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Phil Noble of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce talks to local business community

Discussions centre around how the area’s commerce can connect nationally
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Phil Noble, the chair of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, made a presentation to the local Parksville chamber on Jan.9 in an effort to explain how it relates and advocated for local chambers across the country.

In terms of economy in the Parksville Qualicum Beach area, Noble, a Qualicum Beach local, said he sees it as a vibrant place for small business.

“There’s lots of growth and development taking place and I know there’s lots of exciting plans for even more,” he said. “I would see it as being a great environment for small businesses to start up in and to thrive going forward.”

READ MORE: Parksville chamber hands out business awards

During Noble’s presentation, he asked chamber members if there were any questions or concerns they wanted him to bring back to the Canadian Chamber. Challenges in the forestry industry were brought up, as well as making information from the government more accessible to businesses. He pointed to announcements on infrastructure spending and helping businesses getting easier access to that type of funding.

“The opportunity for the Canadian Chamber would be to see how we might be able to monitor that, to keep the government accountable to their commitment,” he said.

In terms of what he hopes for business in the Parksville Qualicum Beach area, Noble said he sees business success intertwined with the success of the community as a whole.

“I think sometimes when business talks they just talk about business and you know, it takes everything — it takes business, It takes the government, it takes health care, it takes services. It takes schools,” he said. “It has to be a thriving community, it’s all of it.”

— NEWS staff

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