One on One with Len Crispino

By Peter Mitchell

As president and CEO of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, Len Crispino has a full plate championing the province’s business community. When he escapes the hustle and bustle of Toronto life to return to his home in Niagara’s Jordan Village, it’s not to relax but to devote his time, energy and effort pursuing his dream: “A Foreign Affair Winery”, the 40-acre vineyard he operates with his wife and brother-in-law. He also serves as a Vice-Chair on the Niagara College Board of Governors, helping students embark on their own career aspirations. He is proof that pursuing a dream is not for the faint of heart, and requires a lot of hard work.

Business Niagara was fortunate to obtain an interview with Mr. Crispino to discuss the current economic situation, what it means for Ontario and the Niagara region, and what we can do to prevail. As the world scratches its head trying to figure out what went wrong, he says we shouldn’t be running away from the economic nightmare that has engulfed the world, instead we should take advantage of the opportunities it presents and start running on a dream.

How bad is the economy really?

There’s no question people are losing jobs. Industries that at one time were fairly solid are now having to take another look at themselves; the automotive sector being one. But that doesn’t say that there can’t be a transition to a new economy as well. That’s part of the issue: that sometimes we as Canadians have a tendency to underestimate our abilities. Some of that I think relates to the fact that we are so tied in with the U.S. market. We have a very small market share of the rest of the world.

There is a lot of change happening in the economy. This is a globally caused situation that we find ourselves in. Our country generally is a very stable country; our banking system is very solid. We don’t have the mortgage issues that there have been in the United States. We’re fairly solid, but obviously we’re tied into a global market; in particular the United States.

Yes, things are bad and it’s important to recognize that there was a major downturn in the economy, but having said that we tend to point to companies that are failing. We forget that there is an inordinate amount of activity and entrepreneurship that is also happening out there; people that are responding to the economy.

Can you think of any specific examples in the Niagara region?

There is a company out there called Handling Specialty. That’s a company that has moved forward. And Dennis Parass is very good because he’s saying “Yeah, things are the way they are, but we have to forge ahead.” His market is not just a domestic market; it’s an international one: markets that typically somebody wouldn’t think of. He’s looking at forging ahead in other sectors that at first glance may seem ‘Well what does his equipment have to do with that?’ They have done work in the Middle East. They’ve done work for Cirque du Soleil. So there will be a shake-out in the economy, but as I said there are some very good companies that are pushing forward and seizing international markets.

With our economy so tied in to the American one, should we be following their lead in dealing with the downturn, or is this a good time to start taking steps to stand on our own two feet?

That’s a good question. It speaks to our philosophy on some of the issues that we’ve been facing because we’re so tied in. We have two major challenges in the province. One is the need to diversify what we produce: product diversification. And the second is geographic diversification.

The United States will always be our largest market; but that’s not to say that we can’t begin to diversify to other areas around the world. Canada and Ontario are seen to be stable places. There’s a quiet respect. They don’t see us perhaps quite as heavy on marketing as people from the United States. That may be a bit of a weakness but at the same time they also respect that. We’re not in your face. Maybe it’s time that we also begin to look at some of our policies, some of the principles upon which we’re grounded. But it’s also time that we begin to look at ourselves and ask what is a ‘Made in Ontario’ policy framework?

We also have to look at what is unique with us. What are our needs? What sort of policies do we want to put into place recognizing that we are a different country; we’re bounded by a different history. There may be some commonalities with the United States, but it is a different culture. We have our own ability to move ahead, and forge and identify who it is that we are.

We’re trying to look at Ontario as a magnet for the world, and evoking the entrepreneurial spirit in this province. It’s important when you look at the underlying spirit in this country and some of the icons that we’ve got. I know Terry Fox wasn’t born in Ontario; but there was within him that spirit of hope which I think can be a Canadian trait. And I think that trait has to come out under these conditions. People are looking for hope. They’re looking for the fact that we can get through this working together; having governments collaborate towards a common purpose.

