Harper Government Bolstering Support for Research, Business Innovation

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - May 16, 2012) - The Honourable Gary Goodyear, Minister of State for Science and Technology, delivered a keynote address at the annual Research Money conference today. He outlined the Economic Action Plan 2012 initiatives that are aimed at bolstering the innovation performance of Canadian businesses.

"Canada's long-term economic competitiveness depends on encouraging research that can be commercialized and used to fuel the high-growth companies of tomorrow," said Minister of State Goodyear. "By focusing on the drivers of growth and job creation, the measures announced by our government are strengthening the entrepreneurial spirit of this great country."

Economic Action Plan 2012 builds on Canada's advantageous economic position and adopts a new approach to enhance support for greater business innovation. This includes providing $400 million to help high-growth firms access risk capital, supporting private and public research collaboration, encouraging innovation through procurement and refocusing the National Research Council of Canada.

The Research Money conference gathers many of the country's innovation leaders from industry, finance, government, not-for-profit organizations and academia. This year's conference is focused on the impact of Economic Action Plan 2012 investments on future business innovation in Canada.

For more information on the science, technology and innovation measures in the budget, visit the Budget 2012 website (www.budget.gc.ca). For more information on the conference, visit the Research Money annual conference website (www.researchmoneyinc.com/conferences.php).