Mr. Speaker, nearly 800,000 Canadians have deferred their mortgages over the past six months. This week, the mortgage deferral window comes to a close, bringing many people close to the edge of a cliff.
Going back to March, with businesses shutting down and workers being laid off, many people deferred their mortgages due to a lot of uncertainty. Now, with concerns over the second wave of COVID-19 and businesses and workplaces potentially facing closures again, the government has done very little to tackle this uncertainty.
I am hearing from families in the Okanagan who are very concerned about making ends meet due to lost income. With mortgage payments coming due, this is causing extra stress to their families. I was disappointed to see that the Speech from the Throne did not even mention mortgage deferrals as an issue, which is affecting so many people. British Columbia has some of the highest costs for home ownership in the country, and this just adds to the financial impact on everyday families.
The government must give families and workers certainty and hope, and outline clear paths to relaunch our economy.