This letter was first sent as an email to our constituents. To receive regular updates from our office regarding COVID-19, sign up via the "Get Updates" tab.

New Supports for You

Dear Neighbour, 

This week is National Nursing Week and I would like to take a moment to thank and celebrate our nurses for their skills, expertise, care and support. During these uncertain times and always, thank you to our amazing nursing professionals for taking care of our communities. 

As our province prepares to implement its incremental restart plan, it is important to continue to practice all public health requirements until informed otherwise and to heed the advice of all levels of government to ensure we all do our part to keep our communities protected. 

This email includes information about: 

• The Third Eligibility Period for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit 
• Temporary Wage Top-up for Low-income Essential Workers 
• Support for Canadian Farmers, Food Businesses, and Food Supply 
• Establishing a Large Employer Emergency Financing Facility (LEEF)
• Expanding the Business Credit Availability Program (BCAP)

The Third Eligibility Period for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) is now open for applications. 

Eligible applicants are now able to apply for the 3^rd period of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (May 10 to June 6). Each eligibility period is a fixed 4-week payment period with a set start and end date. When applying for the CERB, applicants will receive payment for a specific 4-week period. 

Reminder: you must reapply every 4 weeks. If you remain eligible to receive the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, you can continue to re-apply for another 4-week period up to a maximum of 16 weeks (4 months)

To reduce the stress on the system, due to the anticipated high volume of applicants for the CERB, applicants are encouraged to apply on specific days of the week based on their birth month. 

Temporary Wage Top-ups for Low Income Essential Service Workers 

This past week our government announced that all provinces and territories have confirmed (or are in the process of doing so) plans to cost share wage top-ups for their essential workers 

• The Federal government will provide up to $3 billion in support to increase the wages earned by low-income workers in an essential service. 
• The amount received and who will be eligible to receive the top-up will be determined by each province or territory. 

Supporting Canada’s Farmers, Food Businesses, and Food Supply 

Our government is providing support to farmers, ranchers, agricultural producers, and food processors through: 

• The creation of an Emergency Processing Fund in order to assist food producers in obtaining more personal protective equipment (PPE), modify health protocols, automate or modernize their facilities, processes, and operations.
• Launching national AgriRecovery initiatives in funding to help producers faced with added costs incurred for reasons related to COVID-19.
• Announcing the intention to increase the Canadian Dairy Commission’s borrowing limit by $200 million in order to provide assistance for costs related to the temporary storage of cheese and butter in order to avoid food waste. 
• Launching a Surplus Food Purchase Program aimed at helping to redistribute existing and unsold inventories to community organizations who are providing vulnerable Canadians with food. 
• Working with provinces and territories to raise interim payments from 50% to 75% through AgriStability, a federal, provincial, and territorial program that aids producers dealing with significant revenue declines.

Large Employer Emergency Financing Facility (LEEFF)

On Monday our government announced the establishment of the Large Employer Emergency Financing Facility. Through the LEEFF, bridge financing will be provided to Canada’s largest employers whose needs, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, are not being fulfilled through conventional financing, and will work to help keep their operations going. 

Through this support, our government is helping to protect Canadian jobs and assist Canadian businesses in withstanding the current economic challenges, while avoiding the bankruptcies of otherwise viable firms whenever possible. 

The extra liquidity provided through the LEEFF will enable Canada’s largest businesses and their suppliers to maintain their activities during these uncertain times and position them for swift economic recovery. 

Key Guiding Principles in Provision of Support Through the LEEFF, which include: 

1) Protection of taxpayers and workers

• Businesses requesting assistance will be required to show how they plan to preserve employment and maintain investment activities 
• Recipients will also need to commit to respect collective bargaining agreements and protect workers’ pensions 
• The LEEFF will necessitate strict limits to dividends, share buy-backs, and executive pay 
• Companies who receive assistance under the LEEFF program will be required to release their annual climate-related disclosures reports consistent with the Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, as well as demonstrating how their future operation will aid environmental sustainability and national climate goals 

2) Fairness 

• The financing is intended to be applicable to all eligible sectors in order to guarantee support across the Canadian economy

3) Timeliness 

• The program will implement a standard set of economic terms and conditions to ensure timely assistance 

Expanding the Business Credit Availability Program (BCAP)

The Business Credit Availability Program (BCAP) will be extended to mid-sized companies with larger financing requirements, including: 

• Providing loans of up to $60 million per company and guarantees of up to $80 million. 

Under the BCAP, Export Development Canada (EDC) and the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) will work with private sector lenders to support access to capital for Canadian businesses in all sectors and regions

My team and I continue to work hard every day to respond to the needs and concerns of our community. We are still dealing with a high volume of urgent requests but are committed to responding to every constituent. 

We are also focused on ensuring that everyone has the most up-to-date information and that it is accessible. For daily updates, follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, or visit my website.

Yours sincerely,

Ron McKinnon

Member of Parliament for Coquitlam - Port Coquitlam