It appears Canada’s message to the United States is “not so fast” when it comes to easing travel restrictions along the Canada-US border.
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday our border will be one of the early ones to be released, something Prime Minister Justin Trudeau isn’t fully committing to just yet.
“There’s a recognition of as we move forward there will be special thought given to our special relationship but at the same time we know that there is a significant amount of time still before we can talk about loosening said restrictions,” Trudeau said.
Currently, all non-essential travel between the two countries is banned.
The Prime Minister also spoke recently with G7 country leaders about the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Trudeau didn’t specify if they spoke about President Trump’s decision to withdraw funding to the World Health Organization.
“There is a need for international coordination and the WHO is an important part of that collaboration. We recognize that there have been questions asked but at the same time it is important we stay coordinated as we move through this,” Trudeau said.
Today, the Prime Minister announced they would expand the Canada Emergency Business Account so more businesses could access it for loans during the pandemic.
The Government of Canada is:
- Expanding the Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) to businesses that paid between $20,000 and $1.5 million in total payroll in 2019. This new range will replace the previous one of between $50,000 and $1 million and will help address the challenges faced by small businesses to cover non-deferrable operating costs. Since the launch of the CEBA on April 9, 2020, more than 195,000 loans have been approved by financial institutions, extending more than $7.5 billion in credit to small businesses.
- Announcing its intent to introduce the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) for small businesses. The program will seek to provide loans, including forgivable loans, to commercial property owners who in turn will lower or forgo the rent of small businesses for the months of April (retroactive), May, and June. Implementation of the program will require a partnership between the federal government and provincial and territorial governments, which are responsible for property owner-tenant relationships. We are working with the provinces and territories to increase rent support for businesses that are most impacted by the pandemic and we will have more details to share soon.
