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The federal government published its 2022 budget on April 7th with a focus on three major topics: investing in our people, growing the economy under the green transition and tackling productivity and innovation. Within this budget, there are a number of wins that can be celebrated by the Canadian Chamber. These wins are accomplished by the pre-budget submissions from the Canadian Chamber as well as the policy resolutions passed by local chambers at the previous AGMs.
As the world moves towards electrification, more resources are needed in order to build batteries to be used for things like smart phones, vehicles, and large scale storage of energy. These batteries require critical minerals in order to be produced and Canada has an opportunity to develop a manufacturing sector to create these batteries for the future. Within the 2022 budget, the federal government has committed $1.5 billion over seven years for infrastructure investments to support critical mineral supply chains, plus a further $1.5 billion to support manufacturing, processing and recycling applications. They have also committed an additional $450 million over five years for the National Trade Corridor Fund in order to place more of the funds focus on supply chains.
One of the major issues still faced by employers is the lack of readily available labour. Without this labour, Canada will be unable to fulfill its promises on housing, infrastructure, and services. Thankfully, the 2022 budget has introduced funding to help employers find labour when they need it the most. This commitment includes: $4,000 labour mobility tax credit for relocation of skilled trade workers, development of a Career Extension Tax Credit to keep workers in the workplace for longer, as well as $272.6 million over five years through the Opportunities Fund to support labour market integration for persons with disabilities.
Another issue faced by small business owners is the tax burden placed on small businesses. In order to relieve some of this burden, the 2022 budget will introduce a gradual phase-out of access to the small business tax rate, with access to be fully phased out once a business reaches $50 million of capital rather than the current $15 million. This will save small businesses an estimated $660 million over four years by keeping them within the small business tax rate for longer.
To view the full list of wins for businesses in the 2022 budget, please visit: https://chamber.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Budget-2022-Wins-for-Business.pdf
