“Although we are hopefully nearing the end of this pandemic, we are not over it yet. Businesses have been forced to close permanently and parts of the country are still under restrictions, making it hard for people to get back to work in some industries,” said NDP Critic for Housing Jenny Kwan. “$1,200 a month is not nearly enough to live on, especially went faced with rising housing costs. The Liberal’s decision to cut CRB will have a devastating effect on millions of Canadians and force them to choose between putting food on the table and paying their bills.”
In the pandemic, Justin Trudeau had to be forced by the NDP to provide people with any real support. When the Liberals wanted people to survive on $1,000 a month during pandemic lockdowns, the NDP fought back and succeeded in doubling help for struggling families. Now the Liberals have cut the CRB by $800 a month knowing full well this will hurt families struggling to make ends meet.
"We put forward a motion in Standing Committee on Finance to amend the budget to ensure the CRB is maintained as it is," says NDP House Leader and Critic for Finance Peter Julian. “But both the Liberals and the Conservatives said no. It clearly shows they don't have the interests of working families at heart. This is completely irresponsible as millions of Canadians have still not been able to return to their jobs. We have also suggested to sit this summer to resolve this issue, but the other parties truly didn't want to fight for people. The tourism and cultural sectors still haven't fully reopened. How can the Liberals cut the CRB when so many people still depend on it to pay their bills? The NDP will fight to keep these programs in place until the pandemic is completely behind us.”
New Democrats made it clear to Justin Trudeau’s Liberals that they would sit through the summer and help them pass what is needed in the House of Commons to make sure families don’t suffer with an $800 cut to the help they need.
The people of the Lower Mainland deserve so much better.
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