Canadian Parliament To Reconvene To Consider Updated COVID-19 Response Provisions

TORONTO (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd April, 2020) Canada's parliament will reconvene for another emergency session to consider the updated COVID-19 response provisions.

Under the Emergency Wage Subsidy program, which has been touted as the largest economic plan in Canadian history by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, businesses that have seen revenues drop by at least 30 percent can apply to receive 75 percent wage subsidies to keep employees on payroll while much of the economy is shut down as a result of the pandemic.

During his daily briefing on the novel coronavirus pandemic on Wednesday, Trudeau asked Government House Leader Pablo Rodriguez and Deputy Prime Minister Freeland to "reach out to the other parties about bringing back parliament" to consider the measures.

Freeland said that the motion to reconvene parliament, which has only met once on an emergency basis since adjourning on March 13, is out of respect for the democratic process and the need for consensus amid the public health crisis.

The official opposition, however, sees things differently.

According to Conservative Pierre Poilievre, the shadow minister of finance, Bill C-13 - the original economic support package approved last week at an emergency parliamentary session - does not account for the measures included in the Emergency Wage Subsidy and as such the new measures must be considered by parliament.

Under the original plan, all privately-owned Canadian businesses were eligible for a 10 percent wage subsidy at a total cost of $2.

7 billion.

Earlier on Wednesday, Finance Minister Bill Morneau, announced that the updated program, which will be in place for three months, retroactive to March 15, will cost $50 billion. According to Poilievre, Morneau had to abruptly cancel the original announcement on Tuesday, because he had uncovered the legislative gap.

On March 25, Canada's parliament approved a multi-billion-dollar economic support package in response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The bill elicited outrage from the opposition after it was revealed that the governing Liberal Party sought to include provisions that would have granted Trudeau and his cabinet sweeping new powers to spend, borrow and tax without parliamentary approval for the next 21 months.

In the approved version of the bill, the new powers are capped at 6 months and can be revoked, should any abuse of power occur.

In total the Canadian government will spend over $176 billion on stimulus measures as the economy will likely remain beset by the virus in the coming months.

According to a report by the country's Office of the Parliamentary Budget Officer, Canada's economy is facing a 5.1 percent decline in real GDP in 2020, levels unseen since 1962, amid the growing pandemic. The budget watchdog also stated that the budget deficit would rise to $26.7 billion in 2019-20, before ballooning to $112.7 billion in 2020-21 - 5.2% of the GDP and the highest since 1993-94.