Bob Peters with With Guy Mitchell, White House Chef at the Fancy Food Show in Washington.

Washington DC - We heard from Bob Peters of Economic Development here in Cornwall Ontario where he is sharing some of the amazing opportunities and advantages of setting up shop in our City by the River.

I am in Washington on behalf of the City to exhibit at the Fancy Food Show.

The food sector is an important sector for us as our location between Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa makes it a good location for food manufacturers. This show is geared towards the “fancy food” sector, which includes organic, new and higher-end products, which is growing at a faster rate than other sectors. Ontario East is a regional marketing effort, and we are here as part of the Canada pavillion at the request of the Consulate and AgFood Canada.

More on the mission:

Ontario East Economic Development’s Food Sector Marketing Team will once again be exhibiting at the international, Summer Fancy Food Show being held this year in Washington, DC.   The effort is aimed at raising the profile of Eastern Ontario to food company executives from around the world attending this major exhibition.

The 57th Summer Fancy Food Show is taking place at the Washington Convention Centre in Washington, DC from July 10 – 12, 2011. The Fancy Food Show is expected to attract 25,000+ attendees from the specialty food sector, wine, gift and department stores, supermarkets, restaurants, mail-order and other, food-related businesses.   Attendees come to see more than 2000 exhibitors, from over 80 countries around the world, presenting more than 180,000 specialty foods.  Business booms at these ‘trade-only’ shows, as an impressive 87% of all attendees either authorize or recommend purchasing decisions.

Ontario East will be joining several Canadian manufacturers and food processors to make up the popular Canada Pavilion at the three-day show.

The Ontario East, Food Sector Marketing Team is made up of the following municipalities:

• City of Brockville
• City of Cornwall
• County of Lennox and Addington
• County of Northumberland
• Greater Peterborough Area
• City of Kingston
• Bay of Quinte Region
• Quinte West Economic Development
• Town of Smiths Falls
• Counties of Prescott and Russell
• United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry CFDC

The effort will be multi-faceted and will involve exhibiting, as part of the Canada Pavilion at the show, meeting with companies in attendance at the show and attending special events as a part of the Canadian delegation.  As part of this effort, a comprehensive directory of food-related companies in Eastern Ontario will be distributed at the show. This directory is a unique, resource tool exclusive to our region – and is updated annually.  This year the Ontario East Food Sector team will be armed with food processing – Eastern Ontario opportunity flyers promoting prospective investment opportunities for attendees.

The Food Team is attempting to leverage existing activities in the region in the food sector in Eastern Ontario to attract new investment.  Ontario East has strong competitive advantages in the food processing industry including our close proximity to consumers (Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal).  Ontario East’s strong competitive advantages are outlined in a two page brochure distributed at the show.

The Ontario East Food Sector Marketing Team is funded in part by the Eastern Ontario Development Fund (EODF) and the Eastern Ontario Development Program (EODP).  Additional funding comes from the sector municipal partners.

The Fancy Food sector has been identified by experts as a growth market.  The specialty food and natural food sectors are converging and these sectors are providing growth opportunities in the grocery sector.  The Fancy Food Show has been identified as a key gathering spot for influential decision makers!

The Ontario East Economic Development Commission (OEEDC) is a group of over 125 Ontario East economic development professionals and business leaders working co-operatively to promote Eastern Ontario as a premiere business location. Together, the Commission represents more than 200 communities, thousands of businesses and nearly two million residents.

Ontario East Economic Development represents the region:  from Kawartha Lakes to Haliburton on the west to Prescott-Russell on the east, and from the Ottawa River in the north to the St. Lawrence River in the south.

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Toronto ON – The recent financial crisis has driven many plans for improving the stability and resilience of the global financial system.  One concept, managing the risk of default in securities or financial derivatives markets through central counterparties, receives scrutiny in a report released today by the C.D. Howe Institute.

In “Time for Stability in Derivatives Markets – a New Look at Central Counterparty Clearing for Securities Markets,” Thorsten V. Koeppl of Queen’s University examines the role centralized clearing parties could play in improving system resilience.

These centralized clearing parties, Professor Koeppl explains, are institutions that interpose themselves between counterparties in financial transactions.  Professor Koeppl offers a new look at what these institutions could achieve in over-the-counter derivatives trading and short-term funding markets.  He places the emphasis on the core services they could provide: the diversification of counterparty risk and the redistribution of default losses among its members.

