2009 was once again extremely busy for the Greater Oshawa Chamber of Commerce, with close to 2500 business people attending the over 60 events and meetings throughout the year. An army of close to 100 volunteers organized events, researched and discussed issues affecting the business community. The events ranged in size from 10 to 12 at Lunch and Learn to over 260 at our Business Excellence Awards. Membership in a tough economy held with over 1,100 entrepreneurs, managers and corporate executives on the Chamber Who’s Who list.

In a marathon meeting on Friday, December 18, 2009 Oshawa councilors poured over the confidential report on the harbour. Council voted unanimously to accept the staff report which will now be taken back to Transport Canada, with a finalized deal expected early in the New Year.

A stronger AECL creates more opportunities for Canadian businesses in the international marketplace. The Organization of CANDU Industries (OCI) applauds the federal government's progress in the restructuring of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) and the invitation for potential investors to help strengthen Canada's nuclear industry. A stronger AECL, positioned to compete internationally, will have a powerful impact on Canada's economy and the thousands of workers who make up Canada's nuclear supply chain.

The Canadian Anti Fraud Center (Phonebusters) working in partnership with the RCMP have advised the Chamber that numerous scams are running rampant across Canada and they are asking for your assistance fighting online fraud. Please forward any suspicious emails where credit card numbers are being used to purchase product from your company to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . The CAFC would like to remind you when accepting a credit card not present; (by phone or email) if that card is being used fraudulently the merchant is responsible for the loss. Fraud: Recognize it...Report it...Stop it!

Submitted by Clyde Catton, B.B.A., C.A., Tax Partner, BDO Canada LLP Chartered Accountants. On October 14, 2009, the Ontario Ministry of Finance released Information Notice #3 (the “Ontario Notice”) outlining the general transition rules in support of its implementation of the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST). The HST is scheduled to come into effect on July 1, 2010 subject to legislative approval. Further details of how the HST will be implemented will be released in the coming months. It is expected that the complete policy and administrative details will be released by the end of March 2010. 

Emilia Marceta, Communications Speciaist for Go Transit and  MetroLinx, met with the Greater Oshawa Chamber of Commerce Government Policy Committee on December 9, 2009 to present an overview of their plans to expand rail service from Oshawa to Bowmanville. Click here to view presentation.

The Greater Oshawa Chamber is on a mission to fill Bob's (Bob Malcolmson, Chamber CEO and General Manager) Chevy Equinox full to overflowing with toys and food to help Settlement House bring Christmas joy to over 1,000 families in need this year. "This year,will be a tough Christmas for many in our community," commented Sandra Sweet of Simcoe Hall Settlement House, "and as of today (December 15th) we have surpassed the 1,000 registration mark and we have a long way to go yet to help everyone." The Chamber is asking its members to dig deep, and consider donating. The Chamber office will be open Monday to Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. from now until Thursday December 17 to accept donations. The Chamber will take donations until noon on Thursday December 24th.

For a list of items most needed, click on MORE >>>

In late November, representatives from Durham Region groups, including Durham College, UOIT, Durham Strategic Energy Alliance, Organization of CANDU Industries, Greater Oshawa Chamber of Commerce, and the Durham Economic Prosperity Conference met with representatives of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce to discuss Canada’s energy future.

The meeting, organized by the Greater Oshawa Chamber of Commerce, and also attended by representatives of Durham Region and the Greater Toronto Marketing Alliance, was the first in a series of meetings to be held across Canada, by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce (CCC) in conjunction with the CCC’s policy paper entitled “Powering up Canadian Prosperity—Realizing the energy sector’s potential and ensuring continued access to a stable, secure, clean and flexible supply of affordable energy—A call by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce for a Canadian Sustainable Energy Strategy”.

[Click here for a full copy of the report, Powering up Canadian Prosperity]
[Click here for the Executive Summary of the report, Powering up Canadian Prosperity]