Minister Fortier Highlights Government Support for Canadians in Virtual Town Hall with United Way-Centraide Windsor-Essex

From: Department of Finance Canada

News release

November 13, 2020 - Windsor-Essex, Ontario - Department of Finance Canada

The COVID-19 pandemic is the most serious public health crisis Canada has ever faced. Overcoming the challenges created by the pandemic requires the work and resolve of every order of government, every community, and every Canadian.

Today, the Honourable Mona Fortier, Minister of Middle Class Prosperity and Associate Minister of Finance, took part in a virtual town hall with United Way-Centraide Windsor-Essex. The Minister was joined at the town hall by Irek Kusmierczyk, Member of Parliament for Windsor-Tecumseh.

At the town hall, the Minister highlighted the work done to date through Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan to support non-profit organizations, charities, and Canadians, including those who have been particularly vulnerable as a result of the pandemic. She also shared the Government’s plan for a resilient, sustainable, inclusive recovery as outlined in the recent Speech from the Throne. The Government’s approach rests on four pillars: to secure public health and fight the pandemic; support jobs; build the foundations for a better recovery and safeguard Canada’s values while doing so.

Some of the key measures in the Economic Response Plan that take steps to support Canadians, including the vulnerable, through the pandemic and build back better include:

  • Investing $350 million to help community organizations serve vulnerable Canadians during the COVID-19 crisis through the Emergency Community Support Fund (ECSF).
  • Extending the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy through to summer 2021 to help organizations keep their workers.
  • Introducing benefits to workers who have been impacted by COVID-19 including:
    • The new Canada Recovery Benefit, for Canadians who have lost their jobs or had their incomes reduced as a result of COVID-19;
    • The Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit, to ensure Canadian workers have access to paid sick leave; and
    • The Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit for those caring for a child or family member who is sick or in quarantine.
  • Introducing a one-time, tax-free payment to those eligible for the Old Age Security program and the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) to help seniors faced with increasing costs.
  • Establishing a one-time payment to persons with disabilities to further help them during this crisis.
  • Providing funds for a new distinctions-based Indigenous Community Support Fund to address immediate needs in First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities.
  • Continuing to support people experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 outbreak by providing funding through the Reaching Home initiative.
  • Making support available to women's shelters and sexual assault centres, including facilities in Indigenous communities, to help manage and prevent a COVID-19 outbreak in their facilities.
  • Committing to scaling up the Youth Employment and Skills Strategy, to provide more paid work experiences for young Canadians.   

The meeting is one in a series of town halls that the Minister is participating in to highlight the continued work of the government to support Canadians, address the pandemic and build back better. 

Quotes

“All aspects of Canadians’ quality of life have been impacted by COVID-19—from their health, to their livelihoods. We also know it has disproportionately affected vulnerable Canadians. We are committed to supporting organizations, businesses, and Canadians, here in Windsor and across the country through this pandemic. We have been focused on protecting the health and safety of Canadians, and supporting them through this crisis. And that is exactly what we’re going to keep doing during this second wave.”  

- The Honourable Mona Fortier, Minister of Middle Class Prosperity and Associate Minister of Finance

Quick facts

  • Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan offers essential support to individuals, organizations, and businesses including:

    • The new Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy, which would provide direct and easy-to-access rent and mortgage interest support to tenants and property owners until June 2021 for qualifying organizations affected by COVID-19. The new rent subsidy would support businesses, charities, and non-profits that have suffered a revenue drop by providing support up to a maximum of 65 per cent of eligible expenses until December 19, 2020. The government is proposing to allow claims retroactively for the period that began September 27 and ended October 24, 2020.
    • The Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) is part of the Government’s plan to better support Canadians through the next phase of the economic recovery. This new temporary benefit will provide income support of $500 per week for up to 26 weeks to employed and self-employed individuals who have stopped working or had their income reduced by at least 50 per cent due to COVID-19 and who are not entitled to Employment Insurance (EI) benefits. For those who are eligible for EI, temporary changes will make benefits more flexible and easier to access. These important temporary measures have replaced the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), which has helped approximately 8.9 million people pay their bills and put food on the table over the spring and summer.
    • The Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy protects jobs by helping employers keep workers on the payroll and encouraging them to re-hire those previously laid off, and has supported over 3.8 million Canadian employees, with almost $47 billion paid out in wage subsidies. The Government recently announced that it plans to introduce legislation to extend the wage subsidy until June 2021.

Associated links

Contacts

Media may contact:

Daniele Medlej
Press Secretary and Senior Communications Advisor
Office of the Minister of Middle Class Prosperity and Associate Minister of Finance
Daniele.Medlej@canada.ca
613-762-9446

Media Relations
Department of Finance Canada
fin.media-media.fin@canada.ca
613-369-4000

General enquiries

Phone: 613-369-3710
Facsimile: 613-369-4065
TTY: 613-369-3230
E-mail: fin.financepublic-financepublique.fin@canada.ca

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