Canada to extend income support by eight weeks, U.S. border to remain closed

FILE PHOTO: People maintain social distance as they sit at Humber Bay Shores park while the province prepares for more phased re-openings from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions in Toronto, Ontario, Canada May 24, 2020. REUTERS/Carlos Osorio

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada will extend federal income support by eight weeks for those who lost their jobs amid the COVID-19 outbreak, and the border with the United States will remain closed to non-essential travel, the prime minister said on Tuesday.

The Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), which delivers C$500 a week to those who qualify, had been available for a maximum of 16 weeks, which meant that some people would no longer be able to collect it starting in July.