Eight months after winning an election on the promise to shield the province from the impacts of United States President Donald Trump, the Ford government has only handed out $100 million from its signature Protect Ontario Account.
The Fall Economic Statement, tabled Thursday, confirmed Ontario has given $100 million from a $1 billion fund to tariff-battered Algoma Steel, but has not finalized agreements with any other companies.
Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy insisted the money was rolling out as fast as possible, saying more companies were in line to benefit.
“It hasn’t been slow at all,” he told reporters on Thursday. “In fact, we opened up the application process and, of course, a number of companies have applied and we’ve been in the process of adjudicating those applications and we’ll be having some announcements real soon.”
The $1 billion program — part of a broader $5 billion plan — was included in the Progressive Conservative platform for February’s snap election, confirmed in the spring budget and officially launched in August.
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Officials have described the $1 billion as “an emergency backstop for Ontario businesses that have exhausted available funding.” When it was launched, Bethlenfalvy said it would offer loans ranging from $250,000 to $40 million.
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The Fall Economic Statement, however, confirmed the government had given $100 million to Algoma Steel from the fund. The Ministry of Finance said higher loans were always available through the plan but required more stringent approvals, which Algoma passed.
“That’s what it’s there for — to provide companies that are really impacted by the 50 per cent tariff on steel and aluminum, the tariffs on the auto sector,” the finance minister said.
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“So, that’s one fund that we’re using to support workers, to support businesses.”
Asked if the terms of the fund were too narrow for many provincial businesses, Bethlenfalvy said it was a “fair question,” adding there are other relief measures available.
“It’s not the only place that they can draw down funds,” he said. “The federal government has a lot of programs, we also have a lot of other programs.”
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The Canadian Federation of Independent Business, for example, has complained many of its members simply don’t have the resources or time to trawl through government applications to see what they’re eligible for.
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They’ve advocated for direct relief through rebates or tax changes to soften the impact of tariffs on their members.
“Small businesses need more direct measures like WSIB surplus rebates to help them weather the tariff storm and unpredictable economy,” the group wrote in a statement after the Fall Economic Statement was released.
“They don’t have the time or resources to search and apply for programs for which they end up being ineligible.”
Elsewhere, the government is touting the success of its Ontario Together Fund.
That pot of $50 million was set up for provincial companies to “enhance resilience, strengthen capacity, build local supply chains in Ontario and expand market reach.”
Bethlenfalvy said $48 of the $50 had already been allocated, with the government adding an extra $100 million to the fund as part of the fall economic statement.
“We acted early and we continue to act,” he said.
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