Business and Governments Must Work Together to Restore Confidence and Renew Growth

October 31, 2008

Top business leaders from across the country today pledged to work with all levels of government to help Canada weather the current economic storm and build a more secure future for all Canadians.

“We have confidence in Canada’s strengths,” the Canadian Council of Chief Executives (CCCE) said in a statement released after the organization’s Autumn Members’ Meeting in Montreal.

“Events beyond our country’s control have rocked global financial markets, sapping consumer and business confidence around the world. Canada cannot escape the consequences: our economy must deal with daunting challenges and our families and communities face real pain. No matter what we do, the economic situation is likely to get worse before it gets better, but governments and business can take action now to minimize the damage and lay the groundwork for early and sustained recovery.”

The full text of the Council’s statement can be downloaded from the CCCE website, at www.ceocouncil.ca.

The CCCE is Canada’s senior business association, composed of 150 chief executive officers and leading entrepreneurs from all major sectors and regions of the country. Its members met on October 27 and 28 in the presence of Finance Minister Jim Flaherty and Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney to discuss the impact of the global financial crisis on the Canadian economy, business strategies and public policy priorities.

“Our members are determined to do everything in their power to maintain and renew economic growth,” said CCCE Chief Executive and President Thomas d’Aquino. He added that the Council’s Board of Directors will spearhead its members’ efforts to work with federal and provincial governments in the months ahead. “This is a time when political leaders must come together across partisan and jurisdictional lines to shape the solutions that Canadians need.”

A sound and coordinated strategy will position Canada for a rapid return to economic health, Mr. d’Aquino said. “We must make the most of our country’s many strengths, seize the opportunities created by the global crisis and ensure that our economy and our society emerge stronger than ever.”

Founded in 1976, the CCCE is an association of business leaders committed to the shaping of sound public policy in Canada, North America and the world. CCCE members lead companies that collectively administer $3.5 trillion in assets, have annual revenues of more than $800 billion, and are responsible for the vast majority of Canada’s exports, investment, research and development, and training.

In addition to Mr. d’Aquino, the members of the CCCE’s Executive Committee are: Chair, Gordon M. Nixon, President and Chief Executive Officer, Royal Bank of Canada; Honorary Chair Richard L. George, President and Chief Executive Officer of Suncor Energy Inc.; and Vice Chairs Dominic D’Alessandro, Paul Desmarais, Jr., Jacques Lamarre, Hartley T. Richardson and Annette Verschuren, the chief executives respectively of Manulife Financial, Power Corporation of Canada, SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., James Richardson & Sons, Limited and The Home Depot Canada and Asia.