Red Deer Chamber of Commerce urging voters to choose a prosperous future

News release from the Red Deer and District Chamber of Commerce

A Vote for Prosperity is a Vote for a Better Alberta

Over the past few years Alberta has managed to emerge from the COVID 19 Pandemic in a strong position for growth and prosperity. Since 2019 the state of the business environment has improved in part due to the advocacy of the Alberta Chambers Network working together to advocate for strong business policies in Alberta. Some of those advances include lowering the general corporate tax rate turned declining investment in Alberta around, opening our borders to trade and labour mobility, leading efforts to build national trade corridors, and inspired reciprocity of provincial partners with a vision to build a stronger economy together. As well establishing the Alberta Indigenous Opportunities Corporation is setting a new standard for collaborative economic development to build healthy communities. And, for the first time in decades, our nonrenewable resource wealth is being prudently saved for the future.

Today, Alberta leads all provinces in wage growth and job creation per capita. But we cannot rest on our laurels. We need to continue to advocate for good business and economic development policies to continue to reach for a brighter future.

It is with this in mind the Red Deer & District Chamber of Commerce is supporting the Alberta Chambers of Commerce in their Vote Prosperity 2023 platform. This platform focuses on a number of policy recommendations with the goal of allowing our businesses to thrive and create the foundation for healthy and vibrant communities across our province.

Vote Prosperity 2023 informs a path forward for the next provincial government to continue expanding opportunities for shared prosperity. This path forward includes, furthering small businesses in Alberta’s corporate tax advantage to help entrepreneurs create jobs. Reducing regulatory burdens limiting trade and competition would improve cost competitiveness for business and affordability for residents, strengthening Alberta’s reputation as a proponent of commerce. Better preparing young Albertans with hands on learning would help them build careers around their talents and Alberta to develop a highly skilled workforce. Improving fiscal stability and value-for-money of local and provincial public services would enable investment attraction and the viability of our communities.

There are for pillars to the Vote Prosperity 2023 platform for business in Alberta:

1. Strengthening business competitiveness – Lead the nation in tax competitiveness and the reduction of regulatory burdens, Reduce Alberta’s greenhouse gas emissions while minimizing risks to business competitiveness, Enable competition and free trade for current and emerging sources of electricity. Work with Confederation partners to establish an internationally competitive regulatory environment for all industries.

2. Growing provincial trade – Facilitate collaboration among Indigenous communities and industry on economic development. Develop and expand economic corridors to increase access to domestic and international markets. Accelerate review and approval processes for trade-enabling infrastructure projects. Continue removing interprovincial trade barriers to strengthen local supply chains.

3. Building healthy communities – Deploy health care talent with sustainable resourcing throughout the province. Equip post-secondary institutions to meet employer demands through high-quality labor market information and targeted funding for in-demand occupations. Expand work-integrated and entrepreneurial learning models in K-12 and post-secondary education. Alleviate socio-economic and regulatory barriers to fully participate in the labour market.

4. Improving government accountability – Adhere to the fiscal sustainability framework and pay down debt. Appoint an independent panel of experts to review current and alternative revenue options with the view to deliver stable and predictable budgets. Eliminate or make transparent hidden and duplicative taxes within provincial purview. Align predictable funding for municipalities with performance metrics to improve local business services.

Albertans believe the province’s business community should have a role in developing a vision and providing leadership to move the province forward. Vote Prosperity 2023 provides that leadership. We encourage voters in the coming Alberta election to support candidates committed to our shared prosperity.

Representing over 24,000 businesses in our province, the Alberta Chambers is comprised of over 100 community Chambers throughout the province and the largest and most influential business association in the province. These pillars symbolize the outcome of nearly one hundred community-driven policies proposed by Chambers, with substantial contributions from the Red Deer Chamber. It is our belief these pillars are the foundation to restoring our province’s prosperity and the health and vibrancy of the communities that comprise it.

The Red Deer & District Chamber of Commerce in partnership with the Alberta Chambers is advocating this platform to all parties and candidates running for election this spring. For more information and to read the platform in its entirety, visit: https://www.abchamber.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/VP-Designed-Platform-Doc.pdf

Established in 1894 the Red Deer & District Chamber of Commerce is a non-partisan, collaborative business leader representing over 825 member businesses. As one of Red Deer’s oldest and most established membership organizations we are striving to build a vibrant community that fosters an environment where businesses can lead, be innovative, sustainable, and grow.

