SSMCOC: Budget 2025 is Grounded in Investment and Productivity
Boosting Business Confidence will be Key to Ensuring Success
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 5, 2025
[Sault Ste. Marie] The Federal Government’s 2025 Budget centres on business and investment, probably more than any budget in recent memory, however its success will depend on private capital investment and for that to happen, businesses and investors will need to feel confident in our economic direction and the Canadian brand. That is the takeaway of the Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce (SSMCOC) following yesterday’s federal Budget tabled by Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne.
“Many of yesterday’s budget items align with issues that that the Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce has been advancing… some for several years,” says SSMCOC President, La-Na Fragomeni.
“We’re pleased to see strong emphasis and repeated reference in the budget to the government’s Buy Canadian Policy. As a Chamber, we will be watching closely and continue to advocate that Canadian-made steel has to be a priority in federal construction projects and manufacturing,” she adds. “We also hope that the rebuild investment in Canada’s Armed Forces can open doors for our local steel sector.”
The Chamber acknowledges that locally, there is likely going to be displacement across all business sectors due to ongoing tariffs and the market shift in manufacturing. The federal budget will invest $570M in Labour Market Development Agreements with Canada’s provinces and territories to support training and employment assistance for workers impacted by trade and global market transitions. This builds on $70 million in Labour Market Development Agreements to provide training and income supports for up to 10,000 affected steel workers that was announced in July.
Fragomeni notes that SSMCOC staff have already been proactively involved in meeting with Canada’s Federal Commissioner for Employers to ensure that our local Chamber has access to resources for local businesses of all types of that are being negatively impacted by the current trade environment. She suggests that the local Chamber hopes to receive those resources in short order so that they can connect local businesses in the weeks to come.
The Canadian Chamber of Commerce (CCC) also agrees that the importance of supporting and investing in the Canadian workforce is critical to our economy.
“Measures and investments announced in the Budget are a step in the right direction, particularly around supports for workers impacted by U.S. tariffs, expansion of apprenticeship training in the skilled trades, focus on an international talent strategy to drive innovation, and action on foreign credential recognition,” says Diana Palmerin-Velasco, CCC Senior Director, Future of Work. “We reiterate the need to expand access to skilled trades investments and not limit eligibility to training exclusively provided by unions. We also urge the government to continue working in close collaboration with the provinces and territories to truly accelerate the foreign credential recognition of the thousands of workers prevented from contributing meaningfully to the economy and alleviating labour shortages in critical sectors like healthcare and construction.”
While the Budget effectively freezes immigration levels for permanent residents, the federal government is significantly reducing the number of temporary residents it allows into Canada over the next few years by about 43 per cent less than the 2025 target. The local Chamber is concerned that this will further impact colleges and universities which have already seen a drastic reduction in enrolment, as well as businesses that rely on temporary foreign workers.
“We know the important role that temporary foreign workers play in some sectors of the economy and in some parts of the country, particularly Northern Ontario,” says Fragomeni. “The reduction in international students that we have seen locally directly impacts the revenues of our local post-secondary institutions, their ability to offer programs and employment opportunities. Further, it also trickles down to the community at large and impacts everything from busing to housing, tourism, and small business.”
One of the biggest investments in Budget 2025 is the new Build Communities Strong Fund, which will provide $51 billion over 10 years for a wide-range of infrastructure projects. This includes a provincial and territorial stream and a direct delivery stream that support local infrastructure and will provide support to regionally significant projects. The Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce is hopeful that dollars from the Build Communities Strong Fund will be available to support local health care, transit, roads and community centres, as well as advancing development of the Port of Algoma.
Tuesday’s budget also saw the introduction of what the Department of Finance calls a Productivity Super-Deduction, a set of enhanced tax incentives covering all new capital investment that allows businesses to write off a larger share of the cost of these investments right away. These incentives will make it easier for businesses to invest and grow. Under this measure, companies can recover their investment cost faster through the tax system. This makes it more attractive to invest in machinery, equipment, technology, and other productivity-enhancing assets and improves Canada's competitiveness for attracting investment.
“We feel that today’s budget reflects the urgency of this particular moment in time,” says Fragomeni. “The key to its success however will depend on creating sense of confidence among small and medium-sized businesses and among investors, both domestic and foreign. We know from recent Ontario Chamber of Commerce polling that only one in three Ontario business decision-makers are confident in the current economic outlook. The good news is 61 per cent indicated that they were confident in their own ability to adapt. Today’s budget offers some of the tools needed to do so.”
About the Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce
The Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce is a not-for-profit organization comprised of 600 plus businesses and agencies in Sault Ste. Marie and has been serving the needs of this community since 1889. The Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce will lead the way as the voice of business, advancing economic prosperity for its membership and the business community. Learn more about the SSMCOC at www.ssmcoc.com
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SSMCOC Media Contact:
La-Na Fragomeni
President
Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce
E-mail: president@ssmcoc.com
