Ontario budget 2019: Key highlights

With the first budget of its majority mandate, Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative government delivered a moderated strategy for achieving budgetary balance, while largely maintaining—and in the case of education and health care, even increasing—current program spending levels. In the months leading up to the budget, the government had already delivered on several campaign promises that […]

Ontario budget 2019: ‘Open for Business’ moves from campaign slogan to governing mantra

When Doug Ford swept into power last year, he promised that Ontario would once again be ‘Open for Business.’ The new Progressive Conservative premier went so far as to plaster his campaign slogan on highway signs at the Ontario-U.S. border. It was a not-so-subtle, all-caps reminder to our American friends of his commitment to undoing […]

Federal Budget 2019 does little to address entrepreneurs’ anxieties

If there was any doubt that this is an election year, Federal Budget 2019 offered undeniable proof that we’re about to head to the polls. Finance Minister Bill Morneau tabled a budget yesterday that introduced approximately $23 billion in new spending, with no plan to balance the budget in the foreseeable future. That latter fact […]

Federal economic update provides only modest relief for entrepreneurs

Ottawa’s war against small and medium-sized business owners seems to be over—at least for now. The trouble is the government’s peace offering does little to mitigate the greater threats facing entrepreneurs, from over-taxation and burdensome regulation to tax code complexity. Wednesday’s fall economic update made it clear that the Trudeau Liberals, with an election looming […]

Bill 47 employment law changes spell relief for Ontario businesses

When former Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne’s Liberal government tabled and eventually passed Bill 148, the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017, employers were stunned by the scope of the employment standards changes contained in the legislation. The bill would not only increase the minimum wage by 30 per cent in just two years. The sweeping […]

You own a small business in Ontario—Here’s how to survive a trade war

When U.S. President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum in June, executives in those industries recoiled at the potential fallout, and warned of pending job and revenue losses. Economists promptly cautioned that the ripple effect wouldn’t be contained to those two sectors. Indeed, entire supply chains could face widespread disruption as the […]

Ontario budget 2018 offers little to entrepreneurs in lead-up to June election

The Ontario Liberal party under Premier Kathleen Wynne is locked in a desperate fight for its political life as the Grits seek re-election in June. Not surprisingly, the 2018 provincial budget showers goodies on virtually every constituency from parents with small children (proposed free childcare for children between the ages of two-and-a-half until they enter […]

The major business challenges facing Ontario entrepreneurs in 2018

If there’s one truism for entrepreneurs, it’s that no two years are ever the same. Whether they’re focused on growing their business or managing the myriad number of challenges that can make it difficult to achieve success—think everything from satisfying client expectations to managing costly HR issues—owners of small and medium-sized businesses have no shortage […]

After outcry from entrepreneurs, federal budget introduces watered-down passive income rules

  Owners of small and medium-sized businesses across Canada can finally breathe a sigh of relief. For the most part, they’ve won this round in the ongoing fight with the federal government to halt contentious tax reforms for corporations. Indeed, the 2018 federal budget will be remembered for what it didn’t do, rather than introducing […]

Franchisee cut-backs in wake of minimum wage increase entirely predictable

The New Year rang in a minimum wage increase for Ontarians, as well as a double-double firestorm of controversy as many small and medium-sized businesses—particularly restaurant franchisees, who have borne the full brunt of the increase—took swift action to protect their bottom lines. With the passage in the fall of Bill 148, The Fair Workplaces, […]