INDU Committee News Release
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Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology |
HOUSE OF COMMONS CHAMBRE DES COMMUNES OTTAWA, CANADA K1A 0A6 |
Comité permanent de l'industrie, des sciences et de la technologie |
For immediate release
NEWS RELEASE
Manufacturing: Moving Foward - Rising to the Challenge
Ottawa, February 06, 2007 -
The House of Commons Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology tabled in Parliament today the Committee’s final report on the challenges facing the Canadian manufacturing sector.
The Committee began its study in May 2006, and tabled an interim report that described the difficulties confronting the sector in June 2006. After hearing from more than 100 witnesses, both in Ottawa and in seven manufacturing centres across Canada, the Committee is today tabling its final report entitled Manufacturing: Moving Forward – Rising to the Challenge.
“Canada’s manufacturing sector is a vital component of our economy. While the rest of the Canadian economy is generally very robust, many industries within the manufacturing sector are struggling to remain competitive” said Mr. Rajotte, Chair of the Committee.
During its study, the Committee heard of a number of challenges affecting the competitiveness of the sector including the rapid appreciation in the value of the Canadian dollar against the U.S. dollar; rising or unpredictable energy costs; increasing global competition, particularly from China; skilled labour shortages, and excessive regulation, to name but a few.
“The report that the Committee is tabling today contains 22 recommendations to the federal government in the areas of taxation, energy, labour, trade, intellectual property rights protection, infrastructure, regulatory, and research, development and commercialization policies that the Committee believes will help the manufacturing sector adapt to the challenges it is facing,” said Mr. Rajotte.
The report’s recommendations include the following:
• modify the capital cost allowance regime to allow a two-year write-off period for machinery and equipment used in manufacturing and processing, and equipment associated with information, energy and environmental technologies;
• improve the Scientific Research and Experimental Development Tax Incentive Program to make it more accessible and relevant to Canadian businesses. The Committee recommends that the government consider making four changes including making the investment tax credits fully refundable, and providing an allowance for international collaborative R&D;
• offer tax credits and/or other measures to companies providing employer-financed training to their employees; • conduct a review of Canada’s anti-dumping, countervail and safeguard policies, practices and their application to ensure that Canada’s trade remedy law and practices remain current and effective;
• make the implementation of a “smart regulation” initiative a priority.
The Committee believes that the Government of Canada should make the preservation of a competitive Canadian manufacturing sector a national goal, and that given the magnitude of the challenges facing the sector, the recommendations presented in its report should be implemented in a timely fashion
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