OTTAWA — A top official aiming to establish a Canadian national securities regulator said the initiative is far from dead and called on critics to help fashion the best system.
The appeal in a speech to the National Centre for Business Law in Vancouver appears designed to allay concerns that the federally led project is losing steam in the face of hardening provincial opposition.
“As much as some might like to believe the rumours of our death, like Mark Twain, I can say the are greatly exaggerated,” said Brian Davies, vice-chairman of the regulator transition office.
Davies conceded that opposition from Quebec, Alberta and Manitoba appeared to be gathering steam, but said that only means critics have become louder, not more numerous.