Robert Oliphant

October 2020 Update

Dear friends,

As we approach Thanksgiving, we have a lot to be thankful for. I am thankful every day for the frontline workers, especially healthcare workers, who are keeping us healthy and safe, keeping food on our tables, and keeping our city moving. I am thankful to all levels of government for working together to provide critical support to Canadians and businesses. And I am thankful to all of you. You have been physically distancing, avoiding large gatherings, wearing masks, modifying school and work plans, and helping each other get through this difficult time. While this is a challenging time for many Canadians, I am grateful to be surrounded by incredible people who are working together to fight COVID-19.

Speech from the Throne

On September 23rd, the Governor General delivered the Speech from the Throne, outlining our government's plan to protect the health and safety of Canadians while building a stronger and more resilient Canada. As we all know, the world changed significantly in the months since the last election and subsequent Throne Speech. This is an important opportunity to ensure that we are well focused on matters that concern Canadians.

Our plan has four foundations:

Fighting the pandemic and saving lives
Supporting people and businesses through this crisis
Building back better
Standing up for who we are as Canadians

Watch my response to the Speech from the Throne here and learn more about our plan here.

Back to School

The past few months have been especially hard on students who have been physically separated from their friends and classmates, and on parents who have had to juggle work, other responsibilities, and homeschooling and childcare. While education is the responsibility of the provincial and territorial governments, the federal government’s Safe Return to Class Fund is providing up to $2 billion in support for provinces and territories as they work to ensure the safety of students and teachers throughout the school year. This funding was made flexible so that provinces and schools can use it for what they need most, from hand sanitizer to remote learning.

I was pleased to speak with students at Northern Secondary School a few days ago about their return to school. We had a great discussion about a variety of issues, particularly about supporting the vulnerable through this pandemic and providing access to vaccines in developing nations.

Here to Help

The federal government continues to provide many support measures to help individuals and businesses navigate the challenges caused by COVID-19. As always, I will provide an update below on some of the many government initiatives to help Canadians. To find out which program you could be eligible for, visit canada.ca/coronavirus.

My Constituency Office remains closed to the public, but my staff and I continue to serve you from home. If you ever have any questions or need support understanding measures taken by the federal government, please do not hesitate to contact my office at 416-467-7275 or [email protected]. I am always happy to connect with you by telephone, email, Skype, Zoom or any of the many platforms which are increasingly helping us to keep in touch with each other.

All the very best for a happy and safe Thanksgiving season.

Rob

Youth Mental Health and Addictions Town Hall

COVID-19 has impacted everyone globally and has heightened the need for mental health and addictions supports, particularly for youth. Join the conversation on Thursday as we examine the current situation and look towards the future with experts in the field:

The Hon. Dr. Stanley Kutcher, Senator from Nova Scotia
Angie Hamilton, Co-Founder, Families for Addiction Recovery (FAR)
Cara Vaccarino, Executive Director, Bellwood Health Services
Naomi Algate, Family Navigator, Family Navigation Project at Sunnybrook Hospital
Joe Couto, Director of Government Relations and Communications, Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police

Please email [email protected] if you would like to submit a question or would like alternative options to attend the event.

Whole-of-Government Response to COVID-19

Travel and Borders

We brought forward significant restrictions at our borders to flatten the curve and prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Canada. These decisions have not been taken lightly, but we know that they are necessary to keep our communities safe. Travel restrictions, border measures, and mandatory quarantine requirements continue to be in place and enforced. Last week, our government announced that we are further strengthening public health presence at the border and enhancing quarantine monitoring.

We are increasing the presence of federal public health officers at the border over the coming months to cover 36 ports of entry that account for 90% of all traffic into Canada during normal operations.

We are also ensuring that designated screening officers are making calls to travellers entering Canada to ensure compliance with quarantine requirements. About 100 screening officers make approximately 4,300 live calls and 3,500 automated calls daily to travellers entering Canada, for a total of nearly 1 million contacts since March 2020. The Public Health Agency of Canada is working with Service Canada to further increase these numbers. These calls are followed up by law enforcement if any individual cannot be reached, or if a traveller is suspected of not complying with quarantine requirements.

Temperature screening for air travellers has also been expanded to 11 additional Canadian airports. Temperature screening stations have been in place since July 30, 2020 at the four largest airports in Canada: Montréal, Toronto, Calgary, and Vancouver. This includes temperature screening for both departing passengers as well as non-passengers (e.g., airport workers, flight crews). Since September 23, 2020, temperature screening is being conducted at these additional Canadian airports: St. John’s, Halifax, Québec City, Ottawa, Toronto – Billy Bishop, Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Kelowna and Victoria. Lastly, all employees and personnel who enter or work in these airports' restricted areas are subject to temperature screening procedures by the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority personnel.

