To unlock good-paying opportunities for every generation and secure Canada's position at the forefront of the world's advanced economies, we need to ensure our homegrown research talent can reach their full potential. To keep making scientific advances-from tech and AI to climate change and marine sciences-students and researchers today need cutting-edge facilities, grants to fund new projects, and more generous scholarships and fellowships to attract top-tier, homegrown talent.
Today at Dalhousie University, the Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, highlighted how the federal government's science and research investments will enable new breakthroughs and ensure every generation shares in Canada's economic growth.
In Budget 2024, the government is investing nearly $5 billion in Canadian brain power, including:
- Providing $2.6 billion to train top-tier, homegrown talent, with core research grants and enhanced scholarships and fellowships to make it more affordable for our brightest minds to put their ideas to work.
- Investing $1.3 billion to make post-secondary education more affordable, by providing more generous Canada Student Grants and interest-free Canada Student Loans, increasing housing allowances to provide more student aid to approximately 79,000 students each year, and making it more affordable for working-age adults to return to school. This builds on making Canada Student Loans interest-free, permanently.
- Investing $734 million to support Canada's world-leading research infrastructure and institutes, and help the next generation of researchers discover new scientific breakthroughs.
At Dalhousie, federal research support is already creating good research opportunities for students and enabling scientific breakthroughs to better understand and protect our oceans. As part of the federal government's more than $800 million Strategic Science Fund, the Marine Environmental Observation, Prediction and Response Network (MEOPAR)-based at Dalhousie-is receiving $38.1 million in new research support. This will enable MEOPAR to further its Canada-wide marine research projects, creating more opportunities for young talent to turn their ideas into real-world solutions.
The federal government's investments in research and innovation are securing Canada's world-leading research ecosystem and creating opportunities to train the next generation of Canadian talent. Budget 2024 furthers this momentum with strategic investments that create good-paying job opportunities for workers today-driving productivity and economic growth for generations to come.