For the study go to: http://www.cdhowe.org/pdf/Commentary_329.pdf

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When Striking an Awkward Balance Means Striking Out:

Budget 2011

By

Alexandre Laurin,

Finn Poschmann and

William B.P. Robson

• The many minor, targeted spending initiatives and tax credits proposed in the 2011 federal budget delay a badly needed return to budget balance.

• Notwithstanding their appeal to the targeted beneficiaries, few of the proposed initiatives are sound from a tax and expenditure policy perspective.

• Keeping the budget balance near its previously scheduled path would be a respectable achievement for minority government in a time of economic uncertainty and appeals for spending.

• However, Ottawa should reinforce that framework with a revamp of tax and spending programs, taking fuller account of the net social benefits of each revenue source and program.

The 2011 federal budget, should it succeed in Parliament, would launch a new strategic spending review, alongside minor cost-cutting initiatives. The fate of the budget balance and the potential for an early return to surplus as envisioned, therefore, depend entirely on the effectiveness of these measures, which cannot be known before next year.

Meanwhile, Ottawa is directing about $3 billion in additional annual revenue, arising from economic growth more robust than was expected last fall, mostly to finance a large number of initiatives to targeted groups. The tally for this political expedience adds up: without the continuing cost of measures announced in Budget 2011, the government would have projected a small ($1 billion) surplus one year earlier than otherwise planned.

Granted, this budget marks the return of an explicit contingency for economic prudence. However, the amount budgeted – $1.5 billion per year over the planning horizon – is small. A better approach would have been an aggressive cost-cutting plan to achieve an early end to Ottawa’s red ink, as we called for in this year’s C.D. Howe Institute Shadow Budget (Laurin and Robson 2011).

Why? There are many reasons to accelerate the return to surplus. Although Ottawa’s balance sheet is better than it was 15 years ago, the time of the last serious deficit reduction program, the domestic and global environment for fiscal consolidation is less favourable: political and other disruptions in the supply of food, energy and other key commodities threaten the expansion; ballooning government debt in the developed democracies threatens default; and all the while demographic pressure will slow workforce growth and intensify demands for many government programs.

The bleak fiscal picture among major economies has not yet fully registered with investors. But if and when fears of default and inflation intensify, the environment for all borrowers, including us here in Canada, will deteriorate. Interest rates will rise – potentially much more than the federal budget anticipates – and growth will slow. Accordingly, the sooner Ottawa stops borrowing and starts repaying, the better its ability to cope with these risks.

The budget highlights the extent to which new and maturing debt issues will oblige the federal government to tap debt markets in the coming years. Ottawa’s finances are increasingly exposed to interest-rate risk, at a time when interest rates are abnormally low. A sustained 1.5 percentage-point interest rate hike above the budget’s baseline fiscal projections in 2012 would add almost $6 billion to gross public debt charges in the last year of the planning horizon (Figure 1). Although the cumulative impact on the federal net debt would be somewhat attenuated by increased interest income on federal assets, such a sustained rise in interest rates, absent other measures, would add more than $12 billion to the net federal debt by 2015. Mitigating Canada’s exposure to this risk should be a higher priority.

When it comes to tax policy, the budget’s most significant feature is perhaps the decision not to undermine previous progress that has been achieved in recent years with respect to corporate and personal income tax reductions. Recent research on the economic burden imposed by federal and provincial tax hikes (Dahlby and Ferede 2011) shows that, among the major taxes Canadian governments use, taxes on corporate income are undoubtedly the most economically damaging source of tax revenue.

Less happily, the 2011 Budget’s numerous targeted tax credits – the Children’s Arts Tax Credit, the Volunteer Firefighters Tax Credit, the Family Caregiver Tax credit, or the Hiring Credit for Small Business for example – add to the already long list of about 260 tax preferences contained in the federal government’s latest assessment of tax expenditures (Canada 2010). While some preferences on that list are sound tax policy, too many convey benefits to their target groups at a cost to the broader economy.

Some credits simply subsidize activities many recipients would have done anyway, while others may prompt suppliers to increase prices, mitigating their impact on behaviour. And although, taken individually, the cost of most of these tax preferences is small, their overall burden is substantial. A rigorous review of all tax preferences to identify those failing the tests of economic efficiency and cost effectiveness would be the shrewder budget course (Laurin and Robson 2011).

