From the Desk of Canadian Chamber Perrin Beatty
I am pleased to provide you with this brief update on our recent activities and initiatives.
Advocacy at Work Advocacy success Last week, the federal government announced that it will establish a new export market development program and expand the Trade Commissioner Service. The export market development program will receive $50 million over five years to provide non-repayable matching contributions to companies seeking to export to emerging markets for the first time. The program aims to reach 500 to 1000 exporters per year and will cover market research and participation in trade fairs and business development trips. The Trade Commissioner Service, which maintains a network of trade promotion officers around the world, will receive $42 million over five years and an additional $9.25 million per year afterwards. Last year, our report, Turning It Around: How to Restore Canada’s Trade Success, called for Ottawa to maximize the value of free trade agreements by enhancing trade promotion and economic diplomacy, including new tools for exporters and additional resources for the Trade Commissioner Service. A subsequent report, A Path Forward for Entrepreneurship in Canada, confirmed the need to raise awareness of government trade promotion services. Also last week, the Agreement on Land, Rail, Marine and Air Transport Preclearance between the Government of Canada and the Government of the United States of America was signed. Such an agreement has long been promised and was one of the commitments made in the 2011 Beyond the Borders Agreement. We have long called for such an agreement and believe that new preclearance operations will greatly improve the competitiveness of North American trade. The agreement will allow both CBSA and U.S. CBP officers to conduct preclearance operations in each other’s territory. A similar agreement has been in place at a number of Canadian airports for several years and has been a massive success. Such preclearance operations greatly reduce congestion at the border and allow for streamlined processing of trusted trade and travel. We will continue to work with authorities on both sides of the border to ensure the efficient rollout of this initiative. Earlier this month, the federal government announced that it has extended the 15% Mineral Exploration Tax Credit (METC) for investors in flow-through shares for an additional year until March 31, 2016. The METC is a measure designed to assist junior mining companies in raising new equity through flow-through shares. This additional financing should help exploration companies maintain or increase the amount of exploration activity in Canada. The government also announced that costs associated with environmental studies and community consultations are eligible for treatment as Canadian Exploration Expenses and could qualify for the METC. We reiterated our call for both these measures in our Mining Capital report, which we released in 2013. I met with the Canadian Transportation Act Review Chair, the Hon. David Emerson, to discuss his mandate and our view of the critical issues. This review is likely to be a very significant blueprint for transportation and infrastructure policies once it is tabled at the end of the year, and we are actively working on these issues in parallel. The Senate Committee for Foreign Affairs and International Trade has announced it will use our 2014 trade promotion report, Turning It Around: How to Restore Canada’s Trade Success, as the framework for a comprehensive examination of the issues this year. On Feb. 18, the implementation of the person-to-government dispute resolution mechanism in the Agreement on Internal Trade came into force. We have been calling for improvements to the efficiency, transparency and accessibility of the dispute resolution process for a number of years. These changes create certainty in the process by mirroring the government-to- government dispute resolution process and include monetary penalties for non-compliance. While there are still many areas where improvements to our internal trade regime are necessary, this is a positive step forward for Canadian business and for the Canadian economy. In late January, a report by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Human Resources supported our recommendations for investment to improve labour market information and to financially support individuals’ mobility to relocate for work. Just before Christmas, our major effort to strengthen brand protection scored a victory with the passage of C-8, a law that provides border officers with new powers to interdict contraband. 2015 policy projects Also this month, we partnered with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Institute for Legal Reform to launch its most recent paper, Painting an Unsettling Landscape: Canadian Class Actions, 2011-2014. Over the last few years, we have noticed a significant increase in the number of class action suits that are presented before Canadian courts. We believe this is a result of the court’s tendency to take a “certify now, ask questions later” approach. Unfortunately, this approach has the potential to lead to time-consuming, meritless trials and unjustifiably increase the cost of doing business in Canada. With the launch of our new Business Law Committee, we will examine such legal issues more closely and monitor the impact they have on the business community. Lastly, I, along with our Chair, Michael McMullen, and senior staff members, will be taking part in the upcoming AGMs of the provincial and territorial chambers of commerce. These meetings are excellent opportunities for us to strengthen and align the chamber network so that we can speak on behalf of business with a strong, united voice. Events Private Business Growth Award | Nominations due July 10 AGM & Convention | Oct. 17 & 18, Ottawa More information on all of these events is available on our website, Chamber.ca. Stay Connected I would like to thank you for your ongoing support and, as always, I welcome your views and comments. Sincerely, Perrin Beatty |