Premier John Horgan’s claim that people aren’t applying for the Business Grant Program being the reason only $21 million of the $300 million available has been handed out isn’t sitting well with the Opposition Jobs Critic.

Kamloops South Thompson Liberal MLA Todd Stone says the Premier, and Jobs Minister Ravi Kahlon, don’t appear to be on the same page. “The Jobs Minister keeps saying ‘I’m talking to business, I understand. We’re going to respond to the needs of business’ and so forth, and then he does nothing,” Stone said while speaking on the NL Morning News.

“Horgan has his weekly press conference, it was unbelievable. He actually blamed business for not applying and said the reason there’s so much money left is not enough people are asking for the money. I mean this is absolutely ridiculous, it’s disingenuous.”

During a news conference on Thursday, Horgan said the program will end on March 31, when the fiscal year ends, but says business supports will be available through other means after that.

“We have the spectacle of the Jobs Minister saying the government is listening and engaging and they may push the program beyond March 31 only to then have John Horgan come out and completely contradict him and say the program won’t be extended in fact any unspent money will be sucked back into government,” Stone rebuts.

“At the end of the day, it’s cold comfort for all of these small businesses that were promised supports months and months ago, they now have to wait weeks if not months for this government to decide if they’re going to make any changes to this program let alone extend it beyond the March 31 deadline, I mean it’s ridiculous.”

Stone says the eligibility requirements were too stringent to be allow most businesses to qualify. “I think it reflects a lack of practical understanding of what these businesses are actually going through on the ground. Thousands have already shut their doors after turning their lights off forever, and thousands more are barely hanging on.”

As far as how the the government can fix things, Stone says first off they need to streamline the application process.

“Secondly, make those changes to the restricted criteria. That 70 per cent revenue drop requirement for March and April is completely ridiculous. It’s a line drawn in the sand. They should also change the requirement where a business has to have been in business for 18 months as of the date of the application.”

The $300-million-dollar program was approved by all parties in the BC Legislature in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic last spring.