As provinces begin gradually to reopen their economies, the federal government is pleading with Canadians to continue respecting pandemic measures — while the opposition Conservatives are warning that federal emergency aid could discourage some people from going back to work.
Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said today that flaws in government support programs could “derail” provincial efforts to get the country’s economy back on track after widespread business shutdowns driven by COVID-19.
He said the Canada emergency response benefit (CERB) and the student financial aid program offer incentives for people to stay home rather than return to work.
“At a time when our economy needs stimulus, Justin Trudeau has given it a tranquilizer and risks creating labour shortages across the country. This failure must be reversed before it is too late. Canada’s economic recovery depends on it,” Scheer said.
Canadians are disqualified from receiving the Canada emergency response benefit (CERB) or student emergency aid if they earn more than $1,000 a month, and most benefits are available for several months.
Scheer said that as businesses slowly start to reopen, their employees are being forced to choose between taking shifts and keeping their benefits. CERB was designed to cushion COVID-19’s impact but it is now threatening to impede an economic recovery, he said.
Scheer said the programs must be made more flexible to encourage people to return to work. He called for a progressive, graduated formula allowing claimants to collect a portion of the benefit while working more hours to earn an amount greater than $1,000.
Watch: Andrew Scheer says federal benefits could lead to labour gaps
Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer says that a gradual reduction of the emergency benefit would encourage more Canadians to get back to work. 1:51
“A gradual phase out of the benefit as people earn more and more, we believe, would encourage and incentivize people to re-enter the workforce. It would help small businesses get the labour that they will need to restart their businesses without having to force people to choose between the risk of going back to work and losing their entire benefit,” he said.
To date, more than 7.3 million Canadians have applied for CERB. Another 96,000 employers have applied for the 75 per cent wage subsidy to cover about 1.7 million workers. Another 518,000 businesses have applied for $40,000 government-backed loans to stay afloat through the global pandemic.
‘We’re not there yet’: PM
Asked if the government would consider changing the benefits package, Trudeau said he’s looking forward to scaling back benefits and helping people get back to work — but “we’re not there yet.”
“We’re very much still trying to make sure people are getting the support they need, even as the economy is starting to gradually reopen. Our focus is on keeping people safe and ensuring they have the ability to stay home and pay for groceries, pay their rents and support each other,” he said.
“Obviously, a lot of thought is going into the various steps that are going to be needed as we get people out of their homes and back to work, but for now we’re still very much focused on how we help people through this.”
Watch: Justin Trudeau says focus remains on keeping Canadians safe
“We’re not there yet,”Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says when asked how the government will scale back emergency pandemic benefit programs when Canadians gradually return to work. 0:45
Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam said today that COVID-19 is something Canadians will have to cope with until there’s a vaccine.
“This means physical distancing, hand hygiene and cough etiquette must continue everywhere. And although we’ll be getting out of our homes more and more, it will be vitally important that at the slightest sign of symptoms we stay home to save lives,” she said.
“Working while sick can no longer be a thing. As we move through the weeks ahead, let’s not forget we are all in this together and we will work our way through it with good science, strong evidence, careful steps and a shared goal to succeed despite the hardships.”
Health Minister Patty Hajdu also cautioned against easing back on restrictions too quickly, pointing out that there is not yet widespread immunity to the novel coronavirus.
“I think the first thing that Canadians need to remember is it’s not over,” she said. “It is a cautious reopening in certain provinces, in certain sectors, but that the new normal will have to include new ways of living, new ways of working that will protect us in this unique and difficult time.”
Watch: Patty Hajdu cautions that ‘it’s not over’
As provinces slowly begin to reopen their economies from pandemic lockdowns, Health Minister Patty Hajdu says Canadians need to remember that ‘it’s not over’ yet. 1:36
In an interview with CBC News Network’s Power & Politics last week, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister suggested that federal benefits could have “perverse potential outcomes” or “unintended consequences” by encouraging people to stay home.
“I’m not discounting the need for people to get supports and I have thanked very publicly … the federal government for introducing these programs. But I am cognizant of the real, potentially dangerous consequences of rewarding people for not looking for work,” he told host Vassy Kapelos.
“We have lots of opportunities in our province and I have encouraged people, and I will encourage them, to seize those because I know that our small business community is anxious to get back open and anxious to employ people as they do that.”
Provinces are gradually allowing some businesses and services to reopen. Some services in Ontario reopened today and Premier Doug Ford said the province may be “getting close” to opening parks and more curbside pick-up retail options.
Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer held a news conference and took reporter questions on Mon. May 4 in Ottawa. 29:58
OTTAWA – Canada’s unemployment rate held steady at 6.5 per cent last month as hiring remained weak across the economy.