ArriveCAN

While travelling at this time is discouraged, if you need to travel for essential purposes, download the ArriveCAN app prior to your arrival to reduce wait times at Canadian ports of entry and to limit points of contact. Also, make sure you sign up with Registration of Canadians Abroad to receive important updates during your travel.

Changes to Border Restrictions

I hear from many of you regularly about the difficulties you are facing due to border closures and being away from loved ones. While we want to ensure we restrict travel to protect the health of Canadians, we also want to provide support during a challenging time. Our government is introducing processes to support enhanced family reunification, entry for compassionate reasons, and the safe and gradual entry of some international students. More specifically, these processes will provide for the entry of:

certain extended family members of Canadian citizens and Canadian permanent residents, including those in an exclusive, long-term dating relationship of at least 1 year and their dependent children, as well as adult children, grandchildren, siblings, and grandparents
foreign nationals for compassionate reasons in specific circumstances, such as life-threatening illness, critical injury or death, with potential limited release from quarantine
international students, starting October 20, if they will be attending a designated learning institution that has been identified by their provincial or territorial government as having a COVID19 readiness plan in place

Detailed information as to who may qualify as an extended family member and the process and requirements to be eligible to travel to and enter Canada will be available on the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada website on October 8. There will be a robust process in place for extended family members, and each traveller will need to apply for and be issued an authorization before they can travel to Canada. While new measures to allow admissibility will be in place, travellers should not make any travel plans until they have received proper authorizations.

Immigration Updates

Expedited spousal sponsorship applications

I am very pleased that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has announced measures to speed up the processing of spousal applications, which will help many people in Don Valley West. IRCC has increased the number of decision makers on spousal applications in Canada by 66% to reduce couples’ wait times.

IRCC is leveraging new technology in a pilot to digitize paper applications so they can be processed more efficiently by IRCC employees working remotely and at various worksites. In addition to implementing facilitative biometrics measures, IRCC will be piloting, in the upcoming weeks, technology to conduct interviews with applicants remotely in adherence with public health protocols.

With these initiatives, IRCC aims to accelerate, prioritize, and finalize approximately 6,000 spousal applications each month from October until December 2020. Combined with processing to date, this rate will lead to about 49,000 decisions by the end of this year.

Opening of the 2020 Parents and Grandparents (PGP) Program

Over a 3-week period, from 12 p.m. EDT on October 13, 2020, to 12 p.m. EST on November 3, 2020, Canadians and permanent residents who wish to sponsor their parents and grandparents to come to Canada will have an opportunity to submit an interest to sponsor form online.

In order to ensure a fair, transparent, and equal opportunity for applicants, IRCC will randomly select potential sponsors and send them an invitation to submit an application. Selected applicants will have 60 days to submit their application.

Given that many sponsors may have been financially impacted by the exceptional circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, IRCC is introducing a temporary public policy that will reduce the income requirement for the 2020 tax year to the minimum necessary income, instead of the minimum necessary income plus 30%.

A maximum of 10,000 applications will be accepted for processing as part of the 2020 PGP intake. In 2021, IRCC will open a new intake of interest to sponsor forms to accept a total of 30,000 new applications.

Support for People

A flexible and more accessible EI system

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Government of Canada has put Canadians first, providing the support they need to continue to make ends meet while staying safe and healthy. As we transition from the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), the Government is continuing to support Canadians through a flexible and more accessible Employment Insurance (EI) program.

To ensure a smooth transition to EI, the majority of Canadians still receiving the CERB through Service Canada who are eligible for EI will be automatically transitioned. Service Canada will contact all EI clients to confirm whether they need to apply or are being transitioned automatically. Clients can also verify the status of their claim in their My Service Canada Account.

Recovery benefits to support Canadians

For workers not eligible for EI, we have created three new temporary Recovery Benefits to support Canadians who are unable to work for reasons related to COVID-19. The new Benefits provide income support to Canadians while promoting economic recovery by introducing measures that encourage people to return to work. These include:

A Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) of $500 per week for up to 26 weeks, to workers who are self-employed or are not eligible for EI and still require income support. This Benefit would support Canadians who have not returned due to COVID-19 or whose income has dropped by at least 50%. These workers must be available and looking for work, and must accept work where it is reasonable to do so;
A Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit (CRSB) of $500 per week for up to two weeks, for workers who are sick or must self-isolate for reasons related to COVID-19; and,
A Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit (CRCB) of $500 per week for up to 26 weeks per household, for eligible Canadians unable to work because they must care for a child under the age of 12 or family member because schools, day-cares or care facilities are closed due to COVID-19 or because the child or family member is sick and/or required to quarantine.

