Feds Say They’re ‘Not In A Position’ To Let People Off CERB Repayments Right Now
When it comes to Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) repayments, the federal government has revealed that they’re “not in a position” to let anyone off right now.
In an interview with CBC News, Employment Minister Carla Qualtrough confirmed that forgiving the repayments was still not an option at the moment, although she admitted that it’s not totally out of the question in the future.
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We're certainly not in a position to forgive CERB debt right now.
Carla Qualtrough
After reiterating that CERB debt won’t be forgiven, Qualtrough went on to acknowledge confusion related to eligibility criteria, particularly for self-employed people.
“People were misinformed and we need to figure out how to be fair in light of that," she said.
The federal minister was then asked whether the current repayment system may change in the future.
"It's not impossible, but there hasn't been a policy direction change," she explained.
The Employment Minister continued, "In December we had decided that forgiveness was not on the table, we haven't changed our mind on that but … we can always look at a situation and make a better decision once we have the information."
Since the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) revealed that thousands of Canadians had been contacted about repayments, politicians and the public have been calling for the debt-collecting plans to be scrapped.