Mobilizing Science and Technology to Canada's Advantage—2007

Annex: Summary of Policy Commitments

Entrepreneurial Advantage

Canada's federal government will create a business environment that is conducive to greater private-sector innovation by:

Ensuring competition policies provide competitive marketplaces. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will task an expert, independent panel to undertake a comprehensive review of Canada's competition policies.
Encouraging foreign direct investment in Canada.
Establishing the lowest tax rate on new business investment in the G-7. Budget 2007 proposes measures to allow Canada to become one of the most investment-friendly countries in the G-7 by providing assistance to the manufacturing sector to invest in machinery and equipment, aligning capital cost allowances with useful life and providing a financial incentive to the provinces to facilitate the elimination of provincial capital taxes.
Identifying opportunities to improve the Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) program, including its administration, to further encourage R&D within the business sector in Canada.
Putting in place an effective, forward-looking, and responsive regulatory environment that promotes a competitive marketplace and protects the health and safety of Canadians and the environment. As part of this effort, federal regulatory departments and agencies will develop a plan to ensure biotechnology, nanotechnology, and ICT products, services, and technologies are regulated responsibly and in a timely manner, drawing on international best practices and benchmarks. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will invest $9 million over two years to make Canada a best-in-class regulator by ensuring that efficiency and effectiveness are key considerations in the development and implementation of regulations through a new Cabinet directive on streamlining regulation.
Fostering a leading-edge financial system.
Considering new or different approaches to stimulate the supply of venture capital in Canada, including working to attract institutional investments in Canadian funds. Budget 2007 announced agreement in principle on the major elements of an updated Canada-U.S. Tax Treaty, including addressing tax barriers to improve access to U.S. venture capital by Canadian entrepreneurs.

Canada's federal government will strengthen public-private research and commercialization partnerships by:

Introducing new business-led research networks under the Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE) Program in order to bring together government, private, and academic experts from around the world to support applied research in environment, energy, ICT, and health priorities, through a competitive, national process. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will provide $11 million in 2008-09 to accelerate the creation of new business-led NCE networks.
Establishing a new Centres of Excellence in Commercialization and Research program. In partnership with other levels of government and the private sector, federal support will help Canada to achieve a critical mass of capacity in strategic areas of scientific opportunity and competitive advantage. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will provide $350 million over three years to support eight large-scale centres of research and commercialization in priority areas where Canada has the potential to be a global leader (see text box) and to fund other centres that operate at international standards of excellence, as determined through international peer-reviewed competitions.
Developing new approaches to transfer knowledge and technologies from universities, research hospitals, and government laboratories to the private sector.
Encouraging collaboration between community colleges and local firms to support the development, adaption, and adoption of new technologies. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will provide $48 million over five years to make the College and Community Innovation pilot a permanent program and support more college-industry partnerships.
Creating a new tri-council private-sector advisory board for the granting councils to provide advice on the implementation of business-driven Networks of Centres of Excellence, Centres of Excellence in Commercialization and Research, and the college initiatives.

Canada's federal government will improve the impact and efficiency of federal R&D business assistance by:

Replacing Technology Partnerships Canada with a new program, the Strategic Aerospace and Defence Initiative. This program will support excellence in aerospace and defence R&D.
Aligning the programs and activities of existing organizations to increase commercialization outcomes. In the first instance, the National Research Council of Canada, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, and the Business Development Bank of Canada will implement a plan to work more effectively together to support the commercialization of research in Canada. This exercise could be broadened to include other departments and agencies over time.
Working with the provinces to improve commercialization outcomes.

Knowledge Advantage

Canada's federal government will target resources that support world-class research excellence in areas of social, environmental, and economic opportunities for Canada by:

Directing resources to priority areas where Canada can build global research and commercial leadership: environmental science and technologies, natural resources and energy, health and related life sciences and technologies, and information and communications technologies. Federal funding agencies will coordinate their efforts to support research priorities and report on progress. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will provide $85 million per year in new resources to the granting councils for priority research, $30 million to the Rick Hansen Foundation to keep Canada at the leading edge of spinal cord research, $500 million over seven years to Sustainable Development Technology Canada to help Canada become a world leader in developing and commercializing next-generation renewable fuels, and $100 million to Genome Canada to position Canada as a world leader in genomics and proteomics research.

Canada's federal government will maintain Canada's G-7 leadership in public-sector R&D performance by:

Making new investments in R&D, including through the granting councils, in areas where Canada has the potential to be a world leader. Budget 2007 announced increased support for targeted research in priority areas (see Policy Commitments).
Ensuring that higher-education institutions have the leading-edge research equipment and facilities required to compete with the best in the world. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will provide $510 million to the Canada Foundation for Innovation to support state-of-the-art higher-education research infrastructure in another major competition before 2010, and $120 million to CANARIE to maintain and further develop its research broadband network.
Supporting leading-edge domestic and international research and networks in areas of strategic importance to Canada. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will provide $10 million over two years to the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research to strengthen academic global research networks.
Encouraging a supportive higher-education research environment, including through ongoing support to the Indirect Cost of Research program. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will provide an additional $15 million per year to the Indirect Cost of Research program to help post-secondary institutions support the additional research activities enabled by the new resources provided to the granting councils for priority research.

