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Horace Dalley, and Finance Minister Dr. Nigel Clarke, speaking with Morning Agenda host Jodie-Ann Quarrie
The Parliamentary Opposition has described as heartless, the Government's decision to abruptly close applications for the Compassionate Grant component of the COVID Allocation of Resources for Employees (CARE) Programme.
In a statement on Thursday, the Ministry of Finance announced that applications for the compassionate grant, which provides cash benefits to the unemployed and informally employed, had been closed.
But Opposition Spokesman on Social Security Horace Dalley said the announcement was sudden and the Government needs to reopen applications immediately.
"To abruptly announce at 3 o'clock that at 5 o'clock the application process will close is uncaring in this time of hardship. This is a time of crisis and we must open back the application process so the people can apply for the $10,000 Compassionate Grant," he pleaded.
Closure needed to process applications
Finance Minister Dr. Nigel Clarke has explained that the closure of applications for the Compassionate Grant is to process payments for the more than 400,000 persons who requested assistance.
Speaking with Morning Agenda co-host Jodi-Ann Quarry on Power 106 Friday, Dr. Clarke said it would be difficult to both receive applications and process existing applications at the same time because the ministry will "have to be engaged in communicating with persons who have applied" in order to validate their applications.
Dr. Clarke has indicated that based on the volume of applications to the CARE Programme, the $10 billion allocated to the social safety net initiative could be exhausted.
Almost 500,000 people have applied to the CARE Programme.