Ottawa - Gord Brown, Member of Parliament for Leeds-Grenville, encourages local businesses to participate in the Red Tape Reduction Commission.

“Our small and medium sized businesses are growing our economy,” explains Brown. “We are working to reduce the amount of time and money they have to spend dealing with government regulations.”

Announced at the end of January by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Rob Moore, Minister of State (Small Business and Tourism), the commission will work to reduce the burden of federal regulatory requirements on Canadian enterprises, especially small- and medium-sized businesses.

“Small and medium-sized businesses are a critical driver of the Canadian economy,” said the Prime Minister. “This initiative will help ensure that they can grow, prosper and create jobs without being impeded by unnecessary government regulations.”

The Red Tape Reduction Commission, chaired by Minister of State Moore, will help find effective and lasting solutions to support Canadian small- and medium-sized businesses.

It will consult with Canadians and Canadian businesses to identify irritants that have a clear detrimental effect on growth, competitiveness and innovation.The Commission will also look at the cost associated with federal regulatory requirements that businesses face, and provide advice on permanent solutions for reducing the overall compliance burden. 

“Canadian businesses spend billions of dollars each year adhering to regulations,” added Prime Minister Harper.  “We need to look at where and how we can reduce these costs and this red-tape burden, especially on small businesses.”

An online consultation process is also available at www.reduceredtape.gc.ca before the Commission issues its recommendations to the Government in the fall of 2011 and Brown encourages local businesses to participate.