Mr. Speaker, I rise today with good news for businesses in my riding of Cambridge, and congratulations for the Royal Bank and the Business Development Bank of Canada. These organizations recognized the needs of businesses in the industrial heartland of southern Ontario. They announced on March 1 that they are forming a strategic alliance to provide financing for small and medium size businesses.
The program will provide loans in the range of $50,000 to $500,000, filling a recognized gap that exists in traditional lending patterns. This financing program is targeted to businesses in the expansion phase, especially those in information technology, telecommunications, biotechnology, medical devices, plastics processing, auto parts, advanced manufacturing technology, new materials and the agribusiness and food processing industries.
I applaud the Royal Bank and the Business Development Bank of Canada for providing this tangible support for small and medium size businesses, the backbone of the Canadian economy.