“Taking that option off the table for a temporary period hopefully can bring the two groups together and get some good relief going to small businesses,” said Dan Baxter, director of policy.
There are some businesses that have been able to pay their rent so far, but have now exhausted their resources, he said. “Businesses are starting to run out of cash,” said Baxter. “Most only have one to three months of operating expenses. If they are paying right now, that might not last in the future. Helping them with their rent is a good business decision most landlords would want to take advantage of.”
The Opposition Liberal party called for the eviction ban in a letter to Premier John Horgan last month. Leader Andrew Wilkinson said while the NDP has acted in this one area, it has ignored other suggestions such as a three-month pause on the provincial sales tax, hotel tax and employer health tax.
“We’ve proposed a full slate of real workable solutions for small business and the NDP have cherry picked one of them,” said Wilkinson. “But all they are planning to do is support a federal program that’s not working.”
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