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Since the pandemic hit, millions of Canadians have relied on the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) to help them stay afloat. Now, the Canada Revenue Agency is warning some recipients they may need to pay the money back.
Parliamentarians are reporting a flood of calls from CERB recipients who have received alarming-sounding letters from the CRA suggesting they might need to repay every one of the $2,000 payments by Dec. 31, 2020, Carl Meyer reports.
For many Canadians, the prospect of having to return benefit payments while still grappling with financial uncertainty is all but impossible.
Green Party Leader Annamie Paul is calling on the government to suspend repayment requests until the CRA can provide more clarity.
"Everyone knows someone, I’m pretty sure, who got that letter. We’re talking about hundreds of thousands of people," Paul told Canada’s National Observer. "And we’re just around the corner from all of our major holidays — it is really Scrooge-like, this whole thing."
As governments, organizations and people across the country make plans for Canada’s post-pandemic future, information plays a crucial role in navigating the challenges ahead.
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