More detailed eligibility criteria can be found online. Canadians will be able to apply for the CRB, CRSB, and CRCB through the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) for one year up until September 25, 2021.

Skills training and employment supports

To help build a stronger workforce, the Government of Canada will also be investing an additional $1.5 billion in the Workforce Development Agreements with provinces and territories to offer Canadians the skills training and employment supports they need. This support will respond to the increased number of Canadians looking to re-enter the workforce, particularly workers and employers in hard-hit sectors and groups disadvantaged as a result of the pandemic.

One-time payment for persons with disabilities

On October 30, 2020, approximately 1.6 million eligible Canadians will automatically start receiving the one-time payment as the first set of payments from the Government of Canada that will amount to approximately $763 million for persons with disabilities.

Many different groups of Canadians will be eligible for this payment, including those who are eligible for the Disability Tax Credit, Canada Pension Plan Disability, a Quebec Pension Plan disability pension, and 7 programs administered by Veterans Affairs Canada. Seniors with disabilities who were eligible for the one-time seniors' payment announced on May 12, 2020 may also be eligible for the one-time payment to persons with disabilities.

Early learning and child care

The Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario are working closely together to ensure families have access to the affordable, high quality and safe early learning and child care opportunities their children need to succeed.

Last month, our government announced additional support for early learning and child care through the one-year Canada–Ontario Early Learning and Child Care Agreement, allocating nearly $147 million in 2020–21 for early learning and child care investments in Ontario.

In addition, the Government of Canada recently announced $625 million to address the reduced availability of child care and the unique needs stemming from the pandemic across Canada with the Safe Restart Agreement. This year, the Government of Canada will invest nearly $1.2 billion in total in early learning and child care across Canada.

The Speech from the Throne also highlighted the Government of Canada's commitment to creating close to 40,000 new child care spaces, and work with all provinces and territories, as well as with First Nations, Inuit and Métis Nation governments, to ensure that high-quality care is accessible to all. Additionally, the Government of Canada remains committed to subsidizing before- and after-school program costs as flexible care options for primary school children are now more important than ever.

Support for Businesses

Expansion of the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy

Our government announced the extension of the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS), including redesigned program details, until November 21, 2020.

The increased eligibility allows employers who have experienced a revenue drop to qualify for a base subsidy. Employers who are especially hard-hit can now qualify for a top-up of up to 25%. We have also introduced an updated calculator to help employers prepare for their applications.

Eligible employers can apply through My Business Account or through the CRA's web form application.

Extension of Canada Emergency Business Account and the Business Credit Availability Program

The application deadline for the Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) is extended from August 31 to October 31, 2020. The government is working closely with financial institutions to make the CEBA program available to those with qualifying payroll or non-deferrable expenses that have so far been unable to apply due to not operating from a business banking account.

The Business Credit Availability Program (BCAP) has also been extended to June 2021. Through BCAP, the government is supporting the flow of additional credit that businesses need to maintain operations and keep employees on the payroll. Export Development Canada (EDC) and the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) will continue to work with lenders to support access to capital for Canadian businesses of all sizes in all sectors and regions.

Expansion of the Regional Relief and Recovery Fund

The Regional Relief and Recovery Fund has been a vital tool, supplementing the existing suite of federal relief measures to address the immediate needs of Canadians during the pandemic. Canada’s Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) will deliver the RRRF in their regions. Working closely with businesses and innovators in their communities, RDAs are key to delivering targeted support to Canadians where it’s needed most.

Since the Fund was launched in May, over 12,000 businesses have been assisted through the RRRF, helping them keep their employees, cover costs, and protect almost 95,000 jobs across Canada. The Government of Canada will provide an additional $600 million to support workers and businesses through RRRF. This additional investment brings the total RRRF support to over $1.5 billion, helping businesses and organizations weather the impact of COVID-19.

To apply, please contact FedDev Ontario.

Canada’s first-ever Black Entrepreneurship Program

An investment of up to nearly $221 million, including up to $93 million from our government and up to $128 million committed in lending capital from financial institutions, will help thousands of Black business owners and entrepreneurs across the country recover from this crisis and grow their businesses by providing:

Up to $53 million to develop and implement a new National Ecosystem Fund to support Black-led business organizations across the country;
Up to $33.3 million in support through the new Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund that will provide loans between $25,000 and $250,000 for Black business owners and entrepreneurs; and
Up to $6.5 million to create and sustain a new Black Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub that will collect data on the state of Black entrepreneurship in Canada.

