'It's not business as usual': Calgary Chamber of Commerce proposes plan for Canada's economy

With a federal election looming and tensions growing with the U.S. government, the Calgary Chamber of Commerce says it's more important than ever for Canada to have a plan for its economic future.

That's why it released a new report, "Inflection Point: A Plan for a Competitive, Productive, Prosperous Canada," which outlines 82 public policy recommendations for policymakers and political parties, based on conversations with businesses and polling of Canadians.

It highlights five main themes for the federal government to prioritize: competitiveness, trade, entrepreneurship, labour and community well-being.

Calgary Chamber CEO Deborah Yedlin says Canada has been struggling with economic growth and productivity for years — issues made worse by U.S. tariff threats.

"It's not business as usual. President Trump has made that very clear," said Yedlin.

"The level of angst around where we go next is something I've never seen in all my years.… We cannot rest on our laurels or on the goodwill of others or what we've always done. We have to think again. We must be the architects of our own future."

In the report, the chamber argues businesses can be at the forefront of solving challenges facing Canada, with 63 per cent of Canadians polled saying businesses should drive Canada's economic agenda. But businesses need more support from the federal government, according to the report, starting with reduced red tape to allow businesses to grow.

With trade at the top of Canadians' minds, the chamber is also urging the federal government to create interprovincial trade corridors to reduce reliance on the U.S. for economic growth. That would make a significant difference for small businesses, says Yedlin.

"Forty-two per cent of Canadian exports to the United States come from small businesses, and small businesses account for 98 per cent of all businesses in Canada," she said.

The chamber's 82 recommendations include more investment in minority-owned businesses, working more closely with post-secondary institutions to close skills gaps, prioritizing public safety for small businesses and increasing Canada's oil refining capacity.

It's also calling — again — on the federal government to cancel the proposed emissions cap on the oil and gas sector, remove or significantly change the clean electricity regulations and amend the Impact Assessment Act.

Jeff Griffiths, director of skills, innovation and productivity with the Canada West Foundation, says increased public interest in longstanding issues like lagging productivity could be an opportunity for change.

"Let's never let a crisis go to waste. Maybe some of the stuff that's going on right now is a sort of existential crisis that allows us to make the hard decisions around investments that we have to make," said Griffiths.

He said the chamber's holistic approach to tackling the issue is valuable, but emphasized the importance of creating ongoing incentives for workers to learn how to use new technologies.

"Investments in digital technologies hasn't generated anywhere near the productivity gain that it should because there hasn't been a consequential investment in the human capital and the human capability of actually using those technologies."

While he's hopeful that people are actually listening this time around, Griffith said changes to Canada's productivity will take time.