OTTAWA – Bob Nault, Member of Parliament (Kenora riding), issued the following statement regarding the 2018 Fall Economic Update:
“Canada’s economy is strong and growing, creating more jobs for Northerners and Canadians across the country. We know that our small- and medium-sized businesses have a large impact on the success of our economy. It is important that we continue encouraging these businesses to make investments that will position them for long-term growth and help create jobs.
“The 2018 Fall Economic Statement outlines the next steps in growing our economy and investing in good jobs. To start, we will allow businesses to write-off the full cost of machinery and equipment used in manufacturing and processing of goods. This incentive will apply to businesses of all sizes and across all sectors of the economy. It will make investment more attractive and ensure we remain competitive in the global market.”
The Government is taking steps now to support Canada’s competitiveness by:
- Introducing over $16 billion in new tax incentives that will support business investment in Canada;
- Making Canada the most globally connected economy in the world;
- Removing barriers to trade within Canada by working with provinces and territories to enable businesses to transport goods more easily;
- Modernizing the Canadian regulatory system to make it easier for businesses to grow.
- Reallocating close to $774 million from infrastructure spending announced in Budget 2016 which originally was to be spent over ten years — and moves it up to fund investments in marine ports, rail infrastructure, and highways over the next five years.
- Supporting early stage mineral exploration by extending the 15-per-cent Mineral Exploration Tax Credit for an additional five years, until March 31, 2024; and
- Investing $10 million for partnerships with other levels of governments and business organizations to help small- and medium-sized businesses compete internationally.
“I am particularly pleased with the new export diversification strategy which invests $1.1 billion over the next six years, to improve infrastructure and provide more resources and services for exporters. Our goal is to boost Canada’s overseas exports by 50 percent by 2025. This strategy is long overdue and will make Canada a larger global competitor and less susceptible to unfair tariffs.
“We are also committed to making nutritious food more affordable for people who live in the North. To ensure that these families have access to affordable, healthy food, including local food, we will invest $62.6 million over five years starting in 2019–20, with $10.4 million ongoing, in the Nutrition North Canada program.
“Since being elected, we have made real progress for Canadians lowering taxes for the middle class. We introduced the Canada Child Benefit and by this time next year, a middle-class family of four will get about $2,000 more each year to invest in the things their families need which means that today, about 300,000 Canadian children no longer live below the poverty line.
“We also introduced the first-ever National Housing Strategy which will remove more than half a million households from housing need, and help cut chronic homelessness in half. We strengthened the Canada Pension Plan so that younger Canadians can rely on retirement income – and for today’s seniors, we’ve increased the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) top-up which improved the financial security of close to 900,000 seniors.
“Simply put, the Fall Economic Statement makes sense as it is good for economy, it’s good for businesses, and most importantly, it’s good for Northerners and Canadians. As a result, Canada will remain among the fastest-growing economies this year and next of all the Group of Seven (G7) countries.”
Related Products
- Investing in Middle Class Jobs: Fall Economic Statement 2018
- Fall Economic Statement speech
- Backgrounder: A Strong and Growing Economy for the Middle Class
- Backgrounder: Confidence in Canada’s Economic Future
- Backgrounder: Building a Canadian Investment Advantage with New Targeted Business Tax Measures
- Backgrounder: Continued Progress for the Middle Class
- Notice of Ways and Means Motion to Amend the Income Tax Act and the Income Tax Regulations, and Explanatory Notes
- Real Progress for Canada’s Middle Class (September 11, 2018)
