Reaction to the Fall Economic Statement

The Council of Canadian Innovators was watching closely Monday as the federal government delivered its Fall Economic Statement.

In addition to updating Canadians on the state of the federal government’s finances, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced new tax and spending measures which will impact the innovation economy.

On behalf of more than 130 high-growth Canadian member companies, CCI executive director Benjamin Bergen issued the following statement:

“You can’t tax your way to prosperity, so it’s good to see the government has listened to the leaders of Canada’s high-growth tech sector and understands that stock options are used for talent attraction and retention, and should be kept as competitive as possible. However, leaders of high-growth ‘scale-up’ companies in the Canadian innovation economy need clarity about how the digital service tax and new sales tax measures will impact them. We look forward to engaging with the federal government on these upcoming proposals and how they will impact domestic technology companies.

“For months, the Council of Canadian Innovators has been calling on the government to develop a prosperity strategy and take an ambitious approach to making post-pandemic economic recovery plans. It was encouraging to hear the finance minister commit to supporting Canadian businesses through the economic crisis and making additional funds available to drive the economy recovery, including the new funding allocated to the Strategic Innovation Fund.”

You can read the details of the Fall Economic Statement here.