The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) has announced that it is pausing its efforts to develop a new mandatory climate-related disclosure rule and amendments to the current diversity-related disclosure requirements.
According to the CSA's news release, by halting these efforts, the CSA seeks to help Canadian markets and issuers adapt to recent developments in the US specifically and around the world generally.
“In recent months, the global economic and geopolitical landscape has rapidly and significantly changed, resulting in increased uncertainty and rising competitiveness concerns for Canadian issuers,” said Stan Magidson – CSA chairman and Alberta Securities Commission chairman and CEO – in the news release.
“In response, the CSA is focusing on initiatives to make Canadian markets more competitive, efficient and resilient,” Magidson added in the CSA’s news release.
The CSA noted in its news release that climate-related risks are a mainstream business issue, with securities legislation already requiring issuers to disclose material climate-related risks impacting their business. The CSA added that securities legislation similarly obligates issuers to disclose other kinds of material information.
Last December, the Canadian Sustainability Standards Board (CSSB) released its inaugural sustainability standards, which generally align with the International Sustainability Standards Board’s standards, the CSA’s news release said.
The CSSB standards aim to offer a voluntary disclosure framework for sustainability and climate-related disclosure and help issuers prepare their disclosures, the CSA’s news release explained.
The CSA noted in its news release that it will keep requiring non-venture issuers to provide diversity-related disclosure about the representation of women on their boards and in executive officer positions under the current requirements in National Instrument 58-101 Disclosure of Corporate Governance Practices.
The CSA added that it will keep track of domestic and international regulatory developments relating to climate-related and diversity-related disclosures. The CSA expects to pick up these two projects in the coming years and finalize requirements for issuers, whom the CSA will notify in advance about any changes to the status of these efforts.
The CSA said in its news release that it plans to continue to monitor issuers’ disclosure practices, address greenwashing and other misleading disclosures, and release information and additional guidance as needed.