Opposition ready to work with Liberals on bill

Parliament must pass $71B measure

OTTAWA • MPS will have to get back to work in Ottawa, before employers will get the funds from a massive $ 7 1- billion wage- subsidy program the Liberals announced last week, but opposition parties say they’re prepared to work with the government to get the bill through.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed Tuesday parliament would have to return and pass the bill before the program could be implemented.

“That does require us to move forward on parliamentary legislation and that’s what we’re talking about right now with parliamentarians,” he said outside Rideau Cottage in Ottawa.

The proposed wage- subsidy program is broader than the measures in earlier legislation to deal with the COVID-19 crisis, which was passed on March 25.

That legislation was passed through a special sitting of Parliament with just a fraction of MPS present, in order to reduce the possible spread of the virus. The bill originally contained a number of provisions, including some that would have given the Liberals unlimited taxand- spend powers until the end of 2021, that led to a standoff in Parliament and a marathon negotiating session.

The original wage- subsidy program in the March bill only covered 10 per cent of an employee’s wages and there were several other restrictions. The new program, as proposed in the draft copy of the bill National Post has obtained, is much broader with a subsidy of up to 75 per cent.

While there is no agreed time for Parliament to return yet, all sides are negotiating with the aim to do so soon. Once an agreement is reached, Speaker Anthony Rota would have to give a minimum 48-hours notice to recall the House.

Liberal House leader Pablo Rodríguez provided a copy of the new bill to opposition parties Monday evening, hoping to deal with potential issues in advance.

Conservative House leader Candice Bergen said they were concerned the new legislation would have similar issues to the previous bill, but so far it appears to do only what the government said it would.

“We really did have problems the last time and so there was a lot of concern and skepticism,” she said. “It is more in the spirit of what the government said they were going to be doing.”

As currently written, businesses will be able to claim the subsidy as long as they can demonstrate they have suffered at least a 30- percent drop in revenue and will be able to measure that either against revenues from 2019 or from January and February of this year.

Bergen said the Conservative have some tweaks they want to make to the legislation, but generally they want to see the program up and running.

“We want to get people the support that they need,” she said. “We want the money out to people as soon as possible.”

NDP House leader Peter Julian said they’re also skeptical after the previous experience and want to ensure the bill is as advertised.

“We are going through it with a fine- tooth comb,” he said.

Passing the legislation through the House of Commons’ normal process would take more than a week. The government is aiming to pass the legislation with unanimous consent, which could be done in an afternoon. Bergen and Julian said all sides are now working out the details of that process.

Julian said the NDP wants to see the Canada Emergency Response Benefit improved, because it currently misses many people.

“A third of jobless don’t have access to the benefit, people really need those supports.”

Julian said his par ty would prefer a universal benefit paid to everyone as some governments have done rather than the current benefit that only applies to certain people.

I don’t think

we are coming in there with an ‘our way or the highway’ mentality.

“I am hearing from families that are really struggling to put food on the table and they need the kind of response that we have seen in other countries.”

Julian said he is confident all parties can come to a resolution.

“I see good faith on all sides and I am confident and optimistic that we will be able to resolve these issues.”

The Conservatives have also made suggestions to improve the government’s response to COVID-19, including a refund of GST that businesses have collected in the last six months and reversing an increase to the federal carbon tax that came in this month.

Bergen said the Conservatives do see room for negotiation, but don’t intend to impede the wage subsidy.

“I don’t think we are coming in there with an ‘ our way or the highway’ mentality.”

But, she added, the Conservatives expect the same flexibility from the government in return.

If Parliament is to be recessed for an extended time frame Conservatives want some mechanism for holding the government to account, she said.

“We also would like the opportunity on an ongoing basis to ask the ministers questions, to ask the prime minister questions.”