Hamilton Chamber at the Ontario Chamber of Commerce AGM: Policy Resolutions & Awards.

· by Huzaifa Saeed

Hamilton, ON, May 2nd, 2016: The Ontario Chamber of Commerce had it’s annual general meeting on April 28th to 30th in Oakville. The annual meeting is an opportunity for Chambers across Ontario to hear about the progress of the organization, hear from leaders of all three provincial parties, build networks and share best practices with other Chambers and lastly set priorities through the policy resolution process.

At the AGM over 37 resolutions were formally debated and adopted by the membership. Hamilton Chamber of Commerce is pleased to report back that our submissions titled: “Support Ontario’s Steel Industry and it’s Supply Chain Clusters” &  “Establish a Provincial Adult Literacy and Essential Skills Workplace Strategy” were overwhelmingly approved by the delegation and are now an official advocacy priority of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce.

The Hamilton Chamber will be continuing its advocacy on the issues and in particular is working on towards creating and participating in a coalition of Chambers across Canada that will submit two joint resolutions at the upcoming Canadian Chamber of Commerce AGM to support the Steel and Auto Industries.

The Steel Industry policy recommends:

The Ontario Chamber of Commerce urges the Government of Ontario to:

  1. Taking inspiration from the European Steel Technology Platform and “Framework for American Manufacturing” by the United States, work with the federal government to develop a coordinated steel manufacturing strategy that especially prioritizes investment in trade-enabling infrastructure near major clusters.
  2. Explore the legislated and voluntary expansion of procurement tools to include fair and preferential treatment for Canadian steel products where the exported alternative doesn’t meet or exceed Canadian and provincial environmental, health and safety regulations and does not allow similar, fair and equal access to their markets for the same product.
  3. In recognition of the role of the Steel Industry as suppliers of high-performance material in the manufacturing supply chain and in flowing down R&D improvements, prioritize allocation of cap and trade revenue towards the industry to invest in low-carbon processes, technology and innovation and other capital investments.
  4. In consideration of Steel manufacturing being one of Ontario’s trade-exposed industrial facilities, maintain and evaluate expanding the free allowance coverage under cap and trade as well as additional concessions for fixed process emissions within such industries.
  5. Should encourage local suppliers and domestic steel content to be used in all provincially and federally funded projects if the materials can be supplied from domestic sources.

CLICK HERE to read the full list of priorities (note: many submissions were amended during the AGM and will be updated later)


Hamilton Chamber wins Ontario Chamber of Commerce Chair’s Award

In addition to the policy resolution process, plenary and policy breakout sessions on various topics, the AGM also had an awards ceremony to highlight outstanding accomplishments of the network.

We are pleased to report that our chamber, alongside the Burlington Chamber of Commerce jointly won the OCC Chair’s award for our regional collaboration in executing the 2015 Bay Area Economic summit!

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