Our Voice
Current Issues
As the voice of business in Brandon, the Chamber of Commerce works with its members on both policy and advocacy to ensure the strongest possible business environment for our members. This means hearing from members on what could be done municipally, provincially and federally to help them do business better, and then working to make those ideas a reality. As an organization, the Chamber works to research and identify issues of importance or concern for business, often through committees. Through rigorous work and consultation, the Chamber sometimes develops position papers or policies on these issues.
Provincial Policies Approved by Manitoba Chambers
Every year, chambers from across the province come together to discuss and debate policy that reflect the grassroot challenges and needs of the Manitoba businesses. Representatives from the Brandon Chamber will attend this year’s Manitoba Chamber AGM & Economic Summit on April 25th & 26th, 2024 and we are hoping to get support for approval of 3 renewed policies and 1 new policy.
- Renewed
- Creating a Manitoba Post-Secondary Transfer Credit System
- Support for First Nation Development Areas (FNUDAs)
- New
- Support from province to re-evaluate the federal government’s proposed 30% fertilizer emissions reduction plan.
Stay tuned to see if these policies are passed at the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce AGM!
City of Brandon Budget
Every year, the Brandon Chambers of Commerce participates in pre-budget consultations with the City of Brandon through stakeholder meetings and by participating in public consultations and attending budget deliberations.
Provincial Budget
Every year, the Brandon Chamber of Commerce submits a pre-budget commentary to the provincial government’s public consultation process. Following this, President Lois Ruston and General Manager, Connor Ketchen, travelled to Winnipeg for the April 2nd, 2024 release of the Provincial budget.
Brandon School Division Budget
Through stakeholder meetings and consultations, the Brandon Chamber provides recommendations to the school division on their annual budget and to keep updated on the school division’s Continuous Improvement Plan. In February 2024, we once again met with school division representatives to discuss priority issues including value for tax dollars, maintaining infrastructure, while also prioritizing the education of our children and the future generation workforce.