Federal relief for commercial landlords will cost $2 billion by June 30, the Department of Finance said yesterday. Subsidy programs are now expected to increase the national debt to $1 trillion: "The amount being spent by the government is staggering."
A third of people were buried in debt even before the recession, the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada said yesterday in newly-released survey data. Researchers cited “increasing financial stress” for millions before the pandemic shutdown.: "27 percent say they borrow to buy food."
Pandemic contracts awarded by cabinet must be disclosed publicly after taxpayers were misled on terms of a $5 million award to Amazon, Opposition Leader Andrew Scheer said yesterday. The Department of Public Works admitted it is paying commercial fees to Amazon for managing orders of pandemic supplies after publicly claiming the company agreed to waive all profits: "Those days are over."
Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau says departmental research on the cost of the carbon tax is top secret and will not be shared with Parliament or the public. Growers have complained of a $100 million cost on fuel used for grain drying: "This document is secret."
Thousands of unsold farm animals may have to be euthanized without pandemic relief, farmers last night told the Commons industry committee. The Canadian Federation of Agriculture is seeking $2.6 billion in federal aid due to trade disruption and restaurant closures: "What will happen to these animals?"
Public Works Minister Anita Anand misled Canadians over confidential terms of a contract with Amazon to distribute pandemic supplies. Claims that Amazon is working without profit were less than half true, staff acknowledged. The admission came after Anand's deputy minister blurted out terms of the contract at a Commons committee hearing: "No costs – I’m sorry, no profits for the first few months."
Air travelers face fifty percent hikes in surcharges without further federal relief, says the Canadian Airports Council. The Council chair, testifying by videoconference from a vacant departure lounge in Halifax, told the Commons finance committee it will take “many years” for airports to recover from the Covid-19 crash: 'The last thing we want to do is increase our fees.'
Federally-regulated employees have a right to refuse work without a mask if exposed to the coronavirus, says the labour department. MPs on the Commons human resources committee accused the department of being slow to enforce the order: "We would investigate."
Employers are using offers of federal wage subsidies to roll back union benefits, a New Democrat MP told the Commons human resources committee. The labour department said it was unaware of any incidents: "They’re threatening the unions."
Jobless students may apply for pandemic relief grants within two weeks, Employment Minister Carla Qualtrough told the Senate. A million students are expected to draw benefits, prompting senators to question the program as a giveaway: "I admit this is not a perfect system."
Parliament in seven weeks has spent more than it did to fight the Second World War, new data show. The Parliamentary Budget Office yesterday blamed multi-billion dollar cost overruns on pandemic relief programs: "We cannot afford not to."
Restrictions on pandemic loans to small business are intended to target mob fronts, the Commons finance committee was told yesterday. Legitimate operators have complained of being disqualified from federally-guaranteed loans over technical requirements: "It provides protection against abuse by organized crime."
Twenty-nine unidentified publishers have applied for payroll subsidies under a $595 million federal media bailout, records show. The Canada Revenue Agency that manages the program refused to name all applicants, citing taxpayer privacy: "We are responding to the call of our newspapers."
The Commons health committee yesterday issued a summons to question Canada’s man at the World Health Organization, epidemiologist Dr. Bruce Aylward, over the agency’s slow response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The summons has the legal weight of a courthouse subpoena though Parliament has not enforced such an order for 147 years: "The WHO ought to operate with transparency."
Operators responsible for a 2017 tour boat accident did not have enough lifejackets aboard, the Transportation Safety Board said yesterday. The incident prompted a federal probe of the industry and a rare Federal Court challenge of safety inspections: "The master and crew were unaware."