Updates on vaccines and supporting the health of Canadians

The Government of Canada is working closely with researchers and scientists to better understand COVID-19 and protect the health of Canadians. As we continue this work, we are taking action to ensure a potential vaccine reaches Canadians quickly as possible when approved. We have:

Agreements in place with leading vaccine candidates: Johnson & Johnson, Novavax, Pfizer, Moderna, Sanofi and GSK;
A new COVID-19 Vaccine Task Force;
Funding of up to $56 million to support clinical trials for a COVID-19 related vaccine candidate from Variation Biotechnologies Inc;
Funding for a new biomanufacturing facility at the Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre in Montréal;
First submission for authorization of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca in partnership with the University of Oxford;
Signed an agreement with Abbott Rapid Diagnostics ULC to purchase up to 7.9 million ID NOW rapid point-of-care tests, pending Health Canada authorization of the tests;
Provided surge support on processing of tests, including for Ontario for 1,000 tests a day;
Agreements in place with Ontario to provide 500 full-time contact tracers.

Affordable housing

The COVID-19 crisis has highlighted Canada’s chronic homelessness problem and lack of affordable, safe housing.

We have introduced a new Rapid Housing Initiative (RHI) to help address the urgent housing needs of vulnerable Canadians by rapidly creating new permanent affordable housing. The initiative will also help support Canada’s economic recovery by creating employment in the housing and construction sectors. Delivered by CMHC, this $1 billion initiative will cover the construction of modular housing, as well as the acquisition of land, and the conversion of existing buildings to affordable housing. The RHI is the newest initiative of the National Housing Strategy (NHS). It is expected to enable the rapid creation of up to 3,000 new permanent, affordable housing units across the country and help stimulate the economy.

In addition to this substantial investment in housing, the Government of Canada will provide $236.7 million through Reaching Home: Canada’s Homelessness Strategy to help the homelessness-serving sector to extend their emergency response to the COVID-19 outbreak. This funding is in addition to the $157.5 million announced in April 2020 to help communities address the immediate impacts of the pandemic.

Infrastructure initiatives to build back better

Our government has announced $10 billion in new major infrastructure initiatives to create jobs and economic growth.

The Canada Infrastructure Bank’s (CIB) Growth Plan will help Canadians get back to work and is expected to create approximately 60,000 jobs across the country. The three-year plan will connect more households and small businesses to high-speed Internet, strengthen Canadian agriculture, and help build a low-carbon economy. This historic investment is part of our commitment to create over one million jobs to rebuild from the pandemic. It is also part of our $180 billion Investing in Canada Plan.

Additionally, a new federal investment in public transit in Toronto will help protect our environment while getting Canadians where they need to go faster and cheaper. 60 new electric buses in Toronto will make TTC the largest e-bus fleet in North America!

Download the COVID Alert App!

The COVID Alert app can let you know if you may have been exposed to COVID-19. The more people who use the app, the more useful it will be in protecting our loved ones and limiting further spread of infection.

The app does not collect any personal information or track your location; it uses your device’s Bluetooth to let you know if your device was in close proximity to the device of someone who reported testing positive for COVID-19.

Download the COVID Alert app for free from the App Store or the Google Play Store.

Second World War Tribute

The Second World War Tribute honours the brave Canadians whose sacrifices and achievements helped give us the freedom we enjoy today.

The design of the commemorative lapel pin is based on the original “Victory Nickel,” a coin that was circulated from 1943 until 1945 and re-issued in 2005 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of V-E Day. The coin featured a flaming torch and large “V,” which stood for both victory and the coin’s value in Roman numerals.

If you know a living Canadian Veteran of the Second World War, contact my office at [email protected] so that they can receive a Second World War Tribute from Veterans Affairs Canada.

From the Kitchen of Chef Patrick Nicholson

Earlier this year, Don Valley West's very own Patrick Nicholson appeared on Junior Chef Showdown. A student at Owen Public School, Patrick has been cooking and experimenting from a young age, which led him to finish top three on the show. Learn more about Patrick here.

Patrick has shared two of his recipes that you can try this Thanksgiving weekend or on Halloween! Please let us know what you think by tagging Patrick and Rob on Instagram.

Patrick recommends trying his Bone Dippers with a special Katsu sauce.

Patrick's Tropical Whip dessert was inspired by Disney’s Dole Whip soft serve.

We're here to help!

Thank you for your continued goodwill and community spirit through this difficult time. Although we are working from home, my staff and I are making every effort to ensure Don Valley West remains a strong, vibrant community through this pandemic. If you have any concerns, questions, or suggestions, please do not hesitate to contact me at [email protected] or call 416-467-7275.

All the best,

Rob

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