Earlier today, the Office of the Auditor General of Canada tabled its fall report, one section of which examines the Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA).
Following this, the Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, and the Honourable Rechie Valdez, Minister of Small Business, on behalf of the partners in the CEBA program, which are the Department of Finance Canada, Canada Revenue Agency and Global Affairs Canada, issued the below statement:
"The Canada Emergency Business Account was a critical lifeline for nearly a million Canadian small businesses in the worst moments of the pandemic.
"CEBA saved businesses from bankruptcy in the face of lockdowns and economic uncertainty. CEBA protected workers who otherwise would have been laid off and left without an income for an indefinite period of time.
"Together, we were able to offer $60,000 partially forgivable loans to small business owners in communities across our country. Restaurants, local grocery stores, farmers, hair and nail salons, cafes, and corner stores. These businesses are back on their feet today because of CEBA.
"While the Auditor General offers some good and useful recommendations, this report fails to properly acknowledge that CEBA was designed and delivered during a global pandemic. Within less than two weeks, the federal government stood up new, emergency support for 898,000 small businesses across the country. This was a historic, national effort, at a time of crisis, to support our small business owners and their employees.
"Our government is proud to have extended this lifeline to so many of our country's hardworking small business owners and operators. They are the lifeblood of communities, large and small. These small businesses deserved our support in the depths of the pandemic and they deserve our support today."
