In her role as Canada’s new Minister of Small Business and Tourism, Bardish Chagger, a 35-year-old first-time MP from Waterloo, Ont., is tasked with helping small companies thrive.
After just six weeks on the job, Chagger, who previously worked as a community organizer at the Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Centre and an executive assistant to former Member of Parliament Andrew Telegdi, is getting up to speed on the issues in this wide ranging portfolio.
Minister Chagger spoke with The Globe and Mail Small Business Editor, Sarah Efron, at the Futurpreneur office in Toronto earlier this week.
What was your experience with small business before taking on this role?
I’m coming from the Waterloo Region, home of Communitech, home of innovation. That’s what’s really important to this mandate. We are definitely focused on growth for small business, innovation, and small business becoming export oriented….In the past I worked with the Waterloo Region Small Business Centre and I used to co-ordinate a conference for internationally trained professionals and so forth, so that network is extensive. A lot of players who are involved in the portfolio are part of my network.
Many small businesses are watching to see what will happen in terms of taxation. What changes will happen with the small-business tax rate and your government’s pledge to restrict the type of companies that can use it?
The government of Canada is committed to lowering the tax burden on small-business owners. We really need to do it. We committed to it within the platform and I am committed to working with the Minister of Finance to ensure that happens.…[In terms of which businesses can claim the small-business tax rate] we’re conversing with Canadians and that’s exactly why I’m here right now. I’m meeting with people to understand what the concerns and challenges are. We are here to work with small business because they are economic drivers and we have to work with them.
Your government says it will tax workers with more than $100,000 in annual stock option gains. Some startups are concerned, as they use stock options for partial compensation instead of salary. Would you consider an exemption for startups?
Everything’s on the table and I’m working closely with the Minister of Finance when it comes to any of these options. I’ve been on the job since November 4 – we started that day – and, I tell you, not once has it come up. There are challenges and issues that are coming up, and we’re listening to them.
Your government has promised more money for incubators and accelerators. In the startup space, many people say there’s already too much money going to incubators. Is it really the best way to create growth companies? People are telling me the incubators are becoming institutions, they want more funding to keep the lights on.
The few that I visited today, that was not the case. We went to MaRS, [Ryerson University’s] DMZ. Something I know is we all have the same goal. We have the goal to work with Canadians. We have the goal to work for growth. We want to create jobs.… We don’t want duplication, we don’t want to reinvent the wheel, but we do want to provide the supports that are necessary for growth to occur.
The $200-million that’s been promised to fund incubators and accelerators, is that something you would reconsider if you get feedback from the sector that it’s not the best way to create growth companies?
If we made a commitment, we will keep our commitments. We will be working with the Minister of Finance to ensure that they are available. The platform we ran on is a platform we will deliver.
I’m also hearing a lot from Waterloo companies about foreign workers. They are saying it has become difficult to bring in highly skilled workers. Do you anticipate changes that would make it easier for these companies?
The Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship and I have had a good conversation and that’s a conversation we will continue. I don’t believe there is a single minister that I haven’t spoken to in regards to this file.… The ministers need to work together, departments need to work together. We will collaborate to ensure that these challenges can be overcome.… This is a challenge that’s come up and we need to figure out the best way. There won’t be a quick way if we do it right, but we’re committed to doing it right.
The expansion of the Canada Pension Plan is something I’m hearing concerns about from small-business owners, who worry about paying higher premiums. What can you tell those business owners about the expansion?
The Minister of Finance is coming out with a budget soon and there have been some conversations. There were some commitments made in the platform. I don’t think an outcome has come out yet as to how or where or when, but we will be working with the provinces and the territories. The social safety net of our nation is important. Something I said throughout the campaign often is there is a deficit and there’s the national debt that exists. There’s also an infrastructure deficit and a social deficit that exists.
So I think when it comes to the CPP, Canadians need to know one thing: that we’re here to work with them and for them. We’re here to work in our nation’s best interest. We’re not making decisions just to check off a box. We’re making decisions to help this nation thrive and grow so that opportunities exist right here in the great nation that we live in.
This interview has been condensed and edited.