Waterloo Region’s technology-based industries are a model for economic development, says Michael Ignatieff. The federal Liberal leader made the comments Tuesday on a campaign-style swing through the area.
Answering media questions before touring the Accelerator Centre at the University of Waterloo, Ignatieff focused his attention on building the relationships between the government and the technology leaders in the country, specifically the Waterloo Region.
“People are creating the jobs of the future by the thousands here in the Kitchener-Waterloo region, but they need help from the federal government.”
When asked how he planned to woo voters in an area currently held almost exclusively by Conservative MPs, Ignatieff highlighted his intention to provide more support for “Canadian champions,” success stories such as Research in Motion.
“The world does not owe Canada a living unless what we do is world class and at the right price. Kitchener-Waterloo understands that perfectly. [The Liberals] have got a great record of support for the high tech parks here and the ongoing research, which we want to continue.”
Ignatieff was joined at the podium by Karen Redman and Andrew Telegdi – former Liberals MPs who lost their seats in last October’s election. Both Redman and Telegdi are back in the running for office in the next election, Redman in Kitchener Centre and Telegdi in Kitchener-Waterloo. Also joining the team was newly appointed Kitchener-Conestoga candidate Teresa Huegle.
Ignatieff carefully avoided predicting an upcoming election, but suggested that Canadians deserve the opportunity to vote for another party after witnessing the Conservative party in action.
“We believe that if you’re running the largest deficit in history, and we are seeing terrible unemployment numbers, record bankruptcies, and you’re not investing in the jobs of tomorrow, in the know-how of tomorrow, we can’t support you (the Conservatives). We need to provide Canadians with an alternative and that’s what we’re going to do.”