Canada's federal government will enhance accountability and value for money from the granting councils by:

Improving governance measures, including by separating the functions of the Chair and President of the granting councils. As the government fills vacancies on the councils' governing bodies, it will seek out more business and community representation to ensure that the composition of granting council governing bodies reflects Canada's broad economic and national interests.
Adopting a more integrated approach to support academic research and improve client service. Funding agencies will develop a plan to consolidate, integrate, and align programs.
Ensuring that grant application procedures are competitive and promote international excellence. As part of their plan to improve program coordination and integration, the granting councils will jointly review their research application procedures and funding allocation processes to identify best practices, in consultation with university and research stakeholders, and make appropriate changes.

Canada's federal government will protect the public interest and increase the impact of federal S&T investments by:

Focusing the government's own S&T activities where the federal government is best able to deliver benefits to Canadians, and ensuring that federal departments and agencies have access to the S&T capacity required to fulfill their important policy and regulatory mandates in areas such as health, environment, and safety. Budget 2007 announced $39 million over two years for Department of Fisheries and Oceans science research programs to strengthen fisheries management and resource conservation, and $10 million to Public Safety Canada to expand the activities of the Canadian Police Research Centre which supports S&T in policing and public safety.
Launching an independent expert panel to report to the President of the Treasury Board on options for transferring non-regulatory federal laboratories to universities or the private sector, and identify up to five laboratories that could be early candidates for transfer. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will relocate Natural Resources Canada's CANMET Materials Technology Laboratory to new state-of-the-art facilities at the McMaster Innovation Park in Hamilton, Ontario.
Enhancing collaboration within the federal S&T community and developing improved approaches for fostering research, talent, knowledge transfer, and commercialization among science-based departments and agencies, universities and colleges, and the private sector. As part of this effort, the government will review its own intellectual property policies to ensure they do not impede S&T collaboration and technology transfer, and strengthen collaboration among science-based departments and agencies through the revitalization of the Assistant Deputy Ministers Committee on S&T.

People Advantage

Canada's federal government will create opportunities for Canadians to acquire skills and use knowledge to create advantages for themselves and the nation by:

Continuing to reduce personal income tax and make the tax system fairer to ensure that Canada attracts and retains the highly skilled workers necessary to foster innovation and growth. Measures introduced to date by the government through Budget 2006, the Tax Fairness Plan, and Budget 2007 will provide nearly $38 billion in tax relief for individuals over three years. Budget 2007 also delivers on the Tax Back Guarantee — the government's commitment to use the interest savings from national debt reduction to reduce personal income taxes.
Modernizing labour market programming, working with the provinces to remove barriers to labour mobility, and improving foreign credential recognition and the Temporary Foreign Worker systems to make it easier for employers to get the skills they need to remain competitive. Budget 2007 takes decisive action, with a new labour market training architecture and initiatives to better align the immigration program with the needs of the labour market.
Improving the quality of education for Canadians by: providing stable and predictable funding to provinces and territories for post-secondary education; working with them to develop shared objectives and enhance public accountability; modernizing Canada's system of student financial assistance; and marketing Canada's post-secondary education system to attract the best foreign students. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will increase the Canada Social Transfer by $800 million per year beginning in 2008-09 (growing at 3 per cent per year thereafter) for provinces and territories to strengthen the quality and competitiveness of the Canadian post-secondary education system, launch a review of the Canada Student Loans Program, and provide $2 million over two years to promote Canada internationally as a destination of choice for post-secondary students.
Increasing support for research internships to expose more students to the private sector; encourage more firms to hire S&T graduates; and increase the number of graduates with both research and business skills and know-how. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will support up to 1,000 interns per year when fully operational, under a new Industrial R&D Internship program modelled after the MITACS program.
Increasing support for scholarships, including in science and engineering, to encourage more youth to pursue advanced degrees in Canada; support outstanding Canadian graduate students who wish to study overseas; and attract outstanding graduate students and post-doctoral fellows to Canada. As announced in Budget 2007, the government will invest $35 million over two years, and $27 million per year thereafter, to expand the Canada Graduate Scholarships. When the new scholarships are fully in place, the councils will support an additional 1,000 students per year.
Fostering a culture that values and rewards ingenuity and entrepreneurship. The government will develop an action plan that will include increasing the number of people pursuing education and careers in S&T, in consultation with other levels of government, universities, colleges, the private sector, and not-for-profit stakeholders.

A Modern Approach to S&T Management

Canada's federal government will make Canada a world leader though stronger domestic and international partnerships by:

Working with provincial and territorial governments to ensure that our respective policies, programs, and activities together provide the right conditions for S&T advances here in Canada.
Strengthening Canada's ties to the global supply of ideas, talent, and technology. The government will assess Canada's S&T presence on the international scene and explore options to further improve Canada's ability to contribute to and benefit from international S&T developments, including through the Global Commerce Strategy.

Canada's federal government will revitalize external S&T advisory bodies by:

Consolidating the roles and responsibilities of the Advisory Council on Science and Technology, the Council of Science and Technology Advisors, and the Canadian Biotechnology Advisory Committee into a new Science, Technology and Innovation Council, reporting to the Minister of Industry. The new Council will provide the government with policy advice on S&T issues and produce regular State-of-the-Nation reports that benchmark Canada's S&T performance against international standards of excellence.

Canada's federal government will increase its accountability to Canadians by:

Improving its ability to measure and report on the impact of S&T expenditures. The government will improve its understanding of Canadian S&T developments and the impact of federally performed S&T, and will work with the OECD and other countries to develop metrics that will enable comparisons against international benchmarks of success.