Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME) provided the Ontario government with practical recommendations to make manufacturing investment attraction and retention a key focus of the 2023 provincial budget, following recent US investments incentives committed as part of the Inflation Reduction Act and related legislation.
At a roundtable discussion with the Honourable Peter Bethlenfalvy, Minister of Finance, CME was joined by CEOs of Ontario manufacturing companies to discuss the need for a strong, timely response from provincial policymakers to support Ontario’s manufacturing sector.
“The US has already drawn over $49 billion in new manufacturing investment since Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) just a few months ago” said Dennis Darby, President and CEO of CME. “As the largest sub-national jurisdiction and engine of Canada’s industrial economy, Ontario must set the tone of our country’s economic strategy, as it did with its automotive plan and the over $16 billion in investment that followed.”
To build and preserve Ontario’s competitiveness, CME members discussed three key themes during the roundtable discussion with Minister Bethlenfalvy:
- Establishing the competitive investment incentives to address the IRA;
- Getting the workers we need; and
- Lowering the cost of doing business.
“These three pillars are imperative to making an Advanced Manufacturing Strategy a reality. We look forward to working alongside the province to develop a strategy that will ensure long-term investments are safeguarded for Ontario,” concluded Darby.
