Madam Speaker, this pandemic has affected Canadians from all walks of life in many different ways, whether it be front-line workers who have put themselves in harm's way to keep us all safe; or workers in the service industry, like retail employees and servers, whose jobs have vanished; or retirees who have seen their savings decimated by the financial markets tanking; or small business owners who have had to adapt to this new reality, resulting in many suffering massive losses and some even being forced to close their doors for good.
So many in my community have phoned or written my office in the last eight months. They are struggling to get by. They are facing a once-in-a-lifetime challenge. While this government has made some announcements which seemed promising, when it came time to deliver many of these programs, they just could not get it right.
I believe it was my colleague, the member for Edmonton Centre, who previously described it best: The government gets an A for announcement and an F for delivery.
Our motion today discusses the devastating consequences on Canadian workers and businesses, especially in the restaurant, hospitality and tourism sectors. I want to bring to light three real-life examples of small businesses in my community that have struggled during the pandemic in a few different ways.
Two weeks ago, I met with Tony Siwicki from the Silver Heights Restaurant. They have been known by all in sunny St. James since 1957 for having the best ribs in town. I confess that I have sampled those ribs several times, and I agree. I can confidently say those ribs definitely live up to the hype. I might add Tony is also chair of the Manitoba Restaurant and Foodservices Association.
Tony is a third-generation restauranteur and certainly over the past 63 years the businesses built by his family have seen many ups and downs, but this pandemic has hit them harder than ever before.
Tony went to apply for the commercial rent assistance program in the hopes he could get much-needed support to weather the storm. After months of fighting to access the program, he was finally able to get some help, but it took a strong will and jumping through many hoops.
The process was challenging, and he is not the only one facing it. With only 8% of restaurants owning their building, the vast majority have had issues with the landlord portion of the commercial rent assistance program. By mandating landlords’ involvement the program, a fatal error to this program, and setting a hard cap on revenue losses, this program turned out to be a total and utter disaster.
With Manitoba now facing more serious restrictions as it has entered code red, this is adding on to the challenges Tony has been facing. When we spoke last, he had only one table for the entire lunch hour on what is usually one of his busiest days. Fixed costs are not going away and the added costs they have incurred for new cleaning and safety measures have not helped them stay afloat. Restauranteurs, just like Tony, need help and they need it right now.
Then there is Tim Hudek who owns One Great City Brewing. I think we can all agree that nothing is more Canadian than an ice-cold beer. In fact, I wish we had one now, given the stress that everyone is undergoing with these programs. Tim opened the brewery in 2017 and is one of many outstanding small craft breweries in Winnipeg. His brewery has a fantastic restaurant that serves food to accompany their delicious craft beers made on-site.
At the start of the pandemic, Tim reached out to my office for assistance and I was happy to help him, just as my team and I have been doing since the beginning. We had issues with the Canada emergency wage subsidy program due to the structure of his business. The government did not recognize that a one-size-fits-all approach to business supports was not feasible for a business like Tim’s.
Tim is concerned. He is concerned about the climate of uncertainty facing small businesses when it comes to what supports are available and which restrictions will be put in place. He is fighting to do everything he can, not only for business but for the countless individuals he employs. Small businesses are the job creators and backbone of our economy and we must ensure we are doing our part as they face challenges like never before.
My friend Will Gault has also faced challenges during the pandemic. Will owns Willy Dogs, the best hot dog cart in Winnipeg. Will tried qualifying for the much needed $40,000 CEBA loan through the Canada emergency business account. He was turned down because he did not meet the specific requirements for the program.
With winter now upon us, Will has shifted his business indoors at our local Deer Lodge Curling Club. However, with the recent restrictions, he will not get any foot traffic from curlers as sports have been suspended. He is now limited to takeout and curbside pickup only and he cannot sustain his business under these conditions. He does not think the club will be able to stay open much longer, leaving him with no place to set up his operation.
Will said he is a month away from his livelihood being killed. He may be forced to put his house up for sale. Will provides for his wife and two young children, and as parliamentarians, we must do everything in our power to help Canadians who are struggling just like him. Emergency programs need to work for Canadians in emergency situations, just like my friend Will.
We are here to work together for Canadians across the country. They hired us to work for them by electing us to this place. In the middle of this pandemic, though, the Prime Minister locked out MPs and shut down Parliament to block investigations into the government’s ethical scandals. At a time when Canadians needed us the most, the Liberals put politics before people. Instead of allowing members from all parties to come to work and do our jobs, introduce and debate ideas, help improve their legislation, and help people and local businesses stay afloat, they shut down everything because of their own ethical scandals.
Throughout the pandemic, we proposed constructive solutions. We proposed increasing the wage subsidy from 10% to 75%. The government finally took our advice and implemented this change. We called for changes to the commercial rent assistance program from this side of the house, such as making the program more flexible and allowing landlords to negotiate with their tenants directly instead of the mandated reduction. Many small businesses contacted my office saying the required participation of their landlords in the rent assistance program was their biggest hurdle. It took many months, but it seems like the government may finally be listening after our calls for changing this requirement.
Conservatives have been calling on the government to end the restriction for small businesses operating out of personal chequing accounts to be eligible for the $40,000 CEBA loan. After many months of dragging its feet, it seems there may finally be some action taken on this front.
My colleague, the member for Carleton, and I proposed back in April to allow Canadians a one-time tax-free withdrawal from their RRSPs and to give them until the end of 2023 to repay it without penalty. This would have given Canadians who are struggling access to their own funds instead of having to rely on government benefits. We received absolutely zero response to this suggestion. The member for Carleton and I also proposed waiving all mandatory RRIF withdrawals for the 2020 calendar year to allow seniors to keep their investments protected and not be forced to liquidate them during a time of losses. It was another suggestion and, yet again, there was nothing but crickets to be heard from the government.
Throughout this pandemic, our Conservative team has taken a team Canada approach and did everything we could with the Liberal government. We were hearing feedback every day from our constituents, just like members in this House from all parties. We proposed constructive solutions to help Canadians when they needed support the most.
Canadian small business owners and workers need a plan that keeps Canadians safe, protects jobs and gets our country back on track. They need a plan that recognizes the key points of this motion. The government needs to take action to address promised extensions and amendments to emergency support programs while providing added flexibility, which small business owners desperately need.
This is why I urge that all members in this House support our motion today and get Canadian small business owners and workers the certainty, clarity and and support they need. I will add that Tony, Tim and Will are counting on all of us.