The Langley Chamber recently presented to the BC government budget committee as part of the Province’s 2027 budget consultation process.

Each year, the committee hears from individuals, organizations, and stakeholders across BC to help shape recommendations for the next provincial budget. These consultations influence the Province’s decisions around spending, taxation, services, and investment priorities.

While many groups appear before the committee to speak about what they want to see in the provincial budget, there are often very few business organizations participating in the process. For the Langley Chamber, it is critically important that business concerns are part of that conversation, and not lost among the many other priorities brought forward. 

The Langley Chamber focused its remarks to the committee on three key priorities: confidence, competitiveness, and connectivity:

Confidence - the Chamber called on the Province to get spending under control and put us on a path to reducing the $13 billion deficit.  With that kind of deficit spending, business and industry can only assume that future tax increases and regulatory changes are likely, chilling investment decisions. 

Competitiveness - The next provincial budget should make it easier for businesses to invest, grow, hire, and stay competitive in BC.  The steady expansion of both tax and regulatory costs on business (like the PST expansion and the many Employment Standards Act changes) is making it more costly and difficult for businesses to grow in BC. 

Connectivity - the Chamber emphasized the need for continued investment in transit and transportation infrastructure that helps people and goods move more efficiently. This includes priorities like funding the Langley-Haney Bus Rapid Transit line,  and funding trade-enabling infrastructure improvements that support the movement of goods and workers across Langley and the Fraser Valley.

The Chambers message is clear. The next provincial budget should be one that supports businesses.

As Langley’s largest business association, the Chamber will continue to bring forward the concerns and priorities of local businesses and advocate for a provincial budget that supports fiscal responsibility, economic competitiveness, and the infrastructure needed for long-term growth.