There’s a lot to like in Budget 2021, but Canadians know there’s no free lunch

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Dear Friends,

Following yesterday’s highly anticipated federal budget, I gave full marks to Chrystia Freeland for doing what no man has been able to do: bringing forward an ambitious national plan for affordable child care.

But to make this plan a reality and to sustain all our public services and social programs – especially our healthcare system that has been overwhelmed by the pandemic – we need to be more ambitious when it comes to long-term economic growth. Otherwise, we risk leaving a significant burden to future taxpayers.

Budget 2021 offers some welcome initiatives around child care, skills development, climate change, and infrastructure among others. Realizing those goals will require partnership between the public and private sectors. Together we can grow our economy and improve the quality of life of all Canadians. 

Sincerely,

Goldy Hyder
President and CEO
Business Council of Canada

Last Thursday we released a major climate policy report – Clean Growth 3.0: Achieving Canadian Prosperity in a Net-Zero World. Building on two ground-breaking reports from 2007 and 2010, Clean Growth 3.0 outlines a framework for achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. It calls on the federal government to develop a clear, long-term, predictable emissions-reduction plan. And it recognizes the important role that the public and private sectors – and all Canadians – must play in achieving ambitious emissions goals.

The latest episode of the Speaking of Business podcast features Jon Love, Founder and CEO of KingSett Capital sharing his insights on the future of Canada’s downtowns. I hope you enjoy this uplifting conversation about how we can breathe new life into our cities post-pandemic.

And on Thursday don’t miss our new episode – my conversation with Sabrina Geremia, country manager of Google Canada.  We’ll discuss the importance of training in the modern digital economy.