakeholder dialogue. This dialogue, over time, informs internal decision-making and provides a critical framework for identifying both risks and opportunities. This, in turn, can drive performance, enhance an organization’s reputation and strengthen the core elements of its…

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