Canadian Government Announces New Funding To Help Provinces Restart Economies

On July 16, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a new C$19 billion investment “to help provinces and territories safely restart their economies” and make Canada “more resilient to possible future waves of the virus.” Prime Minister Trudeau said, “The investments announced today will help ensure a safe restart of our economy over the next six to eight months.”

Called The Safe Restart Agreement, the new initiative will address seven priority areas:

• Funding to secure a reliable source of personal protective equipment, and to recover some of the costs from previous investments made by provincial and territorial governments.
• Support to ensure that safe and sufficient child care spaces are available to support parents’ gradual return to work.
• Joint funding with the provinces and territories to support municipalities on the front lines of restarting the economy, including by putting in place precautions for public spaces and essential services to reduce the spread of the virus, as well as a dedicated stream of funding for public transit.
• A temporary income support program that will provide workers who do not have paid sick leave with access to 10 days of paid sick leave related to COVID-19.
• Enhanced capacity for testing, contact tracing, and data management and information sharing to mitigate future outbreaks.
• Investments in health care to respond to the pandemic.
• Support for vulnerable Canadians, including those in long-term care, home care, and palliative care, who are at risk of more severe cases of COVID-19.