The BC Chamber of Commerce and the Hon. Naomi Yamamoto, Minister of State for Small Business, have announced a consultation process to create a Small Business Accord and reduce red tape for business.

"This Accord will ensure that the government is held accountable for its actions in regulating business," said John Winter, President & CEO of the British Columbia Chamber of Commerce. "Through an extensive consultation process with small businesses across the province the government will develop a regulations framework to reduce red tape and help make BC the most business-friendly jurisdiction in the country."

Be a part of the consultation - take the online survey - and help develop key guiding principles that should be included in the Small Business Accord.

Minister of Energy, Mines and Natural Gas Hon. Rich Coleman has announced that the province will clarify liquor laws to allow non-profit organizations to conduct fundraising using gift baskets or similar items that have liquor as one of its components. The law will be permanently clarified by legislative changes at a later date.

Presently, BC law requires anyone who sells liquor to be licensed and for the liquor sold under that licence to be purchased from the Liquor Distribution Branch or another approved outlet, such as a BC winery.

The new approach enables charities and non-profits to conduct certain types of fundraising, such as auctions, using liquor provided as part of a gift basket or an equivalent basket of goods. The liquor must have been commercially produced and must not be consumed at the event.

Minister of Justice and Attorney General Hon. Shirley Bond has announced ten steps intended to reduce backlog, improve access to services and increase transparency within the BC Justice System.

These steps stemmed from A Modern, Transparent Justice System, a white paper released in August 2012. This white paper was drafted in response to an independent review of BC's justice system and an internal government audit. It recommended changes that would improve timeliness, court administration and the experiences of victims in BC.

This weekly report produced for the BC Chamber of Commerce by Fleishman-Hillard.  While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information included in this publication as of the date of issue, events and government policies are subject to frequent change.  Therefore, the BC Chamber of Commerce and Fleishman-Hillard cannot assume any responsibility for actions taken solely or principally on the basis on the information contained herein.