Canada. Royal Commission on Coasting Trade : The Royal Commission on the Coasting Trade was established under Order in Council (P.C. 308, 1 March 1955) under Part I of the Inquiries Act (R.S.C., 1952, c.154), and on the recommendation of the Minister of Transport. The Commission was mandated inquire into and to report upon: Part XIII of the Canada Shipping Act, the coasting trade of Canada, arising out of the transportation by water, or by land and water, of goods and passengers from one place in Canada to another place in Canada, including: (a) the relationship of the coasting trade of Canada, including the Great Lakes, to Canadian shipping and ship-building, and the effect on such shipping and ship-building of participation by ships registered or built outside of Canada; (b) the probable effects of the development of the St. Lawrence Seaway upon the coasting trade of Canada; (c) the relationship of the coasting trade of Canada and to Canada's external relations; and the effect of the participation in the coasting trade of Canada, by ships registered or built outside of Canada upon the domestic and international trade of Canada, and Canada's external relations; and (d) the necessity, if any, of establishing policies and prescribing special conditions on the coasting trade of Canada. The Commissioners were Wishart Flett Spence, Chairman; W.N. Wickwire and Marcel Bélanger. The Secretary was G. Gordon McLeod.
In 1954 the Canadian Shipbuilding and Ship Repairing Association and the Dominion Marine Association made submissions to the Government of Canada urging that the coasting trade (the carriage by water of goods or passengers from one port or place in Canada to another port or place in Canada) be restricted to vessels built and registered in Canada. At that time competition came almost entirely from vessels registered in the United Kingdom. Even some Canadian shipping firms made extensive use of United Kingdom vessels. In spite of this competition, Canadian-registered vessels carried virtually all the coasting cargo on the West Coast, the Great Lakes, the St. Lawrence River above Montreal, and about three-quarters of the cargo on the East Coast and lower St. Lawrence. In Eastern Canada the necessity of vessels to use canals extensively kept out virtually all ocean vessels and hence precluded any real competition from the United Kingdom. This natural protection would be eliminated by the construction of the St. Lawrence Seaway and this prompted submissions to the government. The Canadian shipbuilding industry could not financially compete in the world market. Except within the Great Lakes, the coasting trade in Canada did not provide a secure market since ships built anywhere ithe Commonwealth could be acquired or used without paying duty. After World War II, Parliament adopted the following measures to assist the ship-building industry: the establishment of the Canadian Mitime Commission (11 Geo. VI, c.52, 1947), the passage of the Canadian Vessels Construction Assistance Act (13 Geo. VI, c.11, 1949) and the amendment to the Canada Shipping Act (14 Geo. VI, c.26, 1950). By 1949, employment in Canadian shipyards was falling, but the outbreak of the Korean War brought substantial defence orders which reversed this trend. By 1955, however, employment again decreased, and several wartime yards closed. Ship-building within the Great Lakes was the exception because it was able to develop during peacetime. As previously stated, Canadian shipyards had substantial but incomplete natural protection from United Kingdom competition because of the limitations of the St. Lawrence canals, and they had a financial advantage as well as tariff protection against competitors in the United States. In spite of this, representations on shipping and ship-building, and the probable effect that the construction of the St. Lawrence Seaway on the industry, prompted the Government of Canada to appoint a Royal Commission on the Coasting Trade. (See Report of the Royal Commission on Coasting Trade, Ottawa, Queen's Printer, 1958, pp. 2-5.)
Hearings of the Commission were held in St. John's, Halifax, Charlottetown, Saint John, Quebec City, Trois-Rivières, Montreal, Ottawa, Midland, Hamilton, Toronto, Port Arthur, Winnipeg, Regina, Vancouver and Victoria from 11 July 1955 and 11 January 1956. The Commission received 173 submissions and 257 exhibits. RG33-34 General Inventory
