Farmer groups welcome to proposed Canada-European Union free trade agreement
Farmers groups say they are not worried about European competition and welcome a proposed Canada-European Union free trade agreement which they say will open up markets for their agricultural products and keep Canada globally competitive. “Europe, for us is almost a dream market. It is a large beef-consuming market, it’s a high income market, very […]
Canada has gone from ‘leader’ to ‘backwater’ in global digital economy competitiveness, say critics
Industry Minister Tony Clement has said that by 2020, Canada will boast a “globally competitive digital economy.” While one policy analyst says it’s possible, opposition critics are wondering why Canada isn’t becoming more competitive sooner. The year “2020 is way too late. We’ve gone from being a leader to basically being a backwater, and for […]
Canada at ‘competitive disadvantage’ in funding innovation, say industry stakeholders
Changes to Canada’s tax regime are working to attract flagging foreign investment to Canadian innovation, but firms are still having a hard time accessing funds for their new ideas, say business and industry insiders. “We have a good research base in this country. When you have the resources to drive the research you can do […]
Funding for innovation most likely to be cut in next budget, say opposition MPs
With the government’s commitment to slay the now estimated $27.4-billion budget deficit, opposition MPs say “there’s no doubt” that funding for innovation will be cut in the upcoming March budget. “The government has kind of indicated that they have to cut right across the board, and I imagine since there is not specific long term […]
On improving dialogues between scientific illiterate and politically clueless
GATINEAU, QUE.—The interactions between politicians and scientists are undergoing more scrutiny these days. And well they should as science underpins much of what constitutes public policy. It is also a two-way street. Science needs to better grasp the oft-complex context behind policy and the polity needs to better understand the growing knowledge agenda. Thirty years […]
Next steps toward a more innovative Canada
Canada is poised to raise its innovation game, a job that calls for a multi-faceted approach merging the creativity and cooperation of industry, government, academia, and all other players. Last October, the Coalition for Action on Innovation in Canada (CAIC) released its report, “An Action Plan For Prosperity,” which offered a series of practical recommendations […]
Innovation: Canada’s entrepreneurs must show us how
Canada’s economic prosperity depends on us becoming a more innovative and productive nation. Innovation makes businesses and societies more competitive and prosperous. But Canada is weak in innovation. Legions of studies have investigated the issue, including a February 2010 Conference Board of Canada report that assigned the country a “D” for innovation and ranked it […]
New ideas open doors for women around the world
Canada’s Innovation Strategy, launched in 2002, is based on a simple premise: Our prosperity depends on investments in science, technology, and innovation (STI). In economic terms, innovation means converting knowledge into value. Put more simply, it means improving people’s lives by finding ways to do things better than before. STI is as critical in the […]
Private-sector innovation: investing in universities and colleges makes good business sense
When the University of British Columbia licensed a novel drug technology to a leading global provider of healthcare products at the end of last year, it highlighted the Centre for Drug Research and Development’s role in closing the gap between discovery research and commercial opportunity in Canada. The technology, which allows potentially toxic drugs to […]
Feds’ approach to internet regulation disastrous for consumers
When you look at the Conservative government’s approach to internet regulation what you get is a confusing maze of announcements, reversals and half-measures all resulting in disastrous outcomes for consumers. Canadians pay more than most other OECD countries for internet service while receiving a comparatively lower level of service, particularly with respect to download speed. […]
