The Canadian Network on Corporate Accountability (which Amnesty Canada is a member of) asked all federal political parties to detail their commitments aimed at ensuring a greater respect for human rights by Canadian companies operating abroad. In a questionnaire, we asked parties to outline their positions on three key measures to increase corporate accountability:
1. Will your party support comprehensive mandatory human rights due diligence legislation? Such legislation requires companies to identify, prevent and mitigate human rights abuses and provides for liability when companies cause harm in their global operations (subsidiaries and supply chains).
2. Will you make the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) independent and provide it with the power to compel documents and testimony so it can effectively investigate human rights abuse allegations linked to Canadian corporations operating overseas?
3. Will you introduce effective and transparent due diligence requirements for Canadian embassies and Export Development Canada to prevent these public agencies from supporting, financing and insuring business activity that is linked to human rights abuse?
Here are the responses received by the New Democratic Party (NDP), Bloc Québécois (French only), Green Party of Canada (GPC), Christian Heritage Party (CHP Canada), and Marijuana Party.
Disappointingly, the Liberal Party of Canada (LPC), Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) and People’s Party of Canada (PPC) have not detailed any commitments on corporate accountability and human rights in response to the questions submitted by our network.