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Business

Trump signs executive order banning government censorship

Published on January 20, 2025

Todayville

From The Center Square

By Dan McCaleb

President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order banning the federal government from taking any action to restrict Americans free speech rights.

The order ensures “that no Federal Government officer, employee, or agent engages in or facilitates any conduct that would unconstitutionally abridge the free speech of any American citizen.”

It also ensures “that no taxpayer resources are used to engage in or facilitate any conduct that would unconstitutionally abridge the free speech of any American citizen” and “identify and take appropriate action to correct past misconduct by the Federal Government related to censorship of protected speech.”

Meta earlier this month ended its practice of censoring posts on Facebook, Instagram and Threads after CEO Mark Zuckerberg admitted that the Biden administration pressured the company to remove posts related to COVID-19, the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections – including suppressing the New York Post’s explosive story on Hunter Biden’s laptop – and other matters.

“We started building social media to give people a voice,” Zuckerberg said in announcing the decision. “What started as a movement to be more inclusive has increasingly been used to shut down opinions and shut out people with different ideas, and it’s gone too far.”

Twitter, now X, also removed posts under pressure from the Biden administration before Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk bought the social media platform in 2022.

Trump’s executive order also instructs the U.S. Attorney General to investigate past cases of government censorship.

“The Attorney General, in consultation with the heads of executive departments and agencies, shall investigate the activities of the Federal Government over the last 4 years that are inconsistent with the purposes and policies of this order and prepare a report to be submitted to the President, through the Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy, with recommendations for appropriate remedial actions to be taken based on the findings of the report,” the order states.

Dan McCaleb is the executive editor of The Center Square. He welcomes your comments. Contact Dan at [email protected].

Dan McCaleb

Executive Editor

Business

Liberals to increase CBC funding to nearly $2 billion per year

Published on January 20, 2025

Todayville

From LifeSiteNews

By Clare Marie Merkowsky

The Department of Canadian Heritage promised funding to offset the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s nearly 10 percent drop in ad revenue last year despite an audience share of 1.7 percent, meaning over 98 percent of the country is not watching the network.

The Liberal government has promised to spend millions of taxpayer dollars to compensate CBC-TV for ads that the network cannot sell.

According to information released January 20 by Blacklock’s Reporter, the Liberal-run Department of Canadian Heritage will give CBC millions more, bringing the network’s total parliamentary grant near $2 billion a year.

“The CBC has been grappling with a range of financial pressures that are challenging its ability to maintain programming and service levels,” Liberals argued, adding that their department will be “providing additional funding to make it less reliant on private advertising with a goal of eliminating advertising during news and other public affairs shows.”

“The CBC is a pillar of Canada’s creative economy, a key provider of programming made by and for Canadians and a significant source of trusted news and information,” Liberals claimed.

“This government is committed to ensuring the sustainability of the CBC so that it can continue to create public value and adapt to the needs and expectations of Canadians,” the department continued.

The increased government subsidies come after an October report found that CBC’s advertising revenue dropped nearly 10 percent last year.

Furthermore, CBC’s own quarterly report found that its network audience share is only 1.7%, meaning more than 98% of Canadians are not watching CBC.

However, Liberals have chosen to ignore the fact that Canadians are not watching CBC, instead spending millions of dollars to prop up the failing outlet.

Beginning in 2019, Parliament changed the Income Tax Act to give yearly rebates of 25 percent for each news employee in cabinet-approved media outlets earning up to $55,000 a year to a maximum of $13,750.

Last November, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau again announced increased payouts for legacy media outlets that coincide with the leadup to the 2025 election. The subsidies are expected to cost taxpayers $129 million over the next five years.

That amount to the CBC is in addition to massive media payouts that already make up roughly 70 percent of its operating budget and total more than $1 billion annually.

However, many have pointed out that the obscene amount of money thrown at CBC by Liberals is a ploy to buy the outlet’s loyalty.

Furthermore, in October, Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge’s department admitted that federally funded media outlets buy “social cohesion.”

Additionally, in September, House leader Karina Gould directed mainstream media reporters to “scrutinize” Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre, who has repeatedly condemned government-funded media as an arm of the Liberals.

Gould’s comments were in reference to Poilievre’s promise to defund the CBC if elected prime minister. Poilievre is a longtime critic of government-funded media, especially the CBC.