NDP Small Business Critic calls for improved CEBA extension, says current eighteen-day extension’s a cruel joke

OTTAWA – NDP Small Business Critic Richard Cannings is calling for the government to help small businesses instead of big corporations by delivering a real Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) extension. Instead of the Liberals 18-day extension that Cannings’ deems as a “cruel joke”.

CEBA was intended to provide interest-free loans of up to $60,000 to small businesses and not-for-profits, with up to $20,000 loan forgiveness. Originally, eligible CEBA borrowers had to repay the loan on or before December 31, 2023 to be eligible for the loan forgiveness. After months of calls from local businesses worried about closing their doors, the Liberals extended the repayment date, but there’s a catch. It’s only an 18-day extension if local shops want to keep the loan forgiveness, and not accrue interest.

“Small businesses have been hit with one thing after another, and they’re still trying to bounce back. So, when I first heard of the extension, I thought the government had finally listened to Canadians’ and granted a much needed one-year extension, but then I was floored to realize it was really only 18 days,” said Cannings. “Yet again, the Liberals have disappointed local shop owners who need the government to step up. Now, 250,000 small businesses could be at risk of closing their doors.”

In the summer, Cannings sent a letter to the Minister of Finance and Minister of Small Business calling on them to extend the CEBA loan for a year, with the loan forgiveness still offered. Their plan instead fell short.

Now, The Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses are saying that of the small businesses who used CEBA, only 10% have been able to repay their loans. Small businesses in the arts, recreation, hospitality, and social services sectors are most at risk to miss the current CEBA deadline.

“Unless the Liberals really want to see a quarter of a million small businesses go under, and countless local jobs lost, they must grant a real extension,” added Cannings. “18 days is just arbitrary and a cruel joke. New Democrats are going to keep fighting for better for local businesses.”