Shomporko Desk: PM Justin Trudeau declared Monday that the government will broaden the Canada emergency response benefit (CERB), with subtleties to follow in the near future.
CERB is the $2,000 every month installment the administration presented in March, which was intended to run for about four months and was set to lapse right off the bat in July.
“We’re working on a solution to extend the benefit for people who can’t return to work yet,” Trudeau said.
“We’ll have more details this week, but for today, I want you to know that we’ll continue to be there for you and your family.”
Treasury Board President Jean-Yves Duclos said today the “situation has changed” since the CERB was first introduced — the economy has re-opened in many parts of the country — so there will be “new parameters” to the program when the extension is formally announced.
The government cut its projected budget for the wage subsidy for the 12-week period between April and June from $73 billion to $45 billion. As of June 8, the program has paid out only $10.5 billion in wage subsidies.
“To all employers — please use the wage subsidy if you haven’t already. This help is designed for you and your employees,” Trudeau said.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has made extending CERB eligibility a condition of his party’s support for a key piece of fiscal legislation that is set to be tabled in the House of Commons this week.
The government will present the supplementary estimates on Wednesday and Parliament must pass that bill, which gives the government the authority to spend on programs and services.
The legislation is considered a confidence vote — meaning the government could fall if it doesn’t obtain the support of at least one of the opposition parties for these estimates.
Trudeau also announced that the government will start accepting new applications for the Canada emergency business account (CEBA) starting Friday. The government has expanded program eligibility to include sole proprietors and farmers.
Photo credit: Andrew Meade/iPolitics
News source: CBC News
