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SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY REVIEW MANDATE

1. What are the critical industries and technologies that will create opportunities for the Canadian economy into the next century?

2. What is the role of government in promoting emerging technologies?

3. What impediments stand in the way of emerging technologies? Which government programs create the greatest barriers to economic growth? What can the government do to lessen the burden on innovative firms?

4. What steps should be taken to promote a climate that encourages both science and entrepreneurship?

5. How well are Canadian institutions meeting the skill needs of high-tech industries?

6. How can Parliament ensure that the government follows a result-oriented science and technology strategy? How can Parliament organize itself to ensure full governmental accountability for science and technology? What sort of data should be collected to monitor the progress of the science and technology strategy?

A recent OECD study found that: ``While there has been a shift to high technology more recently, their relative importance in Canada is still much lower that the average of OECD countries. Canada's persistent large trade deficit in ``high-tech'' products also supports the concern that domestic businesses have not been as innovative and flexible as their international competitors. Data showing that Canadian firms do substantially less research and development than their foreign counterparts further points to an ``innovation gap'' vis-à-vis other developed countries.''

1995 OEDC Economic Survey - Canada, p. 115

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