Good morning.
My name is Sandy Babcock, and I'm the president of the Yukon Chamber of Commerce.
I apologize for my tardiness this morning. We have this great, exciting conference starting today, and my phone has not stopped ringing. My apologies.
It is with deepest appreciation that we come before the committee to express our views for consideration in your pre-budget consultations. It's particularly encouraging that you've come to Whitehorse to listen to us speak and give us this opportunity.
The Yukon Chamber of Commerce is the umbrella organization of all Yukon community chambers of commerce, effectively representing over 800 businesses in the territory.
In the fall of 2010 the Yukon government released a report on business and the economy in the territory. They identified that there are over 3,000 businesses in the territory. However, 51% are home-based businesses. I think that gives you some indication of the size of the business community we operate in.
We represent business through the areas of legislation, regulation, infrastructure development, and business and economic development.
As you are aware, the Yukon is one of the very few jurisdictions in Canada that has no net debt and enjoys a healthy financial position. Without federal programs and initiatives, such as Building Canada, and infrastructure and stimulus funding that have greatly benefited the Yukon, this would not be the case.
We support the federal government's commitment to balance its books by 2015-16, while staying the course on promised corporate tax reductions. Through the vision and commitment of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, the north is a priority not only for the federal government but also for corporate Canada.
General Electric recently released a report called “The Business Case for Investing in Canada’s Remote Communities”. This identified many of the gaps and opportunities across Canada's north. The report identifies and supports three of the top priorities of the Yukon Chamber of Commerce.
Priority number one is investment in a comprehensive economic development strategy. The Government of Canada has developed a northern strategy, and this strategy has raised awareness and commitment to developing Canada's north. The absence of a comprehensive economic development strategy for the Yukon is seen by us to be detrimental in the execution of the northern strategy.
Our recommendation is that the federal government support and participate in the development of a comprehensive economic development strategy in partnership with the private sector, Yukon government, and Yukon first nations.
Our second priority is investment in infrastructure. The Yukon is a small jurisdiction with limited financial resources; however, our infrastructure needs are large. With the huge demand for resources in the highly active tourism and mining sectors, we have new needs, and the importance of infrastructure cannot be stressed enough.
Our first recommendation in that area would be that the federal government invest in providing the Yukon with the ability to develop a clean and reliable energy strategy that addresses generation and transmission to support economic development. The Yukon is currently a stand-alone transmission system. When our power goes out, life as we know it in the business world comes to a halt. You cannot do business without power. The impact on small business is horrific in terms of computer issues. When the power goes out suddenly, a lot of expense has to be provided by the private sector, out of their funding, to make repairs.
Our next recommendation is that the government invest in broadband infrastructure projects that support economic development. Our broadband telecommunications system is again a stand-alone system. When the system goes down, commerce cannot happen. Debit machines do not operate. Credit card transactions are not available. Stores have to close down until the power goes on. We probably enjoy at least 10 to 12 major power outages per year, which really has a significant impact on our ability to conduct business.
It is these investments that we feel will contribute to the economic sustainability of the Yukon, resulting in us being a net contributor to Canada's economy.
Thank you.