Speaking Points
Mike Wallace, Member of Parliament, Burlington and Terence Young, Member of Parliament for Oakville
Burlington, Ontario
October 14, 2014
Check against delivery
Good morning ladies and gentlemen, friends and guests, and thank you Minister Goodyear, for that introduction.
C'est un grand plaisir d'être avec vous aujourd'hui.
It is a pleasure to be here to deliver some great news for Angel One Investor Network and for Canadians.
Let me begin by reporting that Canada has one of the best job creation records in the G7, we are one of the leaders in economic growth, and we have one of the world's most fertile climates for investment.
Last year, I am proud to say, Canada leapt from sixth place to second place in Bloomberg's ranking of the most appealing destinations in the world for business.
Our job growth record is strong compared to other countries, with employment in Canada increasing by more than 1.1 million since 2006.
Ladies and gentlemen, our Government has been setting the right macro-economic conditions to ensure Canadian businesses succeed by lowering taxes, cutting the corporate tax rate from over 22 percent to 15 percent, and removing the federal capital tax.
I'd like to thank Minister Goodyear for the great work his Agency, FedDev Ontario, is doing for our region.
As Minister Goodyear mentioned, FedDev Ontario has funded hundreds of projects in southern Ontario. This includes nearly $24 million for 50 projects which is leveraging more than $43.5 million for the Halton area.
This also includes investments in angel networks, which have invested $95.8 million in more than 260 companies in southern Ontario. As you can see, we are making particular efforts for early-stage businesses to succeed.
And today, we are pleased to announce yet another investment in this region.
This is a special announcement as this is the first project announced through the renewed Investing in Business Innovation initiative, or IBI, as well as the second through its new suite of funding known as the Southern Ontario Prosperity Initiatives.
FedDev Ontario is providing Angel One Investor Network with up to $500,000 to expand its angel investor membership and increase the pool of angel investment funds and mentoring support available to early-stage high-growth companies in southern Ontario.
This funding is projected to increase the network's membership from 110 to 210, resulting in 50 additional companies receiving $15 million of investment over a five-year period. With more than 200 members, the organization projects that it will generate sufficient membership revenues to enable the network to be self-sustaining.
The Investing in Business Innovation initiative is designed to strengthen our innovation ecosystem here in southern Ontario.
Taking a business idea and turning it into something that does well in commercial markets is something we need to see happen more and more in Canada.
And, as you know, to do that, we need to support our innovators in a number of areas. First, they need access to financing, whether it is seed financing to get a business off the ground, or investments to further develop the business. Second, they need access to business skills training, mentorship and guidance from experienced professionals. Third, early-stage businesses with a product or service already developed need to be able to market and sell it, in order to compete in the global economy.
Angel investors, in particular, are playing a larger role in not only financing, but also in mentoring and coaching entrepreneurs. They invest their time and money in smaller deals with earlier stage companies, which really helps these firms grow.
Investors such as Karen Grant are instrumental to angel networks. Karen not only was crucial in planning and launching the Toronto Angel Group in 2001 and Northern Ontario Angels in 2005, but she has been funding companies and launching investment funds for more than 20 years.
The Investing in Business Innovation initiative was first launched in 2010 and was re-launched in 2013 and expanded based on stakeholder feedback. I encourage you to visit the FedDev Ontario website for more information on the funding that is available.
Our Government believes that it is support like this that can help put our southern Ontario innovations and companies on the map.
Congratulations again. I'm looking forward to seeing how the Angel One Investor Network will help our region's businesses over the coming years.
Thank you.
