Huge opportunities for lobbying

Since my last communication with you, many things have unfolded. Quebec has a minority government for the first time in 130 years and a federal budget has produced a number of opportunities and challenges for organizations looking to sell to government or simply influence it.

For organizations looking to sell to government, my advise to them would be to
move NOW in their initiatives if the services they provide fit into an environmental
initiative or in the field of Defence. The environment continues to be a hot initiative.

Support for nuclear energy from the federal government seems to be on the rise. Those who believe they can offer intelligent research or alternatives need to kick up
their efforts. The Prime Minister knows he needs to look as ''green'' as possible to
turn his minority government into a majority. On the Defence front, Canada's Afghanistan mission means that contractors have an opportunity to press the advantage of their products to DND (Department of National Defence) procurement. The Minister of Defence's recent purchase of 100 new tanks could signal the chance for suppliers to see a new niche.

Provincially, Action Strategies is monitoring Ontario as it prepares for an election in October. The parties are preparing their platforms and associations would be wise to to begin promoting their cause to the platform developers. In Quebec, Mario
Dumont's ADQ has opened the door for new constitutional talks at the federal level and the environment is also front and centre provincially. Action Strategies may be
taking the lead in assisting a number of organizations in lobbying the provincial
Energy Efficiency Agency in public consultations scheduled this Spring.

All of these points lead to the need to timing. Now is the time to start your GR
efforts. In this edition, I will point out the conditions to watch that make a campaign most likely to succeed. Email me now for a free assessment of the opportunities available to your organization.