Calls for B.C. to repeal COVID-19-related disability 'clawback'
The B.C. government is under pressure to reconsider a change that means some people on disability are getting less money – despite the government's vow to support them through the pandemic.
Earlier in the pandemic, people were able to get federal employment insurance without it coming off their provincial disability cheque. Although B.C. is still reeling from COVID-19's impacts, that's no longer the case.
A statement from Social Development Minister Nick Simons said, in part: "In November, the federal government began replacing broad emergency supports with targeted ones, restoring the EI program to its original purpose. B.C.’s change is consistent with this federal shift."
CTV News spoke to a woman – who wished only to be identified as Keri – who says she lost her job during the pandemic. The changes, which mean each dollar of Employment Insurance is deducted from disability payments, mean Keri no longer gets a disability cheque. She said she only found out about the change in January, by chance.
In a statement, the province said it notified people in mid-December.
BC Liberal social development critic Dan Davies said constituents raised the issue with MLAs. He pointed out that up until this week, the province's own website still said that you could get EI and a disability cheque as part of pandemic supports.
The opposition called this another communication failure, and urged B.C.’s NDP government to reconsider the program, even if it's meant to dovetail into the federal government's program.
"The reality is, the provincial government has the ability to not implement this,” Davies said. “They have the ability to, you know, extend this further or to extend this longer, which is what we're asking."
“This is cruel and unusual punishment to those that are being impacted by this the most,” he added.
The minister's statement went on to say the broad programs put in place at the beginning of the pandemic are being replaced by more targeted supports.
Keri says the experience is demeaning, adding she can no long afford to visit her mom who lives in another city, and who has cancer.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.