Thank you, Stephanie, for your kind introduction, and thank you, ladies and gentlemen.

I am honoured to be here with you to participate in the CWC’s 15^th anniversary celebration. This is a great opportunity to recognize the incredible achievements of some of the most outstanding women in the communications industry.

I am also pleased to note that this is my first formal speaking opportunity with members of the communications industry since my appointment as Minister of Industry.

You will have heard about the government’s five priorities. I can tell you that work is well under way on these key elements of our agenda.

Information and communications technologies and telecommunications services have played an important role in our economic growth. They will continue to play a key role in boosting productivity and competitiveness across all economic sectors.

Promoting a positive business environment is our credo. Our government is placing a renewed focus on efficient economic regulation.

I look forward to working with your industry in the months ahead. A key milestone for all of us in this room tonight will occur later this month when I receive the report of the Telecommunications Policy Review Panel. I will be looking to hear your views on the Panel’s recommendations.

I was born and raised in the Beauce region of Quebec. We attach great importance to self-reliance, individual responsibility and voluntary cooperation in achieving our collective goals. These values are in line with the principles of our new government. I ask for your support as we work to meet our collective challenges in creating a supportive environment for business.

Before I present the Employer of the Year Award, I would just like to take a moment and share with you some of my thoughts on the CWC.

Industry Canada has been proud to support CWC and its mission to help advance the role of women in this vital industry. Women have proven to be a tremendous source of business talent in Canada’s communications industry. In supporting CWC’s mandate, we are supporting the best interests of the business community.

And as many of you here know, our support is ongoing. In fact, I am proud to note that Industry Canada has sponsored the attendance of 30 professional women at tonight’s gala.

My department is pleased to be a partner again this year in the Jeanne Sauvé Professional Development Program. This program promotes greater understanding of communications policy between the public and private sectors. It also honours some of the outstanding women working in government and the private sector.

I would like to congratulate all of this year’s participants in the Jeanne Sauvé program. It is a strong example of how the public and private sectors can work together to achieve shared objectives.

And now, the Employer of the Year Award. It is not surprising that one of the companies that was recognized earlier this evening for adding women to its board is also the winner of the 2005 CWC Employer of the Year Award.

I believe that we are now going to see a short video.

It is an honour to present this award to Alliance Atlantis Communications. As we saw in the video, this is a company that has consistently supported the advancement of women. It is led by a woman. It is making great progress in getting more women onto its board. Congratulations!

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Date Modified: 2006-03-09 Important Notices