Chamber championing ferries’ future resonates with Island communities

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The Chamber’s efforts to bring a business perspective to the future of our most vital transportation link has captured the attention of policy makers and business associations on the Island and across BC.

A letter penned by The Chamber on behalf of 20 organizations was sent to BC Premier David Eby last week. The letter makes the case for revisiting the recent decision by the BC Ferries commissioner to only approve four new vessels instead of the five required to meet demand.

The request was picked up by media during an interview with the Premier, who agreed that the vessels are needed.

“I think we need boats that are going to be able to serve the public well into the future here in British Columbia,” Eby told reporters. “It’s critical for commerce, for tourism and as the Island Highway for so many families and businesses.”

The Chamber supports efforts to reduce costs faced by taxpayers, and is grateful the provincial government has heard our calls to invest in ways that grow the economy for everyone. The attention on the issue has also raised the potential for federal funding to be part of the solution.

“Affordability is about more than just fares and yet there’s nothing that requires the commissioner to apply that lens,” Chamber CEO Bruce Williams wrote in the letter about the need for infrastructure that drives business, industry and tourism.

Read The Chamber’s column

Changes to lobbyist rules help reduce chilling effect

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The Chamber applauds news that the BC Lobbyist Registry is making changes to reduce the unfair burden facing many community organizations. The Registry changed significantly in 2020, surprising many chambers, boards of trade and other groups that traditionally work with government.

The aim of the registry is to ensure transparency. It’s an important ideal to help British Columbians know if their elected representatives are being influenced by special-interests. However, the 2020 change introduced a cumbersome interface, tighter timelines and a chilling fine structure. The result inhibited historic relationships that have served for decades to help communities keep an open dialogue with provincial ministries.

The Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce played a key role in championing those important connections, working with chambers across BC to call out the chilling effect of the registry.

The changes announced today come into force on May 27 and will drop requirements for reporting every time funding is requested, extend due dates for reports and clarify some of the rules around filing requirements.

Business tax break a sign that council is listening

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The City of Victoria is investing in the business community by continuing to lower the gap between commercial and residential taxes.

The Chamber has worked with municipal councils over the years, asking them to mind the gap that had been increasing in years past. Through letters and presentations, The Chamber spoke up for the local jobs and services that businesses provide to a municipality. We also explained the challenges with tight margins that many businesses are facing.

Victoria Council is committed to lowering the rate charged to residents and that charged to business to 3:1 by 2030. It was 3.7:1 last year and is 3.5:1 this year.

“Businesses don’t receive the same level of service that residents do, yet they consistently are asked to pay a higher tax rate,” Chamber CEO Bruce Williams said. “In the past, we were hearing concerns that some councils saw increasing business taxes as a politically expedient way to raise money — businesses don’t vote so maybe their individual complaints matter less than a resident that does vote. Thankfully, our experience with councils has been less cynical. Municipalities get the value of the business community — and the know The Chamber will remind them if they ever forget.”

Saanich and Victoria merger is the right thing to do

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Better governance from fewer governments has long been a rallying cry within the halls of the Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce. On April 5, our region took the first step toward achieving that goal.

The Victoria-Saanich Citizens’ Assembly released its findings seven years after the process took root in 2018. The 48-member assembly is recommending that Greater Victoria’s two largest municipalities merge.

“This is a major win for The Chamber. We’ve literally been advocating for this since the mid-20th Century,” Chamber CEO Bruce Williams said. “When we were packing up to move our office, we found binders with reams of paperwork calling for amalgamation over the decades.”

The Chamber was an early voice for using the Citizens’ Assembly process as a practical method for initiating amalgamation. And whenever the process stalled along the way, The Chamber was quick to nudge it forward.

The next step will be for the City of Victoria and District of Saanich to review the consensus reached by the Assembly.

“Both municipal councils have committed to receiving the Assembly’s final report and deliberating on its recommendations,” the report stated. “If they decide to endorse the Assembly’s recommendation for a public referendum on amalgamation, they will work with the Province of British Columbia to initiate it, likely to coincide with the next municipal elections in 2026.”

Find out where parties stand on local issues at listening session for federal candidates

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The Chamber is organizing Canada Votes 2025 on April 16, from 5-7 pm, at the Spectrum Community School theatre in SD61.

The format will feature a panel of four candidates from our region representing the major political parties, including Elizabeth May for the Green Party and Laurel Collins for the NDP, Will Greaves from the Liberal Party and a local candidate the Conservative Party. The latter will be confirmed shortly.

The candidates will hear about an issue facing Greater Victoria and will then discuss potential solutions based on their party’s platforms.

Each of the issues will be presented by a representative from the following organizations:

Destination Greater Victoria, the Greater Victoria Harbour Authority, Vancouver Island Construction Association, the Downtown Victoria Business Association and The Chamber.

The federal election is set for April 28, and the Canada Votes 2025 Listening Session is free. However, space is limited so register early.

