A summary of the day's activities of Monday, August 17, follows. 

Federal Government Relief Measures

There were no new funding announcements today.

Statement of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

Prime Minister Trudeau did not hold a press conference today.

Federal Government Briefing

Federal Ministers and public health officials did not hold their regularly scheduled press conference at 12 noon.

Much of today's federal focus was on the recent cyber-attacks on the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) accounts and GCKey services accounts used by approximately 30 federal government departments. At a technical briefing on Parliament Hill, Acting Chief Information Officer for the Government of Canada Marc Brouillard, CRA Chief Information Officer Annette Butikofer, head of the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security Scott Jones, and Chief Operating Officer for Service Canada Lori MacDonald confirmed the cyber-attack has ceased due to government's mitigation efforts.

The attack used a tactic called "credential stuffing", which uses passwords and usernames collected from previous hacks of accounts worldwide. The hackers took advantage of the fact that many people reuse passwords and usernames across multiple accounts. In total, 11,200 GCKey and CRA accounts (out of 12 million accounts) of individuals who reused usernames and passwords from other accounts online have been impacted, according to Marc Brouillard, Acting Chief Information Officer for the Government of Canada.

All government officials stressed the importance of always using a unique password for all online accounts to help reduce the risk of cyberattacks.

CRA Chief Information Officer Annette Butikofer noted that the CRA accounts of impacted individuals have been revoked and each person will receive a letter from the CRA explaining how to confirm their identity to protect and access their CRA accounts. The CRA has temporarily disabled its online services, and is aiming to restore its services by mid-week. She did emphasize, however, the CRA Business Account was back on line today with added security measures to allow businesses to apply for Period 5 – the first period of the enhanced Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) program.

As a reminder, CEWS program changes for Periods 5-9 include:

  • The extension of the CEWS, including redesigned program details, until November 21, 2020.
  • Increased eligibility, meaning that all eligible employers who have experienced a revenue drop can now qualify for a base subsidy. The subsidy amount is based on the revenue drop.
  • Employers who are especially hard-hit can qualify for a top-up of up to 25%.
  • Provide certainty for employers that have already made business decisions for July and August, by ensuring they will not receive a subsidy rate lower than they would have under the previous rules.

On Friday, Acting U.S. Homeland Security Department Secretary Chad Wolf and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Bill Blair confirmed on Twitter that the border between Canada and the United States will - officially and unsurprisingly - remain closed to non-essential travel until at least Sept. 21. This has been the fifth 30-day renewal of the border agreement.

In lieu of an in-person update to the media, Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada's Chief Public Health Officer, issued the following statement:

“There have been 122,087 cases of COVID-19 in Canada, including 9,026 deaths. Eighty-nine per cent of people have now recovered. Labs across Canada have tested 4,778,360 people for COVID-19 to date. Over the past week, an average of 43,000 people were tested daily, with 0.9% testing positive. Over the last several weeks, national daily case counts have ranged between 350 to 500 cases, with over 380 cases being reported daily during the most recent seven days.”

Dr. Tam then repeated one of her key messages of Friday, “the shape of our national epidemic curve over time, including what impact COVID-19 might have this fall, will be influenced by our collective commitment and actions to keep infection rates low.”

Statement of Ontario Premier Doug Ford

At a news conference at Queen's Park, Ontario Premier Doug Ford provided an update on the government's response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Minister of Education Stephen Lecce and Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Steve Clark joined the Premier. 

In his opening comments, Premier Doug Ford reflected on the many initiatives taken by the government to protect the people of Ontario from the effects of COVID-19 and the steps now being taken to ensure a safe restart of the economy.

The government's back to school plan was again the focus of attention of journalists in light of the government's rejection of the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) plan for reopening both elementary and secondary schools. 

Three main components of TDBS's plan are under contention. They include the proposals to reduce the average size of classrooms to 15 students for kindergarten to grade three, and 20 students for grades four to eight, to end the elementary school day 48 minutes earlier, and to introduce a "quadmester" high school year.

Minister Lecce said he expects students to undertake a full day of learning that is safe. He said parents have approached him to voice the same view.

With respect to physical distancing, Minister Lecce noted that he had authorized boards to dip into their reserve funds to hire more teachers to increase physical distancing, and granted $50 million to upgrade ventilation systems in schools. He added that he was working with the City of Toronto to secure additional classroom space in municipal facilities.

Minister Lecce confirmed that he, as well as officials from his Ministry and public health officials, had productive discussions with the leadership team of the TDSB on the reopening plan of elementary and secondary schools. He felt confident an agreement would be reached before tomorrow's TDSB board meeting. 

"What we are asking unions to do is provide maximum flexibility for boards to enable them to teach a child for the entire duration of the day," added Minister Lecce.

Premier Doug Ford accused the teachers' unions of being obstinate. He said that numerous aspects of the government's back to school plan were tailored to suit the desires of teachers' unions.

"They wanted HVAC (improvements), we gave them the improvements, they wanted more sanitation, we gave them more sanitation – they wanted more reserves from the (school) boards, we gave them access to the reserves," Ford said. 

"I just don't know what more we can do," added Premier Ford.

Statement of Quebec 

Quebec Minister of Education Jean-François Roberge announced Phase 2 of the province's plan for students' return to school amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Today's announcement focused on the new measures to improve the academic success of students, particularly the most vulnerable who fell behind with the closure of schools due to COVID-19.

