Yesterday the Prime Minister stood outside the cottage at Rideau Hall to encourage landlords to participate in the CECRA program. In order to protect both their investments and small businesses from going bankrupt across the country.
Here in Ontario, the Premier is sharing similar sentiments on the urgency to sign up for CECRA.
He’s right. I’ve been saying this for sometime now. It’s in the landlord’s best interests to take this deal. However, I do find his reluctance to step up and pass commercial tenant protection to be disingenuous. Protection currently exists for residential tenants. That too is a long term contract. However there was no debate about taking this action. As well, there haven’t been any legal issues that have arisen to date from this action.
The provinces of New Brunswick and now Nova Scotia have extended tenant protection to commercial leases. There has not been any thorny issues between their provincial governments and landlords so far.
Doug Ford’s shrugging of his shoulders to small business owners who are struggling and saying he can’t do anything is not enough. The premier of the largest province in confederation cannot shirk their responsibility to protect the economic good for all of us. We need these small businesses to survive this pandemic if we are to see us through the other side. The federal government has provided the means. Our provincial governments need to provide the way.
Joel MacLeod.ca 