Will this election produce a more innovative Quebec?

By Pierre-Philippe Lortie, CCI Quebec’s Director of Government Affairs

In the first few weeks of the Quebec election campaign, there’s been a lot of focus on immigration, and Quebec’s cultural character. For months, CCI has been concerned about the changes to Quebec’s language law brought in by Bill 96, and more than 150 CEOs have signed on to our open letter calling on the government to slow down or risk irreparable harm to the province’s economy.

We were pleased that our open letter received attention at the outset of the campaign, and we’re happy that politicians are talking about immigration policy. We firmly believe that immigration is an important pathway for Quebec tech companies to recruit top talent.

But immigration isn’t the only issue we care about. There are plenty of other issues that Quebec politicians should be talking about during the election campaign.

During the 2018 provincial election, CCI Quebec’s Eric Boyko, Dax Dasilva, Fred Lalonde, and Louis Têtu wrote in The Globe and Mail that “Quebec needs new innovation strategies to level the playing field for domestic tech.” Four years later, our homegrown tech sector has become even more critical to Quebec’s long-term economic prosperity, yet economic strategies from the government haven’t kept pace.

This election should be focused on addressing the obstacles preventing firms from scaling-up globally out of Quebec, as high-growth firms headquartered in Quebec are important job and wealth creators of the 21st century economy. Here are a few ideas that politicians should consider supporting to help tech companies scale-up globally.

• Adjusting Quebec’s tax credits to promote job creation and R&D at Quebec headquartered firms

Currently, the Quebec government’s generous tax credits for digital media and technology companies have made Quebec an attractive jurisdiction for foreign technology companies to open offices, which has increased talent poaching between firms. The harder it is for homegrown firms to compete for talent against large, foreign companies, the more local companies look to hire in jurisdictions outside of Quebec. This is a race to the bottom. These tax programs (CDAE and CTMM) should be refocused to support the growth of companies headquartered in Quebec.

• Promote local content in government procurement

The most valuable support the government can give to a business is a purchase order, as the sale of products and services to the government acts as a major validator that allows a high-growth company to secure other contracts with other large customers. The next government must adopt a whole-of-government approach to reducing administrative burden and increasing the transparency of the procurement process. The goal of the government should be to facilitate greater participation by innovative Quebec companies, which will drive economic growth while simultaneously giving the government access to innovative services.

• Working with tech companies to understand the skilled talent shortage

Part of why the Bill 96 issue was such a galvanizing moment for Quebec business leaders is because the province is already facing a shortage of skilled labour, and the law threatens to make a challenging situation more difficult. Earlier this year, CCI published a comprehensive Talent & Skills Strategy with policy recommendations to help technology companies attract, retain and generate more talent. We need to hear more from our leaders on how they will work in collaboration with businesses to solve the talent crisis.

Scale-up technology companies that are already growing rapidly are vitally important for Quebec’s economy in the 21st century. These companies already have a proven track record of success, and with appropriate support from government, today’s growing technology companies can anchor Quebec’s future economy.

If you’re interested in learning more about CCI’s work in Quebec, contact Pierre-Philippe Lortie at plortie@canadianinnovators.org.