There’s so many interesting projects that we could be looking at. There’s a lot of discussion around infrastructure. There’s been discussion about building a train between Quebec and Windsor. That’s a major undertaking, but at the same time when you think back in history, the railroad had a unifying effect on people. It created employment, but it also gave them a sense of hope and connectivity. I made a presentation to a standing committee in Niagara, and I said here is a project where you could get people to rally around; you could get the business community to be engaged in terms of funding; it would create employment; and it would be sustained over a long period of time. If you’re looking for a major unifying infrastructure project; here it is.

We have to dream big. Oftentimes dreamers are accused of not getting anything done. Well if there is no dream; nothing can be done. If you go back in history anything that was of a major consequence started with a dream. What we want to do as a Chamber is try to engage as many elements of the economy around a dream for Ontario and this notion of Ontario as a magnet for the world.

With the economy hurting, what specifically should the Ontario government be doing to help both in the short term and the long term?

We are very much in favour of encouraging –not just at the provincial but at the federal level– significant stimulus by way of infrastructure projects. We have a huge infrastructure deficit in Ontario and we have an opportunity now to close that gap. This is a good time because it has the additional benefit of helping the economy, but also fixing the potholes and building the bridges that are falling down in some cases.

Another area the business community often mentions is the issue of red tape, and the barriers to being able to move as quickly as possible; particularly as it relates to foreign direct investors who are coming into the province and saying “I want to invest here but I need to make sure that I don’t have a lot of impediments by way of red tape.” I believe Minister Bryant of the Ministry of Economic Development is onto this.

We’re also advocating the harmonization of the GST. It’s the kind of thing that can and will work as long as there’s federal involvement, because there will be a transition period. A huge major prerequisite is the federal government transitional funding for that. There have been some good developments on harmonization of the tax collection system. Now there’s only one corporate tax process by which you file. It has demonstrated that there can be federal provincial cooperation in these areas.

There’s still a big issue that we’re pushing the federal government on, and that is the issue of fiscal balance for Ontario. I don’t think Ontario has ever begrudged paying more than its fair due in Confederation. But over the years it’s gotten so out of whack that we’re actually funding other parts of Canada through our equalization up until now, to a far greater degree than the quality of services that we’ve had in our own province. There seems to be an imbalance there. We would hope that the federal government would take a look at the whole issue of fiscal transfers, not just equalization. There has to be a rebalancing.

Is a provincial deficit necessary to stimulate the economy? What are the dangers? And what measures should be implemented to keep it from getting out of hand?

I believe that people can accept short term deficits under these circumstances. I think the difficulty is when those deficits become sustained deficits. That’s the challenge that all governments are facing now: how do we begin to think about the point that we get out of where we’re at. Because we will; there will be a time when we get out of this. How do we plan for that? And that’s something that not a lot of people have thought about. They’ve thought about how to address the current economic problems, but there’s been very little thinking about how we address the growth that has to happen once this is over, and how we manage that growth. That’s where the whole question of deficits comes into play. Because if we’re going to be constantly having deficits, and we’re hampered because we’ve got to pay off debt; obviously that’s going to be an issue and it will dampen our ability to grow.

What should Niagara’s municipal leaders be doing to help the region?

To me it’s the ability to work together. Just think, if everybody worked together towards a a common goal, how much could be achieved. Niagara is facing challenges with the job losses at GM etc. Now is the time to get all of the key elements to work together. I think individually there is great strength. But I think that it’s time that everybody tried to move toward a common purpose. We have a lot of natural beauty that’s replicated throughout Niagara: Niagara on the Lake, Jordan Village, Vineland. They’re all unique, but there is a commonality to all of them. They’re all part of Niagara. What needs to be done so everybody can agree that we all need to work together; and by working together we can have a much stronger region? What politicians have to do is find ways of bridging any differences that might exist.

There is no reason why at some point Niagara can’t become the force that it once used to be. If you read through history, there used to be a major shipping centre where a lot of activity happened. It became a major hub. It’s not impossible for some new forms of excellence to form. It’s not going to help anybody to just say we’re in this mess; you’ve got to do something about it.

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Business Niagara is published by Niagara Magazine Group