Canada's Corporate Accountability Watchdog Is Being Shut Down
Prime Minister Mark Carney has confirmed that his government is eliminating the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) — the federal watchdog created to investigate human rights violations committed by Canadian companies operating in other countries.
The announcement marks a significant rollback of a mechanism that advocates and NGOs had championed as a critical tool for holding powerful Canadian corporations accountable for their conduct abroad, particularly in the mining and garment sectors.
What Is CORE — and Why Does It Matter?
Established in 2019 under the Trudeau government, CORE was designed to give communities affected by Canadian business operations overseas a formal channel to raise complaints. The office could investigate allegations ranging from environmental harm to labour exploitation and violence against local populations.
Canada is home to some of the world's largest mining and resource extraction companies, many of which operate in developing nations where oversight is limited. For years, human rights organizations had pushed Ottawa to create an independent body with real investigative teeth — and CORE was positioned as that answer.
Critics, however, argued the office never had enough power to compel companies to cooperate with investigations, limiting its practical effectiveness.
Why Is the Carney Government Cutting It?
The Carney government has not yet released detailed reasoning beyond the announcement, but the elimination appears to be part of a broader effort to streamline federal regulatory bodies. Officials have framed some recent cuts as reducing bureaucratic overhead.
Human rights groups are pushing back hard. Advocates argue that scrapping CORE sends a troubling message — that Canadian companies operating in vulnerable communities abroad will face even less scrutiny than before.
"This is a step backwards for Canadian accountability," said one advocacy group in response to the news, urging the government to reconsider or propose an alternative mechanism with stronger enforcement powers.
What Comes Next?
It remains unclear whether the government plans to fold CORE's mandate into another existing body or simply let the function lapse entirely. That ambiguity has amplified concern among civil society organizations that track Canadian corporate conduct internationally.
For Canadians who care about how domestic companies behave beyond our borders — and for communities in countries like Colombia, Tanzania, or Bangladesh who have sought recourse through the office — the stakes are real.
The House of Commons is expected to see further debate on the decision in the coming weeks as opposition parties and advocacy groups press for answers.
Source: CBC Politics. Read the original story at CBC.ca.
