Yellowknife (June 11/03) - It was a whirlwind swing through the North for a group of national business leaders last weekend.

The Canadian Chamber of Commerce held its quarterly meeting at the Explorer Hotel Saturday and Sunday.

National chamber of commerce president Nancy Hughes Anthony met with business and government leaders in Yellowknife over the weekend.

Forty of the 50 national chamber board members made the trip.

President and CEO Nancy Hughes Anthony said it was the first time in the North for many and a "tremendous eye-opener."

NWT chamber president Denise Burlingame hosted a tour of the Ekati diamond mine.

The Canadian chamber rotates its quarterly meetings through regions across the country.

"It is a way for the board to meet local business and government people and discuss issues of regional concern," said Hughes Anthony.

The directors met with Premier Stephen Kakfwi and Finance Minister Joe Handley, with revenue sharing and infrastructure investment dominating the discussions.

The chamber last year adopted a resolution drafted by the Norman Wells chamber of commerce urging the federal government to invest $133 million to upgrade the territory's deteriorating road transportation system.

The paper noted that mining and petroleum is expected to generate $17 billion in tax revenue for Canada over the next 20 years, of which the GNWT will receive only $809 million.

Hughes Anthony said infrastructure spending in the territory isn't keeping pace with development and the chamber is "taking that message to the federal government."

In a speech to the Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce, Hughes Anthony urged closer economic ties with the U.S.

"We will be sitting down with our American counterparts later this month to find ways of advancing issues of mutual interest," she said.

"Too many Americans, and Canadians for that matter, do not know that for almost 40 of the 50 states, Canada is their number one customer. Or that we provide almost 20 per cent of U.S. energy needs."

She also called on Ottawa to take note of the Bush administration's recent $330 billion tax cut over the next ten years and get "more aggressive with competitive tax policies."

The Canadian Chamber of Commerce represents 350 local and regional chambers and some 170,000 businesses.