Summerside, PE - Premier Dennis King, along with PC Candidates Barb Ramsay, Tyler DeRoches, Gilles Arsenault, and Hilton MacLennan announced a number of initiatives to build on the robust and innovative Island economy.
Over the last four years, Premier King and his team have supported industry during the most difficult time period in our lifetimes. Government answered the call to support businesses to assist in keeping doors open and employees paid when they had to close. Through wage support, financing assistance, revitalization grants, and enhanced marketing support this Government worked with industry partners to mitigate economic disruption.
With record investments in the bio-sector and supports to CASTL to provide for upskilling, PEI is growing its international reputation as the place to be for all things Bio. Aerospace, IT, and Clean Tech provide for valuable opportunities allowing Islanders to stay at home to work.
Record investments have been made in our post-secondary institutions, growing trades and to support our child care system, and building a record number of housing units to support workforce growth. The PC government recognizes that workforce remains one of the challenges for our generation and will step up to support industry.
Today, Premier Dennis King announced that a re-elected PC government will:
- Grow the workforce to 90,000 jobs by 2026;
- Continue to support Partnership for Growth with Workforce 2030, an industry-led project to quantify and forecast PEI’s future labour market requirements.
- $10 Million Dollar Upskilling and Re-Skilling Fund to work with employers to create unique opportunities to get more people into the workforce through mentorship and training opportunities by working with sector champions;
- Fund sector and industry groups to develop online training platforms for professional development, upskilling, and to allow for quicker onboarding of new graduates and employees into critical roles;
- Reactivating regional development corporations such as SRDC & CADC to encourage regional cooperation in the capital region and greater Summerside Area;
- In addition to raising the basic personal exemption amount to $15,000 over four years, we will also re-evaluate the provincial income tax bracket model to be more competitive and leave more money in the pockets of Islanders, especially low-income Islanders.
- Continue investment in the Bio Sector by providing the necessary funding to establish the Bio Accelerator and continue to grow the Clean Tech sector.
- Working with the federal government to find expedited routes for international skilled workers to join our province’s workforce either on a temporary basis or permanently;
- Allow communities and NGO partners to participate in a Social Enterprise Incubator project;
- Modernize government procurement policies to prioritize local products and services;
- Working with the Construction Association of PEI, expand programming to provide more pathways for Islanders to enter the construction workforce and help with creating more housing units across the province;
- Launch a $50 Million dollar Cleantech Energy Program to kick-start the clean tech sector on Prince Edward Island and support the Clean Tech Academy in Georgetown;
- Establish a $2 Millon Dollar Adaptation Fund for employees to retrofit workplaces to make them more accessible for those who have physical disabilities to participate either remotely or in person;
- Provide $1 Million Dollars to Charlottetown Airport to increase flights into and out of YYG Airport to increase regional connectivity; and
- Continue to make investments in the Island-wide transit system, keeping fares at $2 per trip and adding more routes, to make it more affordable to get to and from work.
“Prince Edward Island continues to lead the country in population growth and growing our economy. We have the lowest unemployment rate in history, and the highest employment numbers since Confederation,” said Premier Dennis King. “Our plan focuses on grassroots economic development, growing our workforce, and being a catalyst for economic activity in key sectors such as bioscience, construction, and clean technology.”