Canada has shown a remarkable recovery from the COVID recession. Our economic growth was the strongest in the G7 over the last year. More Canadians are employed today than before the pandemic, including more than 360,000 here in Ontario. Budget 2023 outlines the federal government's plan to build on this momentum and create a more secure, sustainable and affordable Canada from coast to coast to coast.
Today, the Honourable Filomena Tassi, Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), along with Irek Kusmierczyk, Member of Parliament for Windsor-Tecumseh, spent the day in Windsor. They visited the Ed Lumley Centre for Engineering Innovation at the University of Windsor. The Minister met with students and spoke to the government's plan to provide enhanced financial assistance and improved Registered Education Savings Plans. These measures will help students cover the costs of tuition, housing and everyday essentials to make the transition from school to working life easier. When they graduate, students should concentrate on their careers, not on their debt. Minister Tassi and MP Kusmierczyk also spoke about Budget 2023's commitments to build a clean economy, including the Clean Technology Investment Tax Credit, a more than $20-billion investment to promote green technologies, which will have significant benefits for the Windsor Essex region and local electric vehicle manufacturers.
The Minister and MP Kusmierczyk then visited the Downtown Windsor Business Revitalization Association for the unveiling of two new art installations in downtown's Windsor International Film Fest (WIFF) Alley, as part of an investment through the Canada Community Revitalization Fund to support community vitality, social and economic cohesion.
In the afternoon, Minister Tassi and MP Kusmierczyk visited Mercato Fresh where they highlighted the new Grocery Rebate, which offers targeted inflation relief for 11 million Canadians and families who need it most. Minister Tassi and MP Kusmierczyk also visited local main street businesses in Windsor's Little Italy where they celebrated a recent FedDev Ontario investment in the Via Italia Business Improvement Association to support revitalization of this shopping district and the success of the small businesses that line its streets. They also highlighted Budget 2023's commitment to supporting hardworking small business owners by working with major credit card companies to lower transaction fees and by providing reduced tax rates, low-cost strategic financing, and targeted funding as part of a "Made-in-Canada Plan" that will entice global investments, lock-in labour standards, and create great middle class jobs.
Through these measures and more, Budget 2023 will help to build a stronger, more sustainable, and more secure Canadian economy-for everyone.
