Canadian lawmakers approved a bill to subsidize wages by 75% in a bid to stabilize the economy as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the coronavirus his generation’s greatest challenge yet.
The flagship C$73-billion programME — more than one-quarter of the government’s emergency fiscal plan to date — was passed in an emergency sitting of the House of Commons on Saturday.
“The front line is everywhere,” Trudeau said, comparing the battle against the virus to a war, as the nation heads for what may be its sharpest downturn since the Great Depression. “Every one of us has a role to play in helping shield our country from the threat it now faces.”
The program seeks to stem a huge wave of layoffs. More than five-million people — one in four workers — applied for emergency income support in recent weeks.