Policy Search

British Columbia's regulatory environment has become increasingly complex, creating barriers to investment, productivity, and economic growth. While regulation is essential to protect public interest, an overly burdensome framework hinders business development and economic competitiveness. A balanced approach to regulation is necessary to ensure both economic prosperity and public protection.

International economic pressures are affecting British Columbia (BC), and these pressures stem from various global challenges. These external pressures shape BC’s economic outlook, affecting everything from local employment to provincial revenues. Reducing interprovincial trade barriers in Canada can help protect the BC and Canadian economy from external economic uncertainty by making the domestic...

Access to public transit and safe roads is critical for businesses and individuals across British Columbia, supporting local and inter-regional travel. However, the current funding model relies on a patchwork of property taxes, gas taxes, and user fares, which are becoming unsustainable. To meet provincial climate goals, ensure safe and efficient travel, and reduce roadway congestion, it is...

The BC Conservation Officer Service needs additional resources to adequately address public safety, focus on natural resource law enforcement, off-road vehicle enforcement, illegal dumping, human-wildlife conflict prevention, and respond to wildlife-human conflict. Keeping these conflicts to a minimum helps work crews involved in mining exploration, tree planting, and pipeline and power line...

76% of small business owners are planning to exit their business over the next decade, with 75% of these planning to retire. Anticipating the generational shift, Succession Planning is key—but only 34% of Canadian family businesses have a robust, documented and communicated succession plan in place. SME businesses need professional support and moderation to address them properly. Anticipating the...

The ongoing shortage of allied health professionals in rural British Columbia has become critical, directly impacting the quality and accessibility of healthcare. Although the Provincial Nominee Program has enabled many businesses to access global talent, its application in rural communities often lacks the mechanisms necessary to ensure retention. Without clear accountability or incentives to...

Since 2022, BC employers have been required to provide at least 5 days of paid illness or injury leave, otherwise known as ‘sick leave,’ to all employees. While laudable in its aim to support workers and protect workplaces, this new obligation represents an unnecessary intrusion by the government into the employer-employee relationship, creates a financial and administrative burden on businesses...

BC’s Cannabis industry is facing severe economic challenges due to excessive taxation, burdensome regulations, and a lack of enforcement against illicit operators. The federal government legalized cannabis to increase public safety, displace the illicit market, and stimulate the economy. The challenges currently facing BC’s regulated cannabis industry directly undermine those goals. To ensure BC’s...

The BC Zero Carbon Step Code (ZCSC) was introduced in 2023 as part of the BC Building Code to guide the province toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions in new construction. To ensure a balanced approach to emissions reduction, the BC Government should remove the ability for individual municipalities to pre-adopt Zero Carbon Step Code requirements and instead move all jurisdictions forward in...

The Office of the Procurement Ombud (OPO) outlined multiple concerns with government procurement processes in Canada, such as overly complex processes, restrictive evaluation criteria, and a lack of transparency, debriefs and documentation. These issues hinder the competitiveness of the procurement process, create barriers for businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and...