Mr. Speaker, I am happy to respond to the comments made earlier by the hon. member for Kenora regarding the very important tourism sector.
Our government understands how hard hit the tourism sector has been by COVID-19. That is why, since the very beginning of the pandemic, we have been there for the people in the small and medium-sized businesses that make up this vital sector of our economy.
From the very beginning, we have used every tool available to us to support people in businesses who have been deeply impacted by COVID-19. Thanks to our actions, we have introduced programs like the Canada emergency response benefit, the Canada emergency business account, the business credit account program, the Canada emergency wage subsidy, the Canada emergency rent subsidy and the regional relief and recovery fund. Taken together, these programs have helped provide $10 billion of assistance for this very important tourism industry. That is $10 billion to help people survive the crisis, help tourism operators protect jobs and stay in business.
Ten billion is a very big number, so let me break that down further and just focus on the regional relief and recovery fund, the RRRF. To date, the RRRF has provided more than 3,700 tourism businesses and organizations support. In northern Ontario alone, we have helped over 300 businesses stay afloat during this unprecedented crisis. We know that this crisis is not done yet and that is why we will continue to be there for Canadians at home and at work. As we announced in the economic statement in the fall, we have increased the total RRRF funding to more than $2 billion, of which 25% will go to the tourism industry.
We have also introduced another very important measure, the highly affected sectors credit availability program, which provides guaranteed loans from the government that are low interest and up to $1 million for businesses in the hardest hit sectors, like tourism and hospitality.
As we move forward and look toward the end of this historic challenge, we will continue to introduce new measures and adapt existing ones to ensure we are there for Canadians when they need us the most. We will continue to work with our partners on all levels to gather evidence, data and guidance to ensure we keep Canadians safe. We will continue to help our businesses meet the challenges of COVID-19 and be ready for the recovery once it comes.
We are fortunate enough to live in the most beautiful country in the world and Canada's tourism operators help us show off this incredible asset. We are looking forward to the day when it is safe to travel again, but until then Canadians know that we have their backs.