British Columbia Chamber of Commerce
February 2014

   
Insight
BC Chamber Policy News
 Chamber welcomes balanced B.C. budget

Chambers of Commerce from across the province have welcomed a second  balanced budget that combines spending restraint with several targeted initiatives.

 

"Business has been clear: Government's number one priority must be to keep its fiscal house in order. Budget 2014 does that by controlling spending while making modest investments into measures to help grow the economy," said John Winter, president and CEO of the BC Chamber.

 

"British Columbians can take pride that we are one of only two jurisdictions in Canada to balance our budget and this was done with minimal tax increases," he added. More

 

In This Issue
B.C. Budget
Recycling Reg Fix
BC Ferries
Federal Budget
Liquor Reform
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Chamber network drives fix to recycling regulation on packaging

B.C.'s Chambers have applauded the B.C. government for  listening to Chambers and amending a recycling regulation that was causing substantial concern among businesses so that it will impact less that 1% of B.C.'s businesses.

 

Working closely with local Chambers, the BC Chamber led engagement with government on the file on behalf of B.C.'s business community and played a pivotal role in delivering this win for B.C.'s businesses.  

 

"Thousands of B.C. businesses can now breathe easy, knowing they'll face no new costs or red tape under this recycling regulation," said John Winter, president and CEO of the BC Chamber.

 

The regulation targets packaging and printed paper (PPP) and is slated to go into force in May.


On February 4, the B.C. government announced that it would enshrine in regulation an exemption for any B.C. business that meets any of the following criteria:

  • annual revenues of less than $1 million;
  • less than 1 tonne of packaging and printed paper produced annually; and/or
  • a single point of retail sale (and not supplied by or operated as part of a franchise, chain or under a banner).

That means that less than 3,000 businesses in the province will be captured by the regulation, out of more than 385,000. More 

BC Chamber engaging with government on ferry service cuts

The BC Chamber is engaging with government on two issues facing B.C.'s ferry-dependent communities: sensitivity to fare hikes and economic impact of service reductions.

 

The BC Chamber network is broadly supportive of a more economically sustainable ferry system and passed a policy to that effect in 2013. Since recent cuts were announced, however, a number of Chambers in ferry-dependent communities have raised concerns about the  impact of service reductions on local economies.

 

The BC Chamber will engage with government on how to pursue a more sustainable ferry system while mitigating economic impacts on B.C. communities.

BC Chamber welcomes federal budget's focus on skills, infrastructure 

The BC Chamber  has welcomed the federal government's prudent, targeted budget, which was unveiled February 11. 

 

"We're pleased to see a prudent, fiscally-conservative budget that nonetheless supports two key B.C. priorities: skills development and infrastructure," said John Winter, president and CEO of the BC Chamber.

 

Winter commended the budget's focus on skills training, including measures to better match young workers with the skills needs of business and the creation of the Canada Apprentice Loan to encourage trades training.

 

"We applaud the federal government for its efforts to tackle Canada's skills gap," Winter said. "We would, however, urge the government to continue to work hard to ensure the Canada Jobs Grant is palatable to businesses and the provinces, so that it achieves its goal of triggering new investment in training." More 

B.C. Chamber supports liquor-reform efforts, urges continued momentum

The BC Chamber is supportive of government's efforts to reduce red tape and impediments to business in B.C.'s liquor industry.

 

Going forward, however, the BC Chamber believes that substantive further reform is required. The BC Chamber remains convinced that to achieve a competitive liquor industry in B.C., government will need to move out of the distribution and retail parts of the business. (Read our policy here).

 

The BC Chamber encourages government to push forward to further modernize and enhance the competitiveness of B.C.'s liquor industry.