For Immediate Release
August 30, 2006

MCGUINTY GOVERNMENT CELEBRATING ONTARIO’S WORLD-CLASS ENTREPRENEURS AND RESEARCHERS

New Awards Programs Will Promote Innovation, Research And Entrepreneurship In Ontario

TORONTO -- Nominations are now open for two new McGuinty government award programs that will recognize and financially reward the province's next generation of research and innovation talent.

"These world-class awards programs will help us attract and retain the best and brightest minds so that Ontario continues to compete and win in the global economy," said Premier and Minister of Research and Innovation Dalton McGuinty. "We're on the side of innovative Ontario businesses and researchers who help Ontario prosper, and are building a bright future for our next generation."

The awards programs, which have an annual value of $2.5 million, are:

• Premier's Catalyst Awards — consisting of five annual awards of $200,000 each to Ontario's most innovative entrepreneurs and companies, to help them move their ideas and breakthrough technologies to national and international marketplaces.
• Premier's Discovery Awards — Four annual awards totalling $1.5 million to researchers in recognition of their discoveries and achievement in life sciences and medicine, natural sciences and engineering, social sciences and humanities, and innovation leadership. This award funding will be used for research-related expenses.

The deadline for nominations for both awards is Thursday, November 30, 2006. More information is available at www.ontario.ca/innovation. 

This initiative is part of the $1.7 billion the ministry is investing over five years to strengthen and promote Ontario as an innovative economy through research, commercialization and outreach programs. The multi-year investment includes $12.5 million total for the Premier's Catalyst and Discovery awards.

Investing in and rewarding innovative research and development is the latest example of how the McGuinty government is working on the side of businesses and families to strengthen Ontario's economy.

Other initiatives include:

• Strong job creation, with almost 288,000 net new jobs since September 2003
• A $500-million advanced manufacturing investment strategy that provides loans to help industry stay competitive
• A refundable apprenticeship training tax credit
• The phase-out of the province's capital tax, which taxes investment instead of profit, by introducing a five per cent tax rate cut in January, 2007 — a full two years earlier than originally planned
• Securing a $1.1 billion investment commitment by Linamar that will build a technology centre and create an additional 3,000 jobs in greenfield auto parts facilities around the province
• The $160 million Ideas to Market Strategy to grow new start-ups and drive innovation discoveries rapidly from the lab to the marketplace
• The $550 million Ontario Research Fund that helps transform knowledge into products and services that improve people's lives.

"Our future prosperity depends on our ability to create an environment that supports and rewards innovation — so we can grow companies, encourage entrepreneurship, support research and improve interaction between academia and industry," added McGuinty

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