Memorandum of Understanding Between: The Government of Ontario and The Government of Manitoba (hereinafter jointly referred to as “the Parties”)

WHEREAS interprovincial trade barriers cost Canada up to $200 billion annually, and their removal has the potential to increase Canadian GDP by as much as 7.9 per cent over the long term;

AND WHEREAS the Canadian economy is currently subject to economic and geopolitical uncertainty, including various tariffs and tariff threats by the United States on Canadian products, which threaten Canadian workers and businesses;

AND WHEREAS the Parties are committed to significantly expanding the ability of workers and businesses within their respective jurisdictions to take advantage of commercial opportunities across Canada, and in doing so strengthen Canada’s economy;

AND WHEREAS the Parties trust federal, provincial and territorial regulatory bodies to make sound decisions that put the safety of Canadians first;

AND WHEREAS the Parties are demonstrating leadership by introducing enabling legislation aimed at leveraging reciprocal mutual recognition to significantly reduce barriers to trade with other provinces and territories, and entering into a reciprocal mutual recognition arrangement;

AND WHEREAS Ontario has been a leader in expanding opportunities for registered workers from other Canadian jurisdictions to work in Ontario, including through its “As of Right” model;

AND WHEREAS Ontario has demonstrated leadership on internal trade with respect to the removal of all its Party-specific Exceptions (PSEs) under the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA), supporting opportunities for trade and investment;

AND WHEREAS Manitoba has consistently demonstrated leadership on internal trade with respect to the removal of PSEs under the CFTA, easing regulatory burdens and supporting the mobility of goods and people and is continuing to further open opportunities for trade and investment;

AND WHEREAS Manitoba is a leader on direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales of alcohol and is currently fully open.

Through this Memorandum of Understanding, the Parties agree to:

  1. Build on their respective legislation to remove internal trade barriers between them, so as to boost the flow of goods, services, investment, and workers, including through direct-to-consumer sales of alcohol and improved interprovincial labour mobility, while maintaining and strengthening levels of public safety and respecting the integrity and role of Crown corporations within certain provincial industries. Through Ontario’s bill entitled Protect Ontario Through Free Trade Within Canada Act and Manitoba’s legislation, The Labour Mobility Act, The Fair Registration Practices in Regulated Professions Act, The Regulated Health Professions Act and The Canadian Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act, and forthcoming Manitoba legislation, the Parties will strive to ensure that a good or equivalent service or registered worker that is deemed acceptable for sale, use or work in Ontario, is deemed acceptable for sale, use or work in Manitoba – and vice versa.
  2. Encourage other Canadian jurisdictions that have not already done so to join Manitoba and Ontario in driving progress on internal trade through their own legislation and remove barriers to trade across Canada, including through reciprocal mutual recognition.
  3. Further facilitate interprovincial labour mobility by working together to identify options to align regulated occupations and registration.
  4. Ontario will not maintain any PSEs under the CFTA. Manitoba will work towards the non-application of PSEs under the CFTA with respect to Ontario.
  5. Ontario and Manitoba will work together to develop a bilateral DTC agreement by June 30, 2025, to enhance market opportunities for producers and increase consumer choice for Manitobans and Ontarians.
  6. This Memorandum of Understanding sets out the understanding of the Parties with respect to their cooperation but is not legally binding and does not create any legal, equitable or financial rights, obligations or liabilities for either of the Parties.

Signed on the 14th day of May in the year 2025 in Toronto, Ontario.

Premier Doug Ford, Government of Ontario

Premier Wab Kinew, Government of Manitoba