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POSTED | February 23, 2017

Protecting our economic relationship with the United States - letter from the Canadian Chamber of Commerce

Dear Chamber member,

Like you, we are concerned about what the new administration in Washington means for Canada-U.S. relations in general and for business in particular. We all know examples of businesses that have put investment plans on hold until the picture becomes clearer.

Protecting and enhancing Canada’s relationship with the United States is a very high priority for the Canadian Chamber. Since the presidential election, we have been ramping up our efforts. So far, we:

Met the Prime Minister, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Finance Minister and other members of Cabinet, as well as the Leader of the Opposition.
Hosted a visit to Ottawa by the President of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Tom Donohue.
Met the top officials in the trade department and the Prime Minister’s Office responsible for Canada-U.S. relations.
Convened our International Policy Committee to determine priority sectors and begin work on specific policy advisories.
Began discussions with regional groups of local chambers of commerce.
Brought together sector associations to share intelligence and work together on a campaign to promote the relationship.

This is just the beginning.

Today, we are sharing with you our new strategy, Shaping the Future of Canada-U.S. Trade, which outlines the actions we will be taking to promote the advantages of NAFTA and bilateral trade.

As you will see in the strategy document, we will soon be launching a campaign, in concert with our membership, to reach out to U.S. businesses and lawmakers to enlist their support for maintaining and enhancing the world’s most successful international partnership.

Working closely with the Canadian government, we will help coordinate and equip our membership to work across the border in as many ways possible, to engage with American businesses and encourage policies that strengthen our mutually beneficial ties.

In order to be as efficient as possible in our planning, we ask that you please complete this brief survey so that we can get a good understanding of your ties with your U.S. partners.

Armed with this knowledge and with your help, we will roll out a proactive and efficient strategy, ensuring we build the foundations of the next 150 years of Canadian business success.

Sincerely,

Perrin Beatty
President & CEO