Advocacy

An open letter re: critical infrastructure blockades

Feb 11, 2022

Canadian businesses have suffered under the strain of constant disruptions over the last two years. The challenges they have had to overcome have included COVID-19, extreme weather events, increasing inflationary pressures, labour shortages and supply chain disruptions. Now achieving a successful recovery is threatened by the ongoing blockades of the critical infrastructure that enables the livelihoods and well-being of all Canadians.

The harm is both immediate and severe. Each hour that these blockades continue does more serious damage to our economy and to our society. Manufacturers that depend on just-in-time delivery have been forced to cancel shifts for thousands of workers, shipments of livestock and of fresh produce face serious delays or waste that threaten food security, and deliveries of products that are greatly needed by Canadian families are being cancelled. These curtailments will only grow in scope and impact if the blockades continue.

Allowing these illegal closures to continue will also have serious economic and reputational consequences for the years ahead. The blockades not only strike against the rule of law that protects our rights and freedoms, but also undermine Canada’s international reputation. We are already hearing calls to move investment, contracts, and production from Canada because of our inability to guarantee timely delivery to international customers.

Canadians expect our elected representatives at all levels of government and from all political parties to set aside partisanship and jurisdictional squabbling to bring this issue to a quick resolution.

Our organizations call upon our elected representatives to expeditiously take the following actions.

• Deliver a strong and unified commitment from the Prime Minister, Premiers, Opposition Party Leaders, and Mayors that the rule of law will be upheld.
• Urgently enact measures to protect critical infrastructure to ensure further closures do not take place elsewhere in the country in the days ahead.
• Seek immediate injunctive measures through the courts to assert a clear message that lawlessness will not be tolerated.
• Ensure law enforcement agencies have all the necessary political support and appropriate tools needed to restore public order and remove any physical blockades that are not dismantled voluntarily.

Along with the vast majority of Canadians, Canada’s business community looks to you to restore the rule of law and to bring a successful end to these illegal actions that are damaging our economy and the well-being of our citizens. As order is re-established, we pledge to do our best to restore the jobs, products and services so greatly needed by our fellow citizens. 

Click here to view all the signatories. 

Do you want to take action? Write your elected official(s) at the federal, provincial, or municipal level. Download this letter template and send it to your elected officials to let them know your concern over the ongoing illegal blockades. 

Click here to read an Op-Ed by Perrin Beatty, President & CEO and Mark Agnew, Senior Vice President, Policy and Government Relations at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. Originally published in Policy Magazine.

Click here to read the letter from February 8th, signed by over 100 Canadian & U.S. business associations to call for immediate action to open the Ambassador Bridge.