The House of Assembly passed all of the legislative amendments put forward to help residents, families and businesses throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, tackling things like interim supply and evictions.
A small group of 10 MHA’s made quick work in the House to pass legislation around COVID-19.
Interim supply has been extended from three months to six months to September 30 in case the House is disrupted into June. That adds another $1.97billion, totaling almost $4.6-billion.
This allows existing government services like health care to continue.
Tenants of rental properties cannot be evicted if they have lost income due to COVID-19 and are unable to pay rent for 30-days. However, Coady says it’s not a blanket shield to stop paying rent. Tenants are to provide some sort of documentation to a landlord on loss of income in order to avoid eviction.
The House passed a unique omnibus four-part bill to pass amendments like eviction notices, employee protections from losing their jobs, variation of deadlines and additional borrowing for NL Hydro.
They also passed a $200-million contingency fund to address the financial impacts of COVID-19 and plummeting oil prices.
Legislation Passed Out of Necessity: Opposition Parties
The Leaders of the opposition parties say the legislation passed in the House of Assembly was necessary to provide certainty and stability.
PC Leader Ches Crosbie says the province has a limited fiscal capacity to do things that involve spending money. He says the measures were necessary housekeeping and preparedness measures.
NDP Leader Alison Coffin says largely, the legislation passed was designed to create certainty in time of tumultuous change.
She says the $2-billion loan bill is vital because the province needs a capacity for borrowing, as being able to borrow more allows the province to provide programs and services appropriately as well as the public services that everyone will continue to need.
Crosbie Offers Rare Praise for Government’s Handling of Pandemic
You don’t hear it often, but PC Leader Ches Crosbie offered some praise to Premier Dwight Ball for his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Crosbie says they have managed to work collaboratively, and despite some disagreements, have arrived at a consensus across the table each day that they’ve been in discussions.
For example, Crosbie says the province was one of the earliest to impose quarantine requirements for people coming into the province.
He says the public should take assurance that all established political parties are working together.
Crosbie says two weeks ago he couldn’t have seen himself standing there and praising Ball for his leadership throughout this crisis. He thanked the Premier for accepting his suggestion to work collaboratively.
