Hamilton, ON, January 14th, 2016: The Hamilton Chamber of Commerce has submitted a pre-budget submission in response to a public consultation process announced by the Federal Government. The recommendations were also presented to local Liberal MPs, Filomena Tassi (MP Hamilton West-Ancaster-Dundas) and Bob Bratina (Hamilton East-Stoney Creek) yesterday during a community pre-budget townhall.

The document outlines key advocacy priorities for the organization. Key recommendations include:

1. The Federal Government develop a national urban policy for Canadian municipalities and support the City of Hamilton’s public and social infrastructure needs. 

   The recommendation also highlights the currently unfunded Rapid Transit projects identified by the City of Hamilton (A-Line LRT, BLAST network buses) that could be covered by the Liberal government’s platform proposal to allocate $20 Billion to fund public transit and other infrastructure projects.

2. The Federal government support the role of Hamilton within the North American Manufacturing cluster.

   Metropolitan areas like Hamilton generate over 86 percent of the combined GDP of the United States, Canada and Mexico. Hamilton is conveniently located near major economic clusters on the eastern seaboard of the United States, our port acts as a major Terminus of the St Lawrence Seaway system and the Hamilton International Airport is already a major cargo hub. Additionally, our community has significant assets and a history of world-class manufacturing industries. We have all the ingredients to emerge as an advanced manufacturing hub in North America. However, the region suffers from chronic underfunding of infrastructure, leading to rising congestion costs for our members. We propose that the government continue and expand the Border Infrastructure Investment Plan, Gateway and Border Crossings Fund and other initiatives to facilitate goods movement. 

3. Support the growth of Hamilton’s Life Science Innovation Cluster.

   As highlighted in our 2014 Report titled: “Building a Life Sciences Cluster: A case for Hamilton”, Hamilton has significant existing assets and stakeholder alignment necessary to build a commercial innovation cluster. We recommend that the federal government maintain and expand its array of research and development funding tools that support research in Hamilton’s post-secondary institutions and hospitals. Additionally, the government follow through with its platform proposal to “significantly expand support” for accelerators and incubators. 

4. The Federal Government work with local stakeholders to mitigate the economic impact of US Steel Bankruptcy.

   Once one of the largest employers in Hamilton, US Steel has suffered from turbulent times and is currently  in the courts under application for bankruptcy. The situation has led to pensioners losing their health benefits and guaranteed income fund. We urge the government to:

   • Work with the Province of Ontario to ensure that USSC pensioners have full access to Pension Benefits Guarantee Fund.
   • Work with the province and municipality to explore all options related to reincorporating or selling of US Steel if the bankruptcy is finalized.
   • Explore funding envelopes that will support remediation of US Steel lands towards alternative economic uses. The 328-hectare estate of US Steel is located in a prime waterfront location. Despite the surface contamination, there is potential for the lands to be adapted into greenhouses, warehouses, advanced manufacturing, parks and hotels through government remediation support.

You can find the full submission here: Hamilton Chamber 2016 Federal pre-budget submission

Members of the public and businesses are encouraged to participate in the process and are able to submit their input via the options listed here

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If you have any questions or comments feel free to get in touch with:

Huzaifa Saeed

Policy & Research Analyst

h.saeed@hamiltonchamber.ca | T: 905-522-1151 ext: 230

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