Task Force Report Red Tape Reduction

Reduce Red Tape Task Force Report

Regulatory requirements are the actions or steps required of businesses, not-for-profits, local governments and private citizens to access government programs or services, conduct business or participate in regulated activities.

Unnecessary regulatory requirements create red tape, which can make it difficult for organizations to access programs or services and conduct business. Red tape can even make a problem worse, not better.

In Manitoba, small- and medium-sized businesses alone spend an estimated $1.2 billion annually to comply with federal, provincial and municipal regulations. It is estimated that 30 per cent of this, or $360 million, is spent on red tape.

The provincial government has received and is in the process of implementing the majority of recommendations in the report of the Manitoba Red Tape Reduction Task Force.  

The report recommends 20 priorities for reducing red tape and provides additional areas of concern for government review. Of the top 20 areas, many items have been addressed, including:

• consolidating the heavy truck license classification system and eliminating the Highway Traffic Board as part of Bill 14: The Traffic and Transportation Modernization Act,
• clarifying the role of municipalities in the aggregate development approval process and increasing the requirement for provincial science-based technical reviews,
• updating the Manitoba building code to address the unique needs of farm buildings; and
• harmonizing the appeals processes contained in The Planning Act with The Municipal Act.

For more information on red tape reduction in Manitoba, the complete report is available here.

Report of the Red Tape Reduction Task Force (pdf 2 MB)