The Member of Parliament for Cape Breton-Canso says it’s a busy time for him and members of his team.
Mike Kelloway says he’s still conducting his regular constituency work, but he’s doing it from his home in Sydney River.
He says things haven’t slowed down for him during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kelloway told The Hawk Morning Show it picks up every time Prime Minister Justin Trudeau- or a member of his cabinet- announces a new federal initiative in response to the virus and its economic impact.
“We’re getting about- maybe- 350 emails a day, and that’s not including calls, that’s not including texts, that’s not including questions via Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and what not,” he said. “It’s pretty relentless, but it’s important that people reach out.”
Kelloway said people listen to Trudeau’s daily addresses, or hear about them in the media, then contact him for more information.
He said he and his team members do their best to provide immediate answers, or get the information requested.
Kelloway said the expansion of the wage subsidy program is one example.
He said the goal is to keep people employed during COVID-19 by increasing the wage subsidy from 10 per cent to 75 per cent for qualifying employers for as long as three months.
Kelloway said his constituents told him the original amount wasn’t enough.
“It was the people of Cape Breton-Canso and the businesses that reached out to me and said ‘Mike- 10 per cent is not good enough’,” he said. “We heard that across the country.”
Kelloway said the program will help small-to-medium sized business owners provide a wage, and keep people working during these challenging times.