Another targeted initiative, the new Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) top-up benefit for low-income seniors, would bring a meaningful increase in benefits too low-income seniors. And the initiative’s aim – targeting seniors with no or little pension income other than Old Age Security payments – ensures the top-up will be available only to recipients of ordinary GIS benefits, therefore not expanding the number of eligible GIS recipients and helping to contain costs in the long term. On the other hand, the top-up comes with a ferocious clawback: 25 cents for every dollar of income past the $2,000 and $4,000 thresholds for singles and couples, respectively. This is on top of the existing clawbacks imposed on ordinary GIS benefits and several provincial benefits. By reducing the rewards from work and saving, and adversely interacting with benefits from the Canada and Quebec Pension Plans, the proposed GIS benefit top-up would discourage desirable economic activity by affected seniors and near-seniors (Milligan and Schirle 2008).

The budget’s overall theme is an effort to balance significant political appeal with preservation of the course toward deficit elimination. But the balancing act means neither of these goals is satisfactorily achieved. The spending initiatives appear to be proving too numerous and too modest to achieve the near-term political goal, while the overall track to fiscal balance has barely changed since last fall. Canadians would be better off with a focus on the core task of restoring budget balance quickly, the better to meet clearly looming demographic and fiscal challenges, and to weather them as well as Canada did its most recent economic shocks.

References

Dahlby, Bev, and Ergete Ferede. 2011. What Does it Cost Society to Raise a Dollar of Tax Revenue? The Marginal Cost of Public Funds. Commentary 324. Toronto: C.D. Howe Institute. March.

Canada. 2010. “Tax Expenditures and Evaluations.” Department of Finance.

Laurin, Alexandre, and William B.P. Robson. 2011. A Faster Track to Fiscal Balance: The 2011 Shadow Budget. Commentary 320. Toronto: C.D. Howe Institute. February.

Milligan, Kevin, and Tammy Schirle. 2008. “Improving the Labour Market Incentives of Canada’s Public Pensions.” Canadian Public Policy. Vol. 34, No. 3. September.

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Terry Landon at PM EXPO 2010 in Toronto

Toronto ON - Cornwall Ontario is wowing the crowd at the PM Expo 2010 in Toronto .  The 3 day Exposition is wrapping up and Bob Peters emailed in this photo and some info about how Cornwall is doing at their booth.

The show is going great. It’s very busy today and we’re educating a lot of people about the opportunities in Cornwall Ontario.

We’ll have more to report on Bob and Terry’s experiences at the show on their return.  Economic Development of Cornwall has one of the over 1000 booths at the Expo.

Remember nothing says Christmas more than a Gift Certificate at The Best Western Plus in Beautiful Cornwall Ontario!

about opportunities

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Chamber of Commerce President Jeff Bethune

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Toronto  ON  - The Ontario government today introduced the Ontario Clean Energy Benefit (OCEB), which would provide a 10 per cent benefit to help consumers manage rising electricity prices for the next five years.  The OCEB, which would help more than four million residential consumers and more than 400,000 small businesses, farms and other consumers, would take effect on
January 1, 2011.

In order to have a clean, modern and reliable electricity system that includes renewables and creates jobs, the government has made significant investments.  While necessary and unavoidable, these investments are increasing electricity costs.  Over the next five years, residential electricity prices are expected to rise by 46 per cent, after which price increases are expected to moderate as Ontario will have largely completed the transition to a cleaner, more reliable system.

Ontario is emerging from the global economic recession.  By continuing its prudent approach to fiscal management, the government is on track for a deficit of $18.7 billion in 2010-11.  This is a $1 billion improvement over the 2010 Budget projection, and is almost 25 per cent lower than the $24.7 billion deficit projected a year ago for 2009-10.

The government has negotiated the principal terms of a proposed agreement to renew its long-standing business partnership with Teranet, by extending Teranet’s exclusive licences to provide electronic land registration and writs services in Ontario for an additional 50 years.  Under this proposed agreement, Teranet’s owner, Borealis Infrastructure, would provide the province with an upfront payment of $1 billion, which would be used to reduce the province’s debt.

This debt reduction would decrease Ontario’s ongoing borrowing requirements and would save up to $50 million in annual interest costs.  When added to the $1 billion reduction in the deficit, this payment means the government is borrowing $2 billion less than forecasted.  Beginning in 2017, the province would also receive annual royalty payments from Teranet, which are expected to be approximately $50 million in 2017-18 and to grow in future years.

These measures build on the government’s Open Ontario plan to create new jobs, boost economic growth and protect the progress Ontario families have made in their schools and hospitals.

