By Steve Scherer
OTTAWA, Nov 8 (Reuters) – Canada is able to begin talks with main airways this week about monetary help to the hard-hit sector that would come within the type of loans or different assist, Transport Minister Marc Garneau stated on Sunday.
The federal government is drafting a bundle of measures for Canadian airways, airports and the aerospace sector, Garneau stated in a press release, confirming an unique story final week by Reuters.
“As a part of this bundle, we’re prepared to ascertain a course of with main airways concerning monetary help which may embrace loans and doubtlessly different assist to safe vital outcomes for Canadians,” Garneau stated.
He stated it could be certain that regional communities would retain their connections to the remainder of Canada, the world’s second-largest nation by space, and added that “strict circumstances” would include any assist.
Garneau additionally stated Canada wouldn’t spend “one penny of taxpayer cash on airways” till Canadians acquired refunds for flights that have been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Whereas a number of nations, together with the USA and Australia, have provided billions in direct emergency assist to their airways, Canada has not.
Air Canada AC.TO and WestJet, the 2 most important carriers, and transport unions have been pleading for assist for months as passenger demand cratered.
Air Canada has already laid off round 20,000 staff, about half its workforce. Based on the Canadian Airports Council, Canadian passenger site visitors from April via August was down 92% from the identical interval in 2019.
“The air sector can not reply to those challenges by itself, given the unprecedented impacts on its operations,” Garneau stated.
(Reporting by Steve Scherer; Modifying by Sandra Maler and Peter Cooney)
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