Mr. Speaker, this is Small Business Week, an opportunity to reflect on that part of the economy closest to our communities, whose health and viability is a measure of the health and strength of those communities. Small businesses reflect the cultural mosaic and distinct character of each and every community. They have personalities. They have local faces.
More women now own and work in small businesses than ever before, contributing more than $18 billion to the Canadian economy every year. Women are running more than 700,000 small businesses across the country, roughly 30% of the total. They are bringing a new strength, a new way of doing business, one that is focused more deeply on making their communities work for all.
Yet like all women in the paid labour force, they face greater demands and reap fewer rewards than their male counterparts. Many are juggling work and family responsibilities with few benefits and little security.
New Democrats have called for a strategy to strengthen the environment for small business, and today call for a renewed effort to bolster support for the women who own and work in small businesses across Canada.