Blogs ~ December 2014

For the Canadian Chamber, 2014 was another successful year. We worked hard on your behalf advocating for measures to restore Canada’s competitiveness to ensure businesses, like yours, can prosper, compete and succeed. We are proud of our achievements in 2014 and have highlighted them for you in our Annual Report, which I invite you to read.

On behalf of all of us at the Canadian Chamber, I thank you for your support this past year. I wish you a healthy and prosperous new year and look forward to our continued collaboration in 2015.

Today, we issued a report entitled The Measures that Matter: How Canada’s Natural Resource Sector Is Working to Protect the Environment.

Natural resources are essential to our quality of life; they help build, fuel and feed the world. While natural resource production is needed to support growing global prosperity, it is also clear that there are implications for the environment.

Ottawa, December 23, 2014 — Natural resources are essential to our quality of life; they help build, fuel and feed the world. While natural resource production is needed to support growing global prosperity, it is also clear that there are implications for the environment. In a report published today, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce examines the ways in which Canadian industry and governments are addressing the environmental challenges of resource production, specifically within the forestry, mining, and oil and gas sectors.

Speaking notes for Warren Everson, Senior Vice President, Policy on e-commerce and SMEs as presented at the Canada-China Investment Protection and Business Cooperation Forum.

Today, we issued a report entitled Manufacturing Innovation: Driving Canada’s Biggest Sector through Disruptive Technologies.

In the report, we argue that the best way for Canadian companies to compete and win in modern manufacturing is through a strong commitment to innovation. This appears to be a continuing challenge as Canada’s innovation rank, a key component of competitiveness, is troublesome. Canada is ranked 22nd on the World Economic Forum’s Competitive Index for its capacity for innovation and 15th by the OECD measure.

Ottawa, December 17, 2014 — In a report published today, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce argues that the only way for Canadian companies to compete and win in modern manufacturing is through a strong commitment to innovation. Today, however, Canada’s innovation rank—a key component of competitiveness—is troublesome. Ranked 22nd in the world by the World Economic Forum for its capacity for innovation and given a “D” grade in innovation by the Conference Board of Canada for most of the last decade, Canada has not had a company on the Boston Consulting Group’s list of top 50 global innovators since 2010.

It seems like all our lives, prices have been lower in the U.S than at home. People on the border drive across to buy groceries and gas. The rest of us splurge during occasional shopping trips. Even when the Canadian dollar was just 63 cents in the U.S., people still sought bargains across the line.

Today, in tabling the legislation, the federal government announced it has had enough. Canadian consumers are tired of higher prices and now a government bureaucracy is finally going to get into action.

Perrin Beatty discusses the business community’s reaction the government’s proposed legislation on price discrepancies between Canada and the U.S. CTV's interview with Perrin starts at 10:07.

It seems like all our lives, prices have been lower in the U.S. than at home. People on the border drive across to buy groceries and gas. The rest of us splurge during occasional shopping trips. Even when the Canadian dollar was just 63 cents in the U.S., people still sought bargains across the line.

Today, in tabling the legislation, the federal government announced it has had enough. Canadian consumers are tired of higher prices and now a government bureaucracy is finally going to get into action.

Every other Tuesday, we release 5 Minutes for Business, a publication written by Hendrik Brakel, our Senior Director of Economic, Financial and Tax Policy. In these publications, Hendrik briefly describes current issues that affect the Canadian economy and provides insight on what it will mean for Canadians today and the future. In this week’s edition, he explains why we are seeing lower oil prices and what it will mean for the Canadian economy.

Heated political debate over government programs can often lead to strong policy responses. Over the past year, the federal government has moved to curtail the use, and potential abuse, of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. In its latest proposals on compliance, however, the government is stepping much further over the line.

What Canadians value in government is fairness and transparency. They want to know what the rules are and how to follow them. Intent on punishing wrong-doers, officials in the program are neglecting these Canadian values.