QUOTES

“For a long time, governments of all political stripes have neglected the electricity sector, and that’s why we have made the necessary investments to build a cleaner system and to ensure the lights go on and stay on.  Ontarians are asking for some assistance with rising costs, especially their electricity costs, and every little bit helps during these lean times.”

- Dwight Duncan, Minister of Finance

“I am very pleased that the Fall Economic Statement not only gives consumers a benefit of almost 10 per cent on their electricity costs, but that it also shows that this government is spending wisely and creating jobs that will help provide for a stronger future for the residents of Ontario.”

- MPP Jim Brownell, Stormont – Dundas – South Glengarry

QUICK FACTS

§         Since May 2009, employment has increased by 2.9 per cent or 186,100 net new jobs.  As of October, Ontario has regained 75 per cent of the jobs lost during the global recession.

§         The 2010-11 revenue outlook, at $107.7 billion, is nearly $800 million more than the
2010 Budget forecast, largely reflecting stronger economic growth in 2010.

§         Total expense in 2010-11 is currently projected to be $125.6 billion – 0.2 per cent lower than the 2010 Budget forecast, due to a lower interest on debt expense projection.  This is consistent with the government’s approach to controlling the rate of growth in spending while protecting core public services.

§         As outlined in the 2010 Budget, the government continues its comprehensive review
of all government programs and services.  To date, this review has identified more than $260 million in additional potential savings through both programming and administrative expenditure reductions.

§         In 2010-11, the estimated cost of the proposed OCEB is $300 million, with an estimated
full-year cost of $1.1 billion next year.  These costs are accommodated within the fiscal plan as a result of the government’s prudent approach to managing its finances.

LEARN MORE

Read the 2010 Ontario Economic Outlook and Fiscal Review.

Learn more about how the government is helping families.

Read about the government’s proposed agreement with Teranet.

Read the mid-year update of Ontario’s financial results and economic performance.

Learn more about Open Ontario.

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Cornwall ON - One cannot separate the impact that personal effectiveness has on the ability to influence performance and relationships with others. It is a choice to continually grow and acquire the knowledge and skills to make tomorrow infinitely better than today.

Join the HRDP  SD&G Chapter on November 25^th as Gary Gzik, CEO of BizXcel, goes through an entertaining, thought-provoking, and interactive seminar that will ignite your passion for personal effectiveness and provide understanding and tools to build influence with those around you.

For the past 25 years, Gary has worked as an international presenter and corporate trainer, specializing in organizational management & development, inspiring people and organizations.  He is the author of the personal development books “The Orange Popsicle” and “The Power of Re”.  Someone attending will be a winner of one of these great books.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Registration  between 7:30 a.m. -  8:00 a.m.

Breakfast Served  8:15 a.m.

Workshop 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

Full breakfast provided; light snacks at break; seminar ends at noon.

Best Western Parkway Inn & Conference Centre

1515 Vincent Massey Drive, Cornwall, Ontario

HRPA Members – $60.00    Guests – $90.00    Students – $30.00

4.5 Points toward CHRP re-certification!

RSVP: Please confirm your attendance by Friday, November 19^th, 2010 to Maureen Robertson by email: mrobertson@kraft.com or phone: (613) 537-8058.

Payment by cash or cheque at the door.

Cancellations after November 19th and no-shows will be billed.

HRPA Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry Chapter P.O. Box 661, Cornwall, ON  K6H 5T5

Executive Members:  President – Lori Coleman, CHRP; Secretary/Treasurer – Hannah Barkley, CHRP;Membership Director – Janet St. Pierre; Communications Director – Jill Dumaresq, CHRP; Professional Development Director – Dora Cameron, CHRP; Program Director – Maureen Robertson, CHRP

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Cornwall ON - The Ontario Teacher’s Pension Fund one day may own the world!   Their investments are wide ranging as is their partnership that’s just been announced to win the 30 Year contract for the 68 KM  High Speed 1  Channel link in from London to Paris and other points.

$3.4 Billion C$ was the amount it took which the British government will use to reduce its debt.  The bid was hard fought with the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Borealis Infrastructure Management winning over some major world wide players.

In other Canadian financial news the Loonie is down in spite of the US announcement that it’s going to buy about $500 + Billion of its own debt.   Not sure how that works….you buy your own debt with money you…..borrowed?  Printed?

You can post your comments below.

Oil prices are still projected, buffeted by concerns for the US dollar.

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