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Tuesday, November 22, 2022
Portable Benefits: A Good Idea But Caution Required
In 2021, the Ontario Workforce Recovery Advisory Committee (OWRAC) recommended that the Ontario government appoint an expert panel to design and test a portable benefits program where contributors could be employers, workers, and the government. The idea is to provide health and dental benefits to millions of Canadians who are gig workers or who change jobs often. In response, the Government created the Portable Benefits Advisory Panel and is currently soliciting feedback from stakeholders. The panel is
Tuesday, November 08, 2022London Chamber Responds to Fall Economic Statement
Earlier this week, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Chrystia Freeland tabled the government’s Fall Economic Statement (FES). The FES contains measures to invest in net-zero skills, clean technology incentives, and eliminating over-regulation in major Canadian projects. While the London Chamber generally supports these initiatives, it was disappointing that the federal government did not offer details on a clear plan to generate the investment required for strong growth. It appears that we
Tuesday, October 25, 2022Congratulations Mayor and Council
The London Chamber of Commerce would like to congratulate the newly elected Mayor, Josh Morgan on his successful election campaign. We would also like to extend our congratulations to all of the newly elected council members and incumbents that are returning to council this year. As the voice of business within London, we look forward to working with you and addressing Londoner’s goals. The 2022 Municipal Election Survey Results Report shows that Londoner’s are most concerned about housing
Friday, October 21, 2022New By-Law
Following the approval of the London Chamber of Commerce’s new Strategic Plan, the Chamber’s Board of Directors formed a Governance Task Force to review the by-laws and Policies of the organization. The goal was not only to streamline and modernize our by-laws, but also to better align them with the mission, vision and values of the Chamber. The Task Force proposed that the existing by-law not simply be amended, but be re-stated.The Board submitted the new by-law to Members of the Chamber for their
Wednesday, October 19, 2022Amendments to Ontario Immigration Nominee Program
On October 4th, the London Chamber of Commerce sent a letter to the Honourable Monte McNaughton, Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training, and Skills development, addressing proposed amendments to the Ontario Immigration Nominee Program. The OINP is a program that works in conjunction with the federal government in order to provide foreign workers and international students with permanent residence status if they qualify based on skills, experience, and education. This program has provided Ontario
Wednesday, October 19, 2022Homelessness as a Major Election Issue
It has been four months since the Ontario Big City Mayors, a collective of 29 mayors from cities with over 100,000 people, requested an emergency meeting with premier Doug Ford in order to discuss homelessness, mental health, and the opioid crisis. As of October, the premier has not responded to this request despite homelessness being the top concern for many Ontario municipalities. With the London municipal election taking place on the 24th of October, homelessness and mental health has been
Wednesday, October 19, 2022Canadian Resource Opportunities
Perrin Beatty, President and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, recently produced a report on Canada’s resource obligations and opportunities. With the ongoing war in Ukraine, global supply lines have been shaken up and many natural resources are becoming more difficult to source. This has driven gas and energy prices to some of the highest prices in decades. As the winter season approaches, the lack of gas availability means that many Europeans will struggle to heat their homes as the temperatures
Tuesday, October 18, 2022London Chamber Receives Support for Green Transition Paper at National Convention
Last week, Kristen Duever, VP of Public Affairs at the London Chamber of Commerce attended the Canadian Chamber of Commerce AGM and Convention in Ottawa. In total, the event was attended by more than 400 participants from over 100 chambers from across the country. In addition to several professional development sessions and panel discussions, the event features a policy debate in which local chambers have the opportunity to submit their policy papers for consideration to be included in the Canadian
Tuesday, October 18, 2022London Chamber Applauds Provincial Government Initiative to Tackle Labour Shortage Through Skilled Trades Focused Career Fairs
The London Chamber of Commerce applauds the recent announcement from the Ontario Government and the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training, and Skills Development that career fairs focusing specifically on the skilled trades will soon be offered to students in grades 7 through 12. This initiative of the provincial government speaks directly to a policy paper written in 2020 by the London Chamber of Commerce and later adopted by the Ontario Chamber of Commerce entitled “Re-calibrating early childhood
Tuesday, September 06, 20222022 Municipal Election Platform
London Chamber of Commerce 2022 Municipal Election Platform To view the PDF, click here.
Monday, July 25, 2022Local Business Organizations Call for a Freeze on the Alcohol Excise Escalator Tax
The London Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with the Old East Village BIA, Hyde Park BIA, Downtown London BIA, Hamilton Road BIA, Tourism London, and the London Economic Development Corporation, are advocating for a freeze to the annual excise duty rate increase that is applied to beer, wine, and spirit sales. An increase to the current tax would be unreasonable given the circumstances, unsustainable for Canadians, and hurts sectors of the economy that are still recovering from the impacts of the