  1. New funding of $20 million to hire more technicians, more tutors, more teachers and more specialist educators for the 2020-2021 school year.
  2. Reducing the bureaucratic burden, for the next two years, linked to the assessment and provision of services for special needs children.
  3. An information campaign for parents and Quebeckers to highlight the value of education and the value of returning to school in September. (Minister Roberge admitted that potential or current drop out students represented a key target audience of the information campaign.) 

Elsewhere in Canada

New Brunswick

In Fredericton, Premier Blain Higgs held a press briefing following his meeting with Lieutenant-Governor Brenda Murphy during which he asked her to dissolve the 59th Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick. Premier Higgs announced a general election on September 14, 2020.

The meeting of Premier Higgs with the Lieutenant-Governor came following a breakdown in negotiations with the province's opposition parties aimed at avoiding an election. Premier Higgs said, “Today is not the day I had hoped for. The event of last week speaks for itself. I thought we could arrive at an agreement to govern with continued collaboration and stability.”

Premier Higgs said New Brunswick's Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Jennifer Russell advised him that a general election could be held in safety amid COVID-19. He committed to compliance with the public health protocols during the election campaign to ensure the safety of the people of New-Brunswick. Premier Higgs noted that candidates would need to be creative and innovative as there will be no door-to-door canvassing or distribution of brochures or other campaign materials. 

Underlining the importance of the province's social and economic recovery, Premier Higgs said, “this election is about substance and stability.” He added, “I promise not to buy this election with your money.” The Progressive Conservatives “will discuss initiatives that we consider crucial for our province's stability and critical to our province's ability to thrive,” Premier Higgs told reporters.

Alberta

On August 14, Alberta Health reported 84 new cases of COVID-19, including 48 hospitalized with COVID-19 and 13 in intensive care. The Edmonton zone continues to have the most active cases, having surpassed the Calgary zone over the weekend.

Also on August 14, Ministerial Order No. SA:005/2020, which modifies the Residential Tenancies Act and the Mobile Home Sites Tenancies Act to establish payment plans, was rescinded. On the province's Rental Evictions webpage, Alberta outlines the process for residential tenancy evictions now that some temporary measures are no longer in effect.

The changes that are no longer in effect include:

  • scheduled rent increases may take effect provided proper notice has been given to tenants;
  • late fees that are a reasonable estimate of the landlord's losses can be applied to late rental payments if set out in the rental agreement; and
  • landlords and tenants are encouraged to continue working together to develop payment plans where the tenant is struggling to pay rent due to the impacts of COVID-19. However, demonstration of a payment plan is no longer required to file an application to terminate a tenancy nor to recover possession due to non-payment of rent.

Alberta ski resorts are looking to hire hundreds of Canadians in preparation for the upcoming winter season, as COVID-19 locks out foreign workers. Traditionally, positions are staffed with workers from Australia or the United Kingdom. Quebeckers also take many of the positions on the slope. This year, resort operators are looking to hire local high school graduates and post-secondary students to fill those jobs because of COVID-19 travel restrictions.

British Columbia

On August 14, Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, and Dr. Bonnie Henry, British Columbia's provincial health officer, announced 84 new cases of COVID-19. There are 629 active cases of COVID-19 in the province. Currently, twelve individuals are hospitalized with COVID-19, four of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in self-isolation. As well, 2,026 people are under active public health monitoring because of identified exposure to known cases.

On August 14, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing reminded British Columbians that renters will be expected to pay rent in full on September 1, as the moratorium of evictions for non-payment of rent will end on August 18. Renters in arrears from rent due during the specified period of March 18 to August 17 will have until at least July 2021 to pay back any rent they owe, with the first repayments not starting until October at the earliest. The Residential Tenancy Branch has provided details on the new repayment framework for renters with outstanding rent from April to August 2020. The rental framework will protect renters by ensuring they cannot be evicted for a missed or late rent payment from March 18 to August 17, unless a renter defaults on their repayment plan. The terms of the repayment plan must include:

  • amount of outstanding rent;
  • start date of the repayment plan;
  • amount of each instalment; and,
  • dates for each instalment.

The repayment instalments must begin at least 30 days after the date the plan is given by the landlord to the renter; and each monthly instalment must be paid on the same date the rent is due.

To further support renters, the province is continuing to temporarily prohibit landlords from charging rent increases until December 2020. The Temporary Rental Supplement also remains available to people until Aug. 31, 2020. Finally, renters who are still experiencing a loss of income may also be eligible for either the Rental Assistance Program or the Shelter Aid for Elderly Renters programs, which provide ongoing rental subsidies for low- and moderate-income families and seniors. 

Also on August 14, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing announced the province will provide over 40 new supportive homes in New Westminster for women experiencing homelessness in the community. The housing project is part of BC Housing's work monitoring and responding to homelessness in the face of COVID-19. The Elizabeth Fry Society is overseeing the day-to-day management of the building. It will also provide residents with support services.

Finally, the office of the Premier, John Horgan, provided a summary of the legislative changes that have taken place in the legislative session that ended Friday, August 14, 2020. Many of the legislative changes were made to protect British Columbians from the effects of COVID-19 and to lay the groundwork for a safe recovery. 

Other legislative changes provide services and supports for people, and make life more affordable, including:

  • legislation to overhaul the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) with an enhanced care model that will save drivers 20% — an average of $400 per year — by eliminating legal costs from the system, while giving better benefits to those injured in car accidents;
  • legislative changes to the Workers Compensation Act to provide better support to injured workers and their families;
  • legislative updates to the Mines Act, to ensure more effective permitting as well as better protection of workers, the environment, and the public; and,
  • new legislation to put in place rules for the CleanBC plan.

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