November 21, 2018 – Ottawa, Ontario – Department of Finance Canada

Thanks to the hard work of Canadians, Canada’s economy is strong and growing, creating more good, well-paying jobs for the middle class and people working hard to join it. At the same time, there is an opportunity to do more, by encouraging businesses to make investments that will position them for long-term growth, and create jobs across the country.

The 2018 Fall Economic Statement is the next step in the Government’s plan to grow the economy by investing in middle class jobs.

Through the 2018 Fall Economic Statement, the Government proposes to:

• Improve competitiveness by allowing the full cost of machinery and equipment used in the manufacturing and processing of goods to be written off immediately for tax purposes, and by introducing the Accelerated Investment Incentive to support investment by businesses of all sizes and across all sectors of the economy. These changes will make it more attractive to invest in assets that will help drive business growth and secure jobs for middle class Canadians.
• Increase investment in the clean technology sector by allowing specified clean energy equipment to be eligible for an immediate write-off of the full cost. This will help achieve climate goals, and position Canada to be more globally competitive.
• Accelerate support for business innovation by providing a further $800 million over five years to the Strategic Innovation Fund, which will support innovative investments across the country and in all economic sectors. Notably, of this amount, $100 million will focus on providing support to the forest sector.
• Make Canada a globally connected economy by launching an Export Diversification Strategy aimed at increasing Canada’s overseas exports by 50 per cent by 2025.
• Remove barriers to trade within Canada by working with provinces and territories to enable businesses to transport goods more easily, to harmonize food regulations and inspections, to align regulations in the construction sector (including the harmonization of building codes across Canada), and to facilitate greater trade in alcohol between provinces and territories.
• Introduce measures to make it easier for businesses to grow by modernizing federal regulations and encouraging regulators to consider economic competitiveness when designing and implementing regulations, while continuing to protect Canadians’ health and safety, as well as our environment.
• Support innovative solutions to some of Canada’s big challenges by creating a Social Finance Fund that gives charitable, non-profit and social purpose organizations access to new financing, and connects them with non-government investors.
• Advance pay equity by ensuring that women and men in federally regulated sectors receive equal pay for work of equal value.

The Fall Economic Statement also announces the Government’s intention to introduce three measures to support Canadian journalism, and provides an update on Canada’s economy:

• Canada’s economy is strong and growing. At 3 per cent, Canada had the strongest economic growth of all the Group of Seven (G7) countries in 2017, and is expected to remain among the fastest-growing economies this year and next.
• There are more good, well-paying jobs for Canadians. In the last three years, Canadians have created more than 550,000 new full-time jobs, pushing the unemployment rate to a 40-year low.
• Canadians’ wages are growing. For the average Canadian worker, wage growth is outpacing inflation. If current trends continue, 2018 could mark the strongest year of wage growth in close to a decade.
• Consumer confidence is strong. With more money, more jobs, rising wages, and lower taxes, Canadians are feeling confident about their own financial positions. This is reflected in consumer confidence, which remains elevated by historical standards.