Skip to main content
Back to Bills
FederalPassed40th Parliament, 3rd Session

Bill S-5 explained in plain English

An Act to amend the Motor Vehicle Safety Act and the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999

Federal Parliament bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.

Short answer

Bill S-5 amended the Motor Vehicle Safety Act and the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 to permit conditional importation of used vehicles from the U.S. and Mexico while maintaining safety and environmental compliance.

At a glance

Jurisdiction
Federal Parliament
Legislature / Parliament
Parliament of Canada
Session
40th Parliament, 3rd Session
Bill number
Bill S-5
Full title
An Act to amend the Motor Vehicle Safety Act and the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999
Current status
Passed
Latest event
Royal assent received
Last updated
Mar 23, 2011

Official Parliament of Canada snapshot for 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. MP vote breakdowns appear when the House of Commons publishes a recorded division export for that bill. Senate and House stage details include official debate/sitting links when LEGISinfo publishes them.

Chamber
Parliament of Canada
Current Stage
Royal assent received
Latest Activity
Mar 23, 2011
Plain-language explanation

AI-generated from official bill text; automatically checked and spot-reviewed.

AI-assisted
Short Version

Bill S-5 amended the Motor Vehicle Safety Act and the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 to permit conditional importation of used vehicles from the U.S. and Mexico while maintaining safety and environmental compliance.

What It Means

Bill S-5, passed in 2011, amends two federal laws to update rules about vehicle safety and environmental protection. The changes allow Canada to import used vehicles from the United States or Mexico under specific conditions while ensuring safety and environmental standards are met.

What This Bill Does
  • Allows importation of used vehicles from the U.S. or Mexico that do not meet safety requirements, provided they comply with regulations and declarations.
  • Modifies the definition of 'vehicle' in the Motor Vehicle Safety Act to include prescribed classes of vehicles.
  • Exempts certain Mexican vehicles from environmental compliance checks under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999, under specific conditions.
  • Adds new rules for inspecting and certifying imported vehicles under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act.
Who Is Affected
  • Importers of used vehicles from the U.S. or Mexico
  • Regulatory agencies responsible for vehicle safety and environmental compliance
  • Vehicle manufacturers and dealers
  • Canadian consumers purchasing imported vehicles
Uncertainties Or Limits
  • The bill does not specify exact criteria for determining which Mexican vehicles qualify for environmental compliance exemptions.
  • The exact conditions for declaring vehicles that fail to meet safety requirements are not detailed in the provided text.
Laws Or Regulations Affected
Motor Vehicle Safety Act
amended

Updated definitions and import rules for vehicles, including used vehicles from the U.S. and Mexico.

Source: Section 2 (vehicle definition), subsection 7(2) (import conditions)

Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999
amended

Exempts certain Mexican vehicles from environmental compliance checks and adds inspection/certification rules for imported vehicles.

Source: Subsection 155(2) (environmental compliance exemptions), subsection 160(1.g.1) (inspection/certification rules)

Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. Coverage is limited to the official text extracted for this bill version.

Official text

Parliamentary Process

Step 1
First reading
Apr 14, 2010
Completed

We don't have a plain-language summary for First reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Introduction and first reading, Apr 14, 2010
End of stage activity, Apr 14, 2010
Chamber sittings
Introduction and first reading - Apr 14, 2010

We don't have a plain-language summary for Introduction and first reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 2
Second reading
May 12, 2010
Completed

We don't have a plain-language summary for Second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Second reading, May 12, 2010
Referral to committee, May 12, 2010
End of stage activity, May 12, 2010
Chamber sittings
Debate at second reading - Apr 20, 2010

We don't have a plain-language summary for Debate at second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

We don't have a plain-language summary for Sponsor’s speech yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Debate at second reading - May 12, 2010

We don't have a plain-language summary for Debate at second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

We don't have a plain-language summary for Response speech yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 3
Consideration in committee
Jun 3, 2010
Completed

We don't have a plain-language summary for Consideration in committee yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Committee report presented, Jun 3, 2010
End of stage activity, Jun 3, 2010
Chamber sittings
Committee report presented - Jun 3, 2010

We don't have a plain-language summary for Committee report presented yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 4
Third reading
Jun 8, 2010
Completed

We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Third reading, Jun 8, 2010
End of stage activity, Jun 8, 2010
Chamber sittings
Debate at third reading - Jun 8, 2010

We don't have a plain-language summary for Debate at third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 1
First reading
Jun 10, 2010
Completed

We don't have a plain-language summary for First reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

First reading, Jun 10, 2010
End of stage activity, Jun 10, 2010
Chamber sittings
First reading - Jun 10, 2010

We don't have a plain-language summary for First reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 2
Second reading
Dec 6, 2010
Completed

We don't have a plain-language summary for Second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Second reading and referral to committee, Dec 6, 2010
End of stage activity, Dec 6, 2010
Chamber sittings
Debate at second reading - Dec 6, 2010

We don't have a plain-language summary for Debate at second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

We don't have a plain-language summary for Sponsor’s speech yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

We don't have a plain-language summary for Response speech yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

We don't have a plain-language summary for Response speech yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

We don't have a plain-language summary for Response speech yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 3
Consideration in committee
Dec 10, 2010
Completed

We don't have a plain-language summary for Consideration in committee yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Committee report presented, Dec 10, 2010
End of stage activity, Dec 10, 2010
Chamber sittings
Committee report presented - Dec 10, 2010

We don't have a plain-language summary for Committee report presented yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 4
Report stage
Dec 15, 2010
Completed

We don't have a plain-language summary for Report stage yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Concurrence at report stage, Dec 15, 2010
End of stage activity, Dec 15, 2010
Chamber sittings
Concurrence at report stage - Dec 15, 2010

We don't have a plain-language summary for Concurrence at report stage yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 5
Third reading
Dec 16, 2010
Completed

We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Third reading, Dec 16, 2010
End of stage activity, Dec 16, 2010
Chamber sittings
Debate at third reading - Dec 16, 2010

We don't have a plain-language summary for Debate at third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Step 1
Royal assent
Mar 23, 2011
Royal assent, Mar 23, 2011
End of stage activity, Mar 23, 2011
Chamber sittings
Royal assent - Mar 23, 2011

We don't have a plain-language summary for Debates of the Senate yet. The official source linked below is the full record.

Debate and sitting links point to official parliamentary sources when LEGISinfo publishes them. Any plain-language discussion summaries should be generated from those official texts and reviewed before public display.

Vote Summary

No published recorded division

This bill does not have a published recorded division in the current official sources, so representative-by-representative vote counts are not shown.

Sponsor
Marjory LeBreton
Senator | Details not listed in current Senate roster
Jurisdiction
Federal Parliament

No published representative vote breakdown

The current official sources do not publish a recorded division breakdown for this bill, so there is no representative-by-representative table to show.

Official sources

This plain-English summary is based on official legislative sources and public records. It is intended for civic education and is not legal advice.

How this data is sourced