Ministry of Finance
Backgrounder
April 23, 2015
Partnering with Business to Create Jobs
Ontario continues to create rewarding, high-paying jobs. Employment has rebounded strongly from the
recessionary low in June 2009, with over half a million net new jobs created — three-quarters of which
are in industries paying above-average wages. The Province has more than recovered all the jobs lost
since the global economic recession. These high-quality jobs provide opportunities for personal
development while also creating financial stability and securing prosperity for all Ontarians.
Creating Jobs for Ontarians
$200 million
The government will enhance the Jobs and Prosperity Fund (JPF) by $200 million to attract more
business investments that will spur innovation and create jobs, bringing the total to $2.7 billion over 10
years.
Extend funding
Under the JPF, Ontario will also extend funding eligibility to the province’s forestry sector to help
increase production capacity and expand into new markets while ensuring this resource is managed
sustainably.
This will also help modernize the forestry sector and facilitate the production of higher value-added
products by supporting the adoption of new technologies.
Supporting Innovation and Exports
Innovation initiative
The government will participate in the creation of a new innovation initiative that will convene an
experienced group of senior business leaders who will bring their capital, knowledge and networks to
help Ontario startups scale up.
$20 million
Based on recommendations by the Ontario Health Innovation Council, the government will establish a
$20 million Health Technology Innovation Fund and appoint a Chief Innovation Strategist.
Increase regional trade
Work with Quebec on increasing regional trade and investment.
Encouraging Employer Investment
Funded by the Canada–Ontario Job Fund Agreement, the Canada–Ontario Job Grant is an employerdriven training initiative.
By providing two-thirds of total eligible training costs of up to $10,000, with additional flexibility for
small employers, the Canada–Ontario Job Grant offers employers the opportunity to invest in their
workforce. The new program began accepting employer applications in September 2014.
Helping Businesses Manage Electricity Costs
The government is continuing, beyond March 2016, electricity pricing support for qualifying large
northern industrial facilities, which sustain jobs and global competitiveness.
Industrial Conservation Initiative
In the 2014 Budget, the government committed to expanding the Industrial Conservation Initiative to
provide a stronger incentive for more large and medium-sized electricity consumers to shift their
electricity consumption away from peak periods, improving reliability and lowering total system costs.
The ICI is being expanded by lowering the threshold for qualifying industrial sectors from five megawatts
to three.
Lowering this threshold will make more companies eligible for this rate mitigation program and will help
a wider array of businesses save on the cost of electricity.
Tackling Climate Change
Cap-and-trade system
The government will be moving forward with a cap-and- trade system as its carbon pricing mechanism.
Cap-and-trade is a way of incorporating a price on carbon into decision-making. The government is able
to set an overall emission limit (the cap) on those facilities included in the program, providing certainty
for emission reduction, rewarding innovative companies and creating more opportunities for investment
in Ontario.
QUICK FACTS:
 The Province has cut business regulations by 17 per cent since 2008. The cost of doing business
in Ontario is competitive within Canada and around the world.
 By supporting its key sectors, Ontario is experiencing promising growth in new, high-value
sectors of the economy, including advanced manufacturing, biotechnology and life sciences, and
information and communications technologies.
 In 2007, Ontario established concrete targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions by six per
cent below 1990 levels by 2014, 15 per cent by 2020 and 80 per cent by 2050.