ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS TO KEEP MY BUSINESS!
Nearly 800 small businesses in New Westminster and Burnaby risk closing their doors in the New Year. With the Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) loan repayment deadline less than a month away, Canada’s NDP is urging Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and Minister for Small Business Rechie Valdez to extend the repayment deadline and loan forgiveness to help local businesses.
Small businesses owners are spending their holidays worrying about how they’ll be able to pay their CEBA loan off, after spending the last two years watching the cost of their rent, supplies and products skyrocket. They deserve understanding and a break. New Democrats has tirelessly been calling for the CEBA loan repayment deadline to be pushed back to give people a chance to catch up with high costs – but the Liberals have refused to help our local businesses.
While the Liberals are pushing small businesses to repay their loans, they’re handing out $21.6 billion in contracts to large consulting firm, cutting this spending by just four per cent would cover the costs of extending the CEBA deadline. The NDP says instead of delivering relief for small businesses that risk going under without an extension on their CEBA loan, the Liberals are giving a pass to massive ultra-rich corporations.
For months, the Canadian Federation of Small Businesses (CFIB), local businesses in my riding, Burnaby Board of Trade, New Westminster Chamber of Commerce, Canada’s NDP, and every premier from across the country have called for a year-long CEBA extension to keep businesses afloat. The Liberals have refused, while Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives have been silent.
At a time when British Columbians expect the government to be understanding, instead what the Liberals are showing is just how out-of-touch they are. Justin Trudeau keeps refusing to extend CEBA, but then turns around and finds money for ultra-rich consulting firms. On the other side, there’s Pierre Poilievre and his corporate-controlled Conservatives, who are ignoring small businesses pleads for help – but if rich corporations needed something, Poilievre and the Conservatives would do everything in their power to get them more handouts.
Our community deserves better. New Democrats want to see a full, year-long extension of the CEBA repayment deadline, with the loan forgiveness intact before the New Year.
New Westminster - Burnaby
(604)-775-5707
MP Peter Julian (New Westminster–Burnaby), MLA Raj Chouhan (Burnaby–New Westminster), and MLA Jennifer Whiteside (New Westminster–Coquitlam) are inviting the media to attend a special Flag Day rally on Saturday, February 15, 2025, to emphasize the importance of national unity in the face of ongoing tariff threats from the Trump administration.
Flag Day Rally Details:
Media Contact:
Doris Mah, Office of MP Peter Julian
Phone: 604-353-3107
Email: [email protected]
Dear Neighbours,
I hope you and your family are doing well.
It’s an honour to serve as your Member of Parliament in New Westminster – Burnaby, one of the most culturally diverse communities in Canada.
On Monday, New Democrats announced the implementation of the NDP’s national dental care program, which will save millions of families across Canada around $1,300 a year. In my riding of New Westminster – Burnaby, over 26,000 seniors, people living with a disability, and families struggling to pay the bills will no longer have to choose between a visit to the dentist or keep a roof over their head.
