Canada Launches Emergency Business Account To Support Small Businesses Facing Impacts Of #COVID19

Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, yesterday announced the launch of an additional new measure to support small businesses dealing with the economic impacts of the pandemic. This measure will help Canadian businesses protect the jobs that Canadians depend on, and pay their workers and bills during these difficult times.

Trudeau announced this in a series of tweets via his official Twitter handle, @JustinTrudeau, on Friday.

He tweeted:

“If you’re a small business owner worried about paying the bills, we’ve got your back. We launched the Canada Emergency Business Account yesterday so you can get a loan of up to $40,000 for whatever you need – whether that’s covering monthly expenses or paying your employees.

“You can apply for these interest-free loans at your bank or credit union. And if the loan is repaid within 2 years, 25% of it will be forgiven. We know you’re facing difficult decisions, but we’re here to take some of the pressure off.“

According to BBC News, More than one million Canadians lost their jobs in March, as the country locked down to combat the coronavirus.

The data, released by the federal statistics agency on Thursday, also pushes the unemployment rate to 7.8%.

March saw the largest loss of jobs in a single month since the records began in 1976.

There have been 19,290 confirmed cases in Canada and 436 deaths, according to figures from John Hopkins University.