Minister responsible for Canada Post tables an amendment to the Canada Post Corporation act

The Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, today tabled a key amendment to the Canada Post Corporation Act that would permit letter exporters to collect letters in Canada for transmittal and delivery outside Canada. Until now, Canada Post was the only corporation legally entitled to this privilege.

“The Government of Canada is committed to fair, transparent and accountable governance,” said Minister Cannon. “This amendment is intended to facilitate more competitiveness for companies within the mail industry worldwide and further facilitate the growth of the outbound international mail market in Canada.”

The proposed amendment to the Canada Post Corporation Act adds an exception to Canada Post’s exclusive privilege under Section 15 for letters intended for delivery to an addressee outside Canada.

The Canada Post Corporation is a Crown corporation and one of the largest employers in Canada. It serves approximately 33 million Canadians, and more than one million businesses and public institutions. In 2006, Canada Post employees delivered 11.6 billion pieces of mail to more than 14 million addresses in Canada.

The Canada Post Corporation Act, which came into effect in 1981, regulates mail services in Canada.