I support what Shannon says about culture.
The one-for-one rule in British Columbia really had a huge impact on the culture of government. I've talked to civil servants there who have said they used to think of themselves as regulation makers. Now they think of themselves as regulation managers.
It is important that we all get serious about reducing the regulatory burden, because it continues to grow. This is what we hear from our members. Their capacity to deal with it is not growing.
If we are serious about protecting the environment, human health and safety, we have to encourage businesses to focus on the most important regulations. That culture change is enormous.
It also sends a very positive message to the business community around starting to get real about measuring this hidden tax. We should be serious about it. We should be as serious as we are about measuring the other fiscal taxes.
Those are two critical things that it does and many small businesses feel a bit like regulatory reform can be here today, gone tomorrow. Legislating sends a very different message.