This is a long-standing, immigrant-owned shop in my neighbourhood. I want to explain why @Bill_Morneau's & @mary_ng's aid wasn't enough to save it. Because your Main St is going to look like this too if our gov continues only offering debt & going this slow #MorneauTooSlow THREAD

To make extra $$ for our journalism, my company @thediscourse has a co-working space. We closed it Mar 15. Revenue dropped to 0. We couldn't pay $11,000+ rent Apr 1. We put tens of thousands of $$ into the space & now my landlord can legally lock us out in 9 days. #TooSlowMorneau

For the billions @mary_ng + @Bill_Morneau announced, I still don't have clarity on whether @thediscourse qualifies for labour subsidy or emergency loan. And it will be weeks before that $$ flows. I had to make 3 layoffs, including myself and May rent is coming. #TooSlowMorneau

. @thediscourse is not special. We're losing local news everywhere - it relies on local biz to buy ads. @Bill_Morneau wasn't fast enough to prevent Saltwire closing community newspapers across Atlantic Canada. Even the Winnipeg Free Press is barely alive right now. #TooSlowMorneau

And we're the lucky ones. Local news still can still operate & try to make $$. If Winnipeg Free Press can stay alive until the labour subsidy comes through, it might have a chance. But none of @Bill_Morneau + @mary_ng aid helps biz that closed to fight #COVID19 #MorneauTooSlow

Here's 2 stories from http://SaveSmallBusiness.ca  that explain why #MorneauTooSlow won't save small biz: "We've been asked to close. Sales are next to zero. We won't survive without serious help. We already have a small business loan weighing over our head that will need to be paid."

"My Salon has been closed due to #COVID19. I have no money coming into the business but rent of $2800 is still due on the property each month and the utility bills are still adding up.
How do I pay this? It's impossible." No one is helping pay this salon's rent #MorneauTooSlow

The 75% labour subsidy only helps if you still have staff & cash to keep paying them for 6 more weeks before subsidy comes through. For everyone else, all @mary_ng + @Bill_Morneau have offered is loans, many small biz won't qualify & it's not coming fast enough #MorneauTooSlow

Asking small biz owners to go into debt is so unjust. Imagine if the gov told you it needed to demolish your house for the public good, then gave you a loan to rebuild it. @Bill_Morneau + @mary_ng need to act now to meaningfully support small biz or they will fail #MorneauTooSlow

Other countries are getting this right: @mary_ng + @Bill_Morneau can look at Australia for ways to support closed small biz pay their fixed expenses without burying them in inescapable debt. Save Small Business sent the gov solutions for 2 weeks, but it's still #TooSlowMorneau

We also need @Bill_Morneau to get tougher with banks. It's insane that they are charging interest & acting like it's biz as usual. Mortgage deferrals are NOT relief, and landlords need to stay afloat too. #TooSlowMorneau

This is an enormous problem & it needs to become a political one. Small biz generates over 40% of Canada's GDP. They create 7 in 10 jobs. If @mary_ng + @Bill_Morneau let them fail, our country will see a major depression and massive poverty. We don't have time for #TooSlowMorneau