Politics drives push to punish CERB cheats By: Editorial Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Thursday, Jun. 11, 2020

Opinion

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This article was published 10/06/2020 (1562 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When faced with a crisis the size and scope of the COVID-19 pandemic, governments should pick their fights carefully. That is something the federal Liberal government should strongly consider as it attempts to recoup some payments made under the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit.

Opposition parties in Ottawa this week denied Prime Minister Justin Trudeau the unanimous consent needed to pass expedited legislation that would adjust the terms of CERB and impose penalties — which could include jail time — for improperly accessing the payments.

The opposition parties had different agendas behind their decisions to withhold consent. The New Democrats object to the whole idea of punishing ineligible recipients; the Bloc Québécois wants a fiscal update before approving any additional legislation related to spending programs. Meanwhile, the federal Conservatives want some sort of resumption of regular sittings of the House of Commons.

The fact the Trudeau government is trying to recoup some of the CERB payments being made in error is not at issue. The money from this program should, in the end, go to the people who need it the most. However, the approach the Liberals have taken regarding improper CERB access appears to have more to do with politics than fiscal accountability.

The Liberal government’s “fail-fast” approach to economic supports during the pandemic has been, for the most part, appropriate. Programs have been introduced; Canadians have responded to the terms; changes have been made, sometimes at the request of opposition parties; and then the necessary legislation has been amended, passed and put into effect.

Given that context, it’s hardly shocking that in some cases payments were made to ineligible recipients. Accepting this as an inevitable consequence of an expedited program is an important element in finding an appropriate solution.

Mr. Trudeau’s shotgun threats of fines of up to $5,000 and up to six months in jail were unfocused and poorly timed. Canadians are still suffering tremendous stress and uncertainty related to the pandemic, and a blanket threat to punish ineligible recipients only adds to those burdens. His proposed measures also ignore the fact Canadians have been quite willing to return the money when asked.

The Canadian Revenue Agency has reported that by June 3, 190,000 Canadians had returned CERB payments they were not entitled to receive, after either realizing they were ineligible or being informed by CRA or some other authority that they should not have applied in the first place.

The broad, tough language Mr. Trudeau chose to describe the proposed penalties seems designed to save him from knee-jerk criticism from Conservatives. By threatening penalties, he will have effectively defused what could have become a major talking point for some future Tory leader.

The fact is, however, that there is no evidence of widespread “fraud.” The CRA’s tip line has received 1,300 calls regarding potential abuses. If every single one of those tips turned out to be a case of fraud, it would represent $2.6 million per month in improperly paid benefits — out of a program that is expected to top out at about $60 billion.

The Trudeau government should be fiscally responsible. It should also perform a cost/benefit analysis before suggesting such a broad, indiscriminate program to identify and punish fraudsters. While it’s true no one should get something they don’t deserve, Mr. Trudeau would be better served by focusing on the bigger challenges facing him.