Canada: Don’t regulate Uber, competition watchdog says

The federal competition watchdog is urging municipal governments to relax “heavy-handed” regulations on taxis rather than crack down on alternative ride-hailing services like Uber.

“Old school regulations need to be modernized to enable innovation to take place,” said Commissioner of Competition John Pecman.

The Competition Bureau issued a white paper Thursday questioning why some regulators are trying to stifle a shakeup in the $1.2 billion taxi industry. Instead, the paper called for a level playing field between established players and new entrants.

Pecman said Canada risks falling behind global peers if regulators crack down in the face of growing consumer demand for innovative services such as UberX.

“It’s a question of regulators understanding that customers want this and making adjustments to the rules to enable this innovative approach to services to flourish in Canada.”

The watchdog called for an end to oppressive taxi regulations, including strict pricing structures and licensing systems, to give operators the flexibility required to compete with alternative ride-hailing services.

Full content: New Wall Street Journal

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