Ford must fix his broken business registry immediately: Fife

QUEEN’S PARK – MPP Catherine Fife (Waterloo) demanded answers from Doug Ford in question period Thursday after the Toronto Star revealed that several influential firms revealed they’re recommending clients do not register their business in Ontario, and warned the Ford government that it’s new Ontario Business Registry is having a “chilling effect” on doing businesses in the province. Fife released the following statement:

“A host of experienced business and law firms have gone public to say that the Ford government’s new online business registry system is so broken that they’re advising business owners not to incorporate or register their businesses here in Ontario anymore.

How can we expect Ontario to recover from the devastating economic impact of the pandemic if this government has made it impossible for businesses in our province to get up and running, or submit required filings with the province? Far from opening Ontario up for business, Ford is driving businesses out of the province.

Ford must immediately listen to these business and legal experts, take seriously the scathing letter they banded together to send, and commit to immediately fixing the disastrous Ontario Business Registry before it hurts any more local businesses and entrepreneurs. Ontario is trying to bounce back, there’s too much at stake to let Ford’s failures get in the way.”