CFIB asks fall sitting to legislate red tape office as insurance costs hit 77 per cent of firms

Insurance costs are causing difficulties for 77 per cent of small firms in Newfoundland and Labrador, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business said, ahead of the House of Assembly's fall sitting on Oct. 26. Fuel costs are a problem for 68 per cent and tax and regulatory costs for 66 per cent, according to the federation's latest Monthly Business Barometer.¹

The federation credited the provincial government with cutting the small business tax rate to 2.0 per cent from 2.5 per cent in Budget 2026, committing to reach 1 per cent in 2028 and creating a red tape reduction office. It said the sitting is the point at which those commitments should become legislation.¹

Small business owners saw real progress this spring, and now they want to see it carried through.¹Jonathan Galgay, director of legislative affairs for Newfoundland and Labrador, CFIB

Galgay said the red tape reduction office, regulatory counting and annual reporting should be written into law so they outlast any one government. He also called for the removal of the 15 per cent tax the province adds to every insurance premium, which he said is the highest rate in Canada.¹

Our neighbours in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island charge nothing. Removing this tax once and for all would put money directly back into the pockets of small business owners.¹Jonathan Galgay, director of legislative affairs for Newfoundland and Labrador, CFIB

The federation's release names the fall sitting's key priorities but the text supplied does not set out the items on that list. The barometer figures are shares of small firms reporting difficulty with each cost; the release does not give the survey's sample size, field dates or margin of error.¹