Listening and Learning to Support Agri-food Businesses

Ontario continues to look for meaningful ways to reduce red tape

News.ontario.ca
April 25, 2019

Ontario's government is working for farmers and agri-businesses to reduce unnecessary red tape, cut costs and help businesses grow, so they can succeed and create good jobs now and in the future.

Ernie Hardeman, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, and Michael Tibollo, Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Sport, met in Vaughan today with food processors and agribusiness representatives to discuss the impact of red tape and to reiterate the government's ongoing support to make it easier to do business in Ontario.

"Over the last number of months, we have consulted with farmers and processors at roundtables across Ontario on opportunities to grow their business," said Hardeman. "And we are already making progress. We are modernizing Ontario's financial protection programs for farm businesses and identifying ways to streamline the licensing and certification processes for more than 20 programs that OMAFRA delivers."

"We are listening to the people of Ontario, including in my riding of Vaughan-Woodbridge, and keep hearing that layers of government red tape are weighing down businesses with piles of paperwork, high fees and added stress," said Tibollo. "We cannot allow excessive red tape to keep strangling businesses and driving jobs and investment out of Ontario."

As outlined in 2019 Ontario Budget, reducing the burden of unnecessary, outdated or duplicative regulations that hurt the ability of Ontario businesses to compete and create jobs is a top priority for the government. To meet the target of providing businesses with over $400 million in ongoing savings from their compliance costs, the government will be introducing red tape reduction legislation throughout its mandate.

Quick Facts

• On April 2, the Ontario legislature passed the Restoring Ontario's Competitiveness Act. The Act will reduce regulatory burdens in 12 sectors, helping job creators thrive, create and keep good jobs.
• A research paper from the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy in Toronto shows that Ontario has the highest cost of complying with regulations of any province - $33,000 per business per year. This is well above the $25,000 to $27,000 range in most other provinces.
• The Ontario government is aiming to reduce regulatory red tape affecting businesses by 25 per cent by 2020.