Time ripe for tech sector exchanges with France

Montrealers stand to gain from closer ties, Jason Behrmann says.

It’s surprising, when walking along the streets of Montreal these days, how many people one hears speaking French with European accents.

This past decade, the city has witnessed a surge in immigration and foreign students from francophone Europe, especially France. The French consulate in Montreal estimates that more than 110,000 French nationals call the city home. These mostly new arrivals have brought dynamism and business prospects to the city, Quebec and Canada.

With the recent changes in governments in both Canada and France, both countries have before them an opportunity to collaborate and ride the waves of prosperity the future high-tech economy promises.

Now that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has lost his amigo Barack Obama, the outward-focused leader must look elsewhere. It’s a safe bet that Trudeau will shine favourably toward the new French president, Emmanuel Macron.

The leaders are of similar ages and political values, as demonstrated by their support for free trade and shared aim to implement the Canada-EU trade deal. Promoting the tech sector as an engine for economic growth is another shared vision, one that has tech entrepreneurs anticipating an uptick in government investments and incentives. Both support immigration policies that enable the exchange of talented tech workers — a big plus compared to the situation in the United States.

Following Macron’s election win, Trudeau said that both leaders can collaborate to advance a progressive agenda that supports science and technology as means to stimulate job creation in both countries. Those are great intentions, but will the benefits flowing from the promotion of the tech sector be a two-way street? Will the two countries collaborate, or compete, in attracting talent and new tech companies?

Montreal appears to have a distinct advantage.

Commercial rents and the cost of living in Montreal are a fraction of what they are in the major urban centres of France; lower taxes and less bureaucratic red tape in Canada make establishing a new business less of a headache; and the stronger economy, more dynamic labour force and lower unemployment ensure the balance of immigration leans toward Mount Royal, not the Eiffel Tower.

Given these imbalances, ensuring Canada-French relations in the tech sector are mutually beneficial will require a sound strategy — one that will undoubtedly be eyed closely by French politicians. If growing ties with Canada have the unwanted effect of causing a brain drain instead of new opportunities in France, many will see Macron’s economic policies as a flop; this will serve far-right political parties that claim greater protectionism and strong borders will best serve French interests.

Recent investments in the French startup sector do hold promise of attracting Montrealers. Helping to spur further growth in this sector, Macron has promised to launch 10-billion-euro innovation fund to support emerging high-tech industries.

Beyond dollars and cents, Quebec and France should think of innovative ways to benefit further from existing collaboration and exchange policies for professionals and students. The QuebecFrance Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications Agreement is a case in point. When immigrating to either jurisdiction, professionals in science and technology obtain expedited recognition of their professional competencies and degrees, which facilitates integration within the labour force. We should couple this agreement with relocation grants and specialty visas for early-career professionals.

The Quebec-France bilateral agreement that permits students to pursue higher education in either jurisdiction without paying costly foreign-student fees is also of interest. Educational institutions should develop new training opportunities with centres of entrepreneurship that are now common at major universities.

We have before us a oncein-lifetime opportunity. The time is right for the tech startup communities on both continents to gain a competitive advantage through the exchange of talent and technical know-how.