Dan Vandal, Northern Affairs minister for the federal government, said Wednesday's economic stimulus package should bring some supports for the health-care sector and offer some stability for businesses and workers as the Northwest Territories fends off the threat of spread of COVID-19.
Vandal provided NNSL Media a phone interview following an extensive "Economic Response Plan" outlined by both Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Bill Morneau, federal finance minister on Wednesday morning.
The economic package includes $26 billion in stimulus money to stabilize the economy and protect workers and businesses impacted by the virus. The specifics include money for temporary income support for workers and parents, additional child care supports, a deferment of the filing due date for 2019 tax returns for individuals and trusts as well as payments.
The package also includes financial support for businesses to keep their workers from leaving, flexibility for businesses filing taxes, ensuring that businesses have access to credit and supports for financial market liquidity.
"I think what we introduced this morning- to help EI eligible workers or non-EI eligible workers, to help parents with sick children and parents forced to stay home or workers who became laid off and low and modest income citizens- will also helping many, many families as well," Vandal said.
As Northern Affairs minister, Vandal said he has been in constant communication with territorial premiers as well as First Nation, Inuit and Metis leaders across the North. His role is to funnel those concerns up to federal cabinet to the prime minister and the COVID 19 cabinet committee.
Vandal had a teleconference meeting with Premier Caroline Cochrane on March 12.
"I met with Premier Cochrane last Thursday I think and we had a pretty frank discussion about what we need as partners," Vandal said.
Cochrane emphasized last Friday that the big concern for the NWT is for the federal government to recognize that the territory is unique in having 33 communities- many of them small and remote - that they lack infrastructure, access to health care and have overcrowded housing compared to the south.
Simon Whitehouse/NNSL photo
Vandal said he was very clear of what Cochrane wanted.
"She has made that point very clear at every meeting that I have had with the premier and that is why we are putting an emphasis on this disease and virus from getting up there," Vandal said when asked about these concerns. "But we have to prepare for the worse and we are taking a whole of government approach to that.
"I think first, of all, we are fortunate that we don't have any COVID cases yet in the North and let's hope it stays that way. The big issues are number one, the infrastructure is not what it is in the south and that includes the public health system. It certainly does not have the capacity of the southern public health system. And it is isolated and things are more expensive to implement in the North."
Vandal said a federal budget that was planned for March 30 will now be postponed and be rewritten to focus on recovering from the the COVID-19 crisis.
Marie-France Faucher, a media relations spokesperson with the federal Department of Finance, stated confirmed the budget delay, adding no new date has been set.
The press secretary's office stated in an email on Thursday that the funding is for "direct assistance to individuals, communities and businesses in response to COVID-19" and not money to the provinces and territorial governments.
"The Government of the Northwest Territories welcomes yesterday’s economic stimulus announcement by the federal government and is reviewing the federal Economic Response Plan," the email states.
COVID-19 numbers as of Wednesday
On March 18 federal Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam said there have been more than 50,000 people in the country who have been tested for the virus.
For all of Canada there were 508 confirmed cases and eight deaths.
Of those tested, 153 were in the NWT with zero cases as of March 18.
NWT Chief Public Health Officer Kami Kandola said in a news conference Wednesday that there were at least 119 tests pending as of March 18 at 2:30 p.m. She added, however, that number changes constantly.