2018 Federal Budget Highlights

“The Government currently supports business of all types and sizes through a vast and complicated array of programming.”

• A program review took place across 20 federal departments and agencies, making the review the first effort to date to review the entire business innovation program suite
  • Government is proposing historic reform of business innovation programs to create a suite of programs that is easy to navigate
  • There will be an attempt to consolidate existing innovation programs from 92 in total into 30 larger programs
  • Over the next one to two years, changes will be managed to minimize disruption
  • Implementation details will follow, with some elements coming online quickly and others requiring a more fundamental structural changes to be implemented at a more measured pace
  • All filed applications will be honoured, with all current programs remaining in place until further details are announced
  • $3M per year in new funding for 15 new Innovation Advisors to support high potential firms
  • Overall government funding for innovation will increase

Four Flagship Platforms will deliver innovation funding:

• Industrial Research Assistance Program
  • $700M over 5 years to IRAP, application threshold increased from $1M to $10M
• Strategic Innovation Fund ($1.2 Billion)
  • Strategic Innovation Fund will move away from small project funding and just support projects greater than $10M
  • Consolidate Centres of Excellence under Strategic Innovation Fund
• Canadian Trade Commissioner Service
• Regional Development Agencies (WED, FedNor, FedDev, ACOA, & CNEDA)
  • $920M over 6 years directly to FedDev for Southern Ontario
  • $806M over 5 years to support Innovation and Skills Plan
  • $105M nationally coordinated, regionally delivered Women Entrepreneurship Strategy
  • $35M in Western Canada and Atlantic Canada to transition to low-carbon economy

Labour Market Programs:

• $448.5M over 5 years to the Youth Employment Strategy. A renewed Youth Employment Strategy will be announced over the course of the next year
• $2.7 Billion over 6 years in Labour Market Transfer Agreements with provinces – Employment Programs to help Canadians prepare, find and advance in, and keep good jobs
• $46M in Pre-Apprenticeship Program over 5 years

Research Funding:

• $763M over 5 years to Canada Foundation for Innovation to provide tools to researchers & Consolidate program under the following programs:
  • Natural Sciences and Engineering Council (NSERC)
  • Canadian Institutes of Health Research

Program Performance Evaluations

• $1M per year to statistics Canada to improve performance evaluations for innovation-related programs
• $2M per year to the Treasury Board Secretariat to establish central performance valuation team to undertake innovation performance evaluations on an ongoing basis