Our focus today is on making sure we’re supporting them as researchers and scientists, but our focus in this budget is also on supporting them as they make their path through this challenging economy. Understanding that the deck seems stacked against you right now in terms of how much you’re paying on rent, how far off the dream of maybe owning a home one day might be. 

These are the things that we’re focused on changing in this budget. We need to be investing in fairness, but part of investing in fairness and investing in that better future is making sure we’re supporting the growth and the innovation that’s going to lead to that. And that’s why I’m so glad to be here at the University of Victoria. I want to thank Dr. Hall and Dr. Thomas for welcoming us here. This is a place that has consistently ranked in the top tier of Canada’s research-intensive universities. 

I’m really happy to be here to talk about what we’re doing to support our researchers, our scientists and grow our economy in ways that works for these young researchers and scientists behind me. This is what we did this week when we released our budget: we’ve shared our plan to create fairness for every generation, especially Millennials and Gen Z. Over the past few weeks, we’ve already talked about measures to build more homes faster, and make measures to make life more affordable. We’ve also talked about our investments in technology and AI that will create good-paying jobs for Canadians and growth for our economy.

But one of the key pillars of our plan for building an economy that is fairer for every generation is to create well-paying jobs. And to do this, we must ensure that Canada can innovate. 

We need to support problem solvers, innovators, and researchers. That’s why Budget 2024 proposes historic measures that will strengthen Canadian research and innovation with investments of over $4.6 billion. (inaudible)

(Applause)

Our investments will include $2.6 billion to increase scholarships for basic research and to support the next generation of research talent, the talent that is behind me today. These investments will lead to unprecedented discoveries that will promote economic growth, whether in the area of health, clean energy, or other key areas. 

We will foster the next generation of research talent by increasing the annual value of master’s and doctoral student scholarships and postdoctoral fellowships, and by increasing the number of students and fellows benefiting from these scholarships. We need to attract, develop, and retain Canada’s top research talent, and this is exactly what these measures will do.

We’ll also help the younger generations get a good, affordable education with an investment of $1.3 billion, which means that for an additional year, we’ll be maintaining the increase we brought to Canada Student Grants. We’re also increasing the housing allowances used by the Canada Student Financial Assistance Program when determining financial need to provide additional student aid to approximately 79,000 students each year, which is particularly pertinent in areas where we know housing is particularly expensive, like Victoria. 

Now, we have some of the best scientists in the world here in Canada and we’re committed to getting them the best tools they need, which is why, as part of this research and innovation package, we’ll grow our world-leading research infrastructure by investing $734 million more. For example, we’ll be investing to upgrade the TRIUMF Lab here in B.C. Launched by UBC, SFU, and UVic, TRIUMF has been doing incredible work in physics research for over 50 years.

By supporting labs like TRIUMF, we will help Canadian researchers to make new discoveries in medicine, for example, to find new cancer treatments or new drugs. And TRIUMF is only one example. In the budget, we are supporting other labs and research centres that will play a role in scientific breakthroughs that will help build our economy, like the Cyclotron in Saskatoon and the SNOLAB in Sudbury.