Women in Business report finds steady, slow progress

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The 2025 Women in Business report by Doane Grant Thornton is now available.

The annual report promotes gender equality, tracks progress, identifies challenges and informs strategies for fostering a more inclusive and equitable business environment — ultimately leading to better business outcomes.

“In Canada, 34.7% of women hold senior management positions in small- and medium-sized businesses. It’s steady progress but still a significant distance to achieve parity,” Doane Grant Thornton stated. “It could take another 25 years for women to achieve equal representation in top executive roles, without accelerated change.”

The report also looks at external and internal challenges that affect leadership teams in mid-market businesses, which Doane Grant Thornton said “account for 98% of employer businesses in Canada, and 90% of businesses and two-thirds of jobs worldwide.”

Listening session planned for federal candidates

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The Chamber is planning a federal election event for Greater Victoria.

“We’re going to hold a ‘Listening Session,’ which has worked well at focusing discussion on specific challenges facing our region,” Chamber CEO Bruce Williams said.

The event, called Canada Votes 2025, is scheduled for April 16, from 5-7 pm. The format will feature a panel of four candidates representing our region’s four ridings as well as the major political parties. They’ll be introduced to local issues facing various business sectors and asked to discuss potential solutions based on their party’s platforms.

Community partners joining The Chamber include Destination Greater Victoria, the Greater Victoria Harbour Authority, Vancouver Island Construction Association, and the Downtown Victoria Business Association.

With the federal election set for April 28, a listening session allows for a focused discussion on local issues that will complement general campaign information already widely available.

The Canada Votes 2025 Listening Session is free but space is limited so we encourage everyone to register early.

Premier walks back contentious parts of Bill 7

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The Chamber applauds the provincial government for listening to our concerns, and those of other business organizations, and removing many of the autocratic elements of Bill 7.

The legislation, as initially proposed, would give BC’s Cabinet broad powers without the need to be accountable to the elected legislature. On March 28, Premier David Eby agreed that Bill 7 needs “safeguards.”

The Chamber supports parts of the Bill that aim to make the provincial economy stronger. Specifically, the goal of reducing barriers for interprovincial trade.

“Interprovincial trade drives one-fifth of Canada’s GDP, yet internal trade barriers still act like a 21% tariff,” Canadian Chamber Public Policy Chief Matthew Holmes said. “Removing them could boost GDP per capita by 4%. That’s real growth — right here at home — at a time when businesses and workers need it most. Internal trade must be a key aspect of our Canada-U.S. trade strategy — let’s control what we can control.”

Canada escapes crosshairs as US takes aim at foreign trade

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Businesses watching today’s tariff announcements from the US administration can be forgiven for feeling more confused than ever. Canadians have been coping with economic anxiety for months due to threats of broad-based tariffs and other measures.

However, on the day that US President Donald Trump promised to unveil his master economic plan for world trade, Canada was barely mentioned.

“At this point, I don’t think anyone is surprised that today’s announcement did not provide a lot of clarity,” Chamber CEO Bruce Williams said. “We’ll take some time to analyze what official information is available and what it means for Greater Victoria.”

The initial impression is that Canadian goods under CUSMA will not face tariffs, while goods not covered will have a 10% tariff. It’s also not clear how Canada’s auto industry will actually be affected by a tariff on foreign auto makers.

Greater Victoria’s economy is among the least exposed Canadian cities when it comes to exporting. However, the sabre rattling that comes with talk of a tradewar creates uncertainty, which can bog down business.

“We will get through this, as we have every other crisis in the past, by supporting each other and our communities any way we can,” Williams said. “If there is a silver lining, we do have certainty that we have work to do to build the nation we want. We need an economy that is resilient and sustainable.”

To hear more about how the Canada-US relationship affects our region’s economy, register now for The Chamber’s AGM and panel discussion on April 15.

Century Celebration of Cup victory begins this week

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The Century Celebration of the Victoria Cougars’ historic victory over the Montreal Canadians begins March 27. Three musical finalists — selected from 31 entries to a songwriting contest honouring the 1925 Stanley Cup win — kick things off by performing their original songs at the Bard and Banker.

Festivities continue on March 29-30, with family friendly events, including the highly anticipated return of the Cup for public viewing on Sunday at the Oak Bay Recreation Centre.

Century Celebration festivities centre around the old location of Patrick Arena — a former stadium in the District of Oak Bay where the 1925 Cougars clinched the cup championship. There is no parking onsite for this event. A park-and-ride shuttle, courtesy of Wilson’s Transportation, will run every 30 minutes between Oak Bay Marina and the festival site from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

The events are being put on by the Victoria Hockey Legacy Society, which hosted Scotiabank Hockey Day in Canada in January 2024. The Chamber helped make that event a success, providing a direct boost to business and priceless promotion of our region. Hockey Day was also co-winner of Event of the Year at the Greater Victoria Sports Awards, announced last month.

For the latest on events and activities happening for the Century Celebration, go to vhls.ca.

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