Statistics Canada’s labour force survey on Friday said employment rose by a modest 15,000 jobs in October.
Business, building and support services saw the largest gain in employment.
Meanwhile, finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing experienced the largest decline.
Many economists see weakness in the job market continuing in the short term, before the Bank of Canada’s interest rate cuts spark a rebound in economic growth next year.
Despite ongoing softness in the labour market, however, strong wage growth has raged on in Canada. Average hourly wages in October grew 4.9 per cent from a year ago, reaching $35.76.
Friday’s report also shed some light on the financial health of households.
According to the agency, 28.8 per cent of Canadians aged 15 or older were living in a household that had difficulty meeting financial needs – like food and housing – in the previous four weeks.
That was down from 33.1 per cent in October 2023 and 35.5 per cent in October 2022, but still above the 20.4 per cent figure recorded in October 2020.
People living in a rented home were more likely to report difficulty meeting financial needs, with nearly four in 10 reporting that was the case.
That compares with just under a quarter of those living in an owned home by a household member.
Immigrants were also more likely to report facing financial strain last month, with about four out of 10 immigrants who landed in the last year doing so.
That compares with about three in 10 more established immigrants and one in four of people born in Canada.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
The Canadian Institute for Health Information says health-care spending in Canada is projected to reach a new high in 2024.
The annual report released Thursday says total health spending is expected to hit $372 billion, or $9,054 per Canadian.
CIHI’s national analysis predicts expenditures will rise by 5.7 per cent in 2024, compared to 4.5 per cent in 2023 and 1.7 per cent in 2022.
This year’s health spending is estimated to represent 12.4 per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product. Excluding two years of the pandemic, it would be the highest ratio in the country’s history.
While it’s not unusual for health expenditures to outpace economic growth, the report says this could be the case for the next several years due to Canada’s growing population and its aging demographic.
Canada’s per capita spending on health care in 2022 was among the highest in the world, but still less than countries such as the United States and Sweden.
The report notes that the Canadian dental and pharmacare plans could push health-care spending even further as more people who previously couldn’t afford these services start using them.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
As Canadians wake up to news that Donald Trump will return to the White House, the president-elect’s protectionist stance is casting a spotlight on what effect his second term will have on Canada-U.S. economic ties.
Some Canadian business leaders have expressed worry over Trump’s promise to introduce a universal 10 per cent tariff on all American imports.
A Canadian Chamber of Commerce report released last month suggested those tariffs would shrink the Canadian economy, resulting in around $30 billion per year in economic costs.
More than 77 per cent of Canadian exports go to the U.S.
Canada’s manufacturing sector faces the biggest risk should Trump push forward on imposing broad tariffs, said Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters president and CEO Dennis Darby. He said the sector is the “most trade-exposed” within Canada.
“It’s in the U.S.’s best interest, it’s in our best interest, but most importantly for consumers across North America, that we’re able to trade goods, materials, ingredients, as we have under the trade agreements,” Darby said in an interview.
“It’s a more complex or complicated outcome than it would have been with the Democrats, but we’ve had to deal with this before and we’re going to do our best to deal with it again.”
American economists have also warned Trump’s plan could cause inflation and possibly a recession, which could have ripple effects in Canada.
It’s consumers who will ultimately feel the burden of any inflationary effect caused by broad tariffs, said Darby.
“A tariff tends to raise costs, and it ultimately raises prices, so that’s something that we have to be prepared for,” he said.
“It could tilt production mandates. A tariff makes goods more expensive, but on the same token, it also will make inputs for the U.S. more expensive.”
A report last month by TD economist Marc Ercolao said research shows a full-scale implementation of Trump’s tariff plan could lead to a near-five per cent reduction in Canadian export volumes to the U.S. by early-2027, relative to current baseline forecasts.
Retaliation by Canada would also increase costs for domestic producers, and push import volumes lower in the process.
“Slowing import activity mitigates some of the negative net trade impact on total GDP enough to avoid a technical recession, but still produces a period of extended stagnation through 2025 and 2026,” Ercolao said.
Since the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement came into effect in 2020, trade between Canada and the U.S. has surged by 46 per cent, according to the Toronto Region Board of Trade.
With that deal is up for review in 2026, Canadian Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Candace Laing said the Canadian government “must collaborate effectively with the Trump administration to preserve and strengthen our bilateral economic partnership.”
“With an impressive $3.6 billion in daily trade, Canada and the United States are each other’s closest international partners. The secure and efficient flow of goods and people across our border … remains essential for the economies of both countries,” she said in a statement.
“By resisting tariffs and trade barriers that will only raise prices and hurt consumers in both countries, Canada and the United States can strengthen resilient cross-border supply chains that enhance our shared economic security.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
