Speaking Points
The Honourable Gary Goodyear, Minister of State for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario
Mississauga, Ontario
November 28, 2014
Check against delivery
Good morning ladies and gentlemen, friends and guests.
I would first like to thank Polar Sapphire for hosting today's announcement. It is a pleasure to be here. C'est un grand plaisir d'être ici avec vous aujourd'hui.
As you can see from looking around the office here, many people are hard at work at this growing company. This space and what you see here is an example of the nine high-growth companies in and around the Toronto area that are represented here with us today.
It is companies and angel networks and associations such as yours that are creating jobs and bringing new ideas to the forefront each and every day.
As you know, small businesses are the backbone of the Canadian economy, employing approximately 70 percent of the total labour force in the private sector, accounting for nearly 90 percent of Canadian exporters, and contributing about 41 percent to Canada's private sector gross domestic product.
That's why our Government is committed to helping our entrepreneurs and businesses to grow and prosper.
Ladies and gentlemen, from lowering taxes, to cutting red tape, to signing free trade agreements, our Government has been setting the right macro-economic conditions to ensure Canadian businesses succeed.
I am proud to say that Canada has one of the best job creation records in the G7, we are among the leaders in economic growth, and we have one of the most welcoming destinations for investment in the world. In fact, last year, Canada leapt from sixth place to second place in Bloomberg's ranking of the most attractive destinations in the world for business.
But we cannot be complacent, which is why our priorities continue to be creating jobs, growth and long-term prosperity.
As Eve mentioned, since Ontario's economy is critically linked to that of our nation, our Government created FedDev Ontario to strengthen this region's economy and position the region to compete globally.
One of the areas where our Government recognized there was an opportunity was to increase access to capital and to mentoring support to help entrepreneurs grow their businesses and bring innovations into the hands of consumers.
That's why, in 2010, Prime Minister Stephen Harper launched the Investing in Business Innovation initiative for southern Ontario. The objective of the initiative was two-fold.
First, it was to help grow the angel investment community in the region. The second objective was to improve access to financing for start-up businesses. Any business applying for federal funding had to secure commitments from angel or venture capital investors.
I am pleased to report that the initiative was extremely well-received and benefitted close to 350 companies – 86 with direct investments from FedDev Ontario and 260 through angel investors who were members of angel networks supported by our agency.
As a result, I re-launched the Investing in Business Innovation initiative last December so we can keep growing our innovation ecosystem here in southern Ontario.
This brings me to why we are all here today. I am pleased to announce a total of up to $6.28 million to support the nine innovative companies gathered here today.
Bringing Canadian ideas and products to markets around the world helps to keep and create new jobs right here in the region.
I am therefore pleased to note that the nine companies receiving funding expect to create 124 jobs during the project period. They will also further develop and market their products, which touch on a variety of industries, as outlined in the media backgrounder.
The company where we stand today, Polar Sapphire, is representative of the innovative manufacturing processes and cutting-edge technologies that are in place, here in Canada.
With this new funding, Polar Sapphire will be working to produce high-grade aluminum oxide for sapphire ingots, which are used to help produce LED lighting and display screens on products like smartphones.
I know some of you have brought some product samples to showcase. I look forward to seeing them.
I also hope to be able to visit all of your companies at some point.
Ladies and gentleman, 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 the progress on all of your projects. I wish all of those involved the best of luck and success.
