Yukon businesses want a decrease in regulation, the president of the Whitehorse Chamber of Commerce said today.

It's a message Rick Karp and chamber members passed on to Kevin Sorenson, the federal minister of state for Finance, at a meeting early this morning at the Westmark hotel.

In Canada there are more than 70,000 regulations that affect small businesses, Karp told media.

It's an issue that consistently prevents northern businesses from securing federal government contracts, he said.

"We want to some how change those regulations so it's easier for northern businesses, not just Yukon, but across the North,” Karp said.

He offered issues with major construction projects like Copper Ridge Place and the Thompson Centre as key reasons to change regulations that prevent northern companies from taking the lead on such undertakings.

"We want northern construction and architecture, people who understand the North to be the ones that build in the North,” he said.

A decrease in regulations at the Yukon Water Board and the Yukon Environmental Socio-economic Assessment Board was also raised, but Karp clarified that the goal is not to undercut environmental regulations rather to improve working relationships and communication between the two bodies and local businesses.

Sorenson, a newly appointed cabinet minister, said today's meetings were particularly enlightening for him.

"I think the message is that the Yukon is open for business, for tourism, for development,” he said, adding that the message is already getting out as the Westmark's bustling lobby illustrated this morning.

Labour shortages, the need for education and skills training, and investments in technology were among key issues discussed at this morning's meetings.

In response to a media question regarding the government's response to the downturn in the mining sector, Sorenson reiterated the prime minister's comment from last week that the current situation is likely short term and tied to lower commodity prices.

"We know that resources are a key part of our economy, what it does is it's not just developing resources it's creating jobs. We also know that there's many opportunities here,” he said.

And increased investments in infrastructure, responding to concerns about road and power access, are on the government agenda he said.

Sorenson also highlighted discussions about the government's new Pooled Registered Pension Plan which allows small businesses to offer the benefits of larger pension plans to their employees.

Following his meetings at the Westmark, Sorenson was scheduled to meet with Premier Darrell Pasloski. He was also scheduled to make an announcement regarding investments in arts and culture early this afternoon.