International Trade committee  Let me give you this example. I was on the phone this very week with a company from England, the U.K., about doing business together. We got into a conversation about Brexit. It's going to make it more difficult for me to provide a service that isn't locally available to my customers that is available through this U.K. company, because of Brexit.

International Trade committee  We do. One of the things the chamber of commerce movement tries to achieve is full education. I'll just give you an example. We had a meeting with members and other organizations yesterday, and we started the whole day with a conversation about corporate social responsibility. This is a small town we live in.

International Trade committee  I look at it from the Newfoundland and Labrador perspective. We have some of the worst demographics in this country. We're challenged every day with how to grow an economy at a time when we have an aging population, a population that's declining, and only half a million people. There have been some studies that show that a city is only self-sustaining when it's at a half a million, so we're really a big city that's spread across a very large geography.

International Trade committee  Our membership is 72% small business. As I said, we count that as 50 and under. I represent a company of three. I'm here making a presentation and my business partners are back in the office trying to get the job done. This is critical. As I said, I value the points of the co-panellists we have here.

International Trade committee  My understanding is that these new agreements will modernize the way that business happens. I'll give the example of the technology sector in Newfoundland and Labrador. I was involved in the sector 10 years ago. It was a $30-million sector. Right now it's over $100 million of business, and the majority of that has been achieved through international trade.

International Trade committee  It will. As Mr. Haire said, I think the fishing industry is probably the one that's primed the most. Our organization is very broad. We're seeing opportunities for technology companies. We're seeing opportunity for new media companies. It's going to depend on readiness, as Mr.

International Trade committee  Absolutely. Our position on your question would be that government's job is to create opportunity by setting the table for things to happen, then business's job is to get it done. In Newfoundland and Labrador, 59% of employment rests in the private sector, so we see this as an opportunity for government to do its job.

International Trade committee  Small business is under 50 employees. My company has three employees. We just hired our first person outside of the ownership, and my company is two years old. The best example I can give is based on the way I look at this from my own personal perspective in that we're growing local services that we are providing in the community, but we have a larger plan to build a piece of technology and then go to the outside world.

International Trade committee  There's been a long-term discussion in this province about diversification. We had a premier in 1949, our first premier, whose philosophy was develop or perish. At the St. John's Board of Trade, we have spent quite a significant bit of time talking about what exactly diversification means.

International Trade committee  The St. John's Board of Trade is an accredited organization. We have a strong policy development group that does take some feedback from the Canadian chamber, and then it comes up through.

International Trade committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair, for the opportunity to speak to the committee today about the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement. I'm speaking to you today, as you mentioned, as the chair of the St. John's Board of Trade. The St. John's Board of Trade is the voice of business in Newfoundland and Labrador and an advocate for sustained economic prosperity.