The federal government is going to extend the wage subsidy program to next summer. Ottawa outlined a number of priorities in the throne speech yesterday, many of which focused on the COVID-19 pandemic.
They have plans to help meet the anticipated surge in demand, including increasing testing capacity.
As well, the federal government announced a commitment to help Canadians get back to work following the mass shutdown in March. Government will launch a campaign to create 1-million jobs and restore employment to pre-pandemic levels.
The throne speech also tapped into plans for long term care homes, reaching Canada’s net zero emissions targets, and plans to address racism and problems facing the justice system.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is urging Canadians to take the proper precautions to control the second wave of COVID-19.
According to Trudeau, it isn’t a question of when the second wave comes, because he argues it is already here. He says that when the lockdown first began on March 13 there were 47 new cases of COVID-19. On Monday past, Canada reported over 1,000.
The Prime Minister says we can’t change what has already happened, but we can change our future. He says we got the coronavirus pandemic under control before, and we can do it again, especially now with “more tools in our toolbox.”
Meanwhile, none of the opposition parties immediately came out in support of the Liberal throne speech.
(Image via CPAC, the NDP.)
The NDP said the Trudeau government will need to introduce paid sick leave for workers, and introduce legislation to continue support for those who have been laid off in order to gain their support.
Leader Jagmeet Singh says the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed a lot of problems in Canada, many of which were present even before the current global crisis. He points to healthcare as an example. Singh says Trudeau has had six years to fix the issues he is once again pledging to fix, and has not been able to deliver.
(Image via CPAC, the Conservative Party.)
The Conservative Party says it will not support the throne speech. Leader Erin O’Toole is currently recovering from a positive COVID-19 diagnosis.
While he did not directly respond to the throne speech, he did release a pre-recorded video from his home criticizing the liberals’ response to the pandemic. O’Toole says Trudeau claims that Canada is in this together, yet under the Trudeau government Canada has “never been more divided.” Without support from at least one major opposition party, a snap election will be called.
