$19 Billion In COVID Relief For Provinces and Municipalities

Premier Doug Ford had a couple of big announcements live from Craven Farms near Chatham on Thursday afternoon, including some more federal COVID-19 relief that may help right here in Chatham-Kent.

“Following weeks of negotiations, Canada’s Premiers reached a historic agreement with our federal counterparts,” said Ford. “This agreement will see over $19 billion in desperately needed COVID-19 relief funding flow to Canada’s provinces and municipalities.”

Ford says the funding will help support the local economies across the province over the next 6 to 8 months.

Ontario’s share of the funding sits at $7 billion.

The Premier thanked Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the federal government for their co-operation and says this is a great example of Canada working together to get the job done.

“I want to thank my counterparts from across the nation. During this hour of our greatest need, Canada’s Premiers stood shoulder to shoulder, we stayed together as a country, as Canadians. And this historic agreement proves what we can do as a nation when we stand united.”

The Premier also announced that the province is adding $50 million annually to the Risk Management Program, for a total of $150 million a year to support farmers with unforeseen challenges.