It's dire.
I can't reduce and cut costs any more than I have.
[Reporter] Mike Yaworski is in survival mode.
He runs his pizza restaurant as best he can these days.
I had five employees that all been laid off.
I do 100 of the work.
Accounting, ordering, cooking, answering the phones
and it's still not making a profit.
So, I keep doing it.
I don't understand what I'm why I'm breaking my back
when I don't see a light at the end of the tunnel.
[Reporter] That was the mindset Mike was in
when he sat down to watch the budget.
I'm not a political guy.
I'm just a hard-working, just average Joe.
So, it was weird for me to really be watching every word when that budget came out.
It was kind of like game seven
of like Maple Leafs versus the Montreal Canadiens
in Stanley Cup final.
Like game seven and third period.
I was waiting for it.
I was watching every moment of it.
[Reporter] What Mike was looking for specifically
was a continuation of the Emergency Rent Subsidy
or CERS
that keeps the door open here.
And he got it.
I was elated.
I almost was screaming.
because without that
I already was planning on June 5th closing
it was just I wasn't going to make enough money
out of my own pocket to pay rent.
The extension of CERS
was like the Maple Leafs winning in overtime in game seven for me
that allows me the opportunity to maybe weather this storm.
[Reporter] And that's one of the ideas behind the budget
to help people like Mike get their business through the pandemic.
Of course, there's a cost.
Canada's deficit is projected to be 354 billion dollars.
And the debt?
1.4 trillion by 2026.
I understand debt.
I've seen every aspect of debt.
Debt for successful investments
and debt that drove people into despair.
I've seen it all.
[Reporter] That's Ron Butler.
In his 25 years as a mortgage broker, he's seen the way we think about debt change
big time.
We used to worry a lot about a 38 billion dollar deficit in this country.
There was all kinds of discussion about it.
So now, we're running 10 times that.
10 times.
And I don't hear very much concern from anyone about it.
What's changed from sweating about 38 billion to 10 times that?
Certainly, COVID happened.
That's a big change.
There was such a need to get money
to people who'd lost their jobs
that a big deficit was expected.
So, we did go into a 345 billion deficit last year.
The sky didn't fall in.
I mean nothing went too wrong.
So why not just do it again?
We'll see how this rides out.
[Reporter] Ron says he sees the same spending behaviour
that the government's doing with everyday people.
He says we've forgotten the risk of taking on too much debt
That's exactly what happens in the mortgage business.
If people refi their homes once
it's somewhat larger payment maybe about the same payment.
Because rates went down
well, let's do it again.
Rates are even lower, let's refinance again.
Let's get a bigger mortgage.
Let's renovate the basement.
Let's do this, let's do that.
Until the day comes when it doesn't work out anymore.
If I had grandchildren what am I saddling them with?
[Reporter] You can argue about money for the present crisis versus future debt.
But for someone like Azikee Huie
there's no debate.
Every month she risks being evicted.
It's stressful because I've missed a month.
I've gotten notices at my door.
You're late.
You can be evicted.
[Reporter] Azikee's a mom of three
before the pandemic, she was a cleaner
but in the last year since COVID, she's only been able to work twice.
And she says CERB is not enough
when it comes to paying the rent or buying food.
It's a toss-up.
I have to be thinking if I'm going to pay the rent
or if I'm going to buy food.
If I'm going to be able to feed my children
or I'm going to be evicted.
So, it's not a nice feeling
when you have to be thinking about one or the other.
[Reporter] Azikee tells me that for her the budget was a disappointment.
I don't think the budget has done enough
the budget has not done enough to cover our needs
and I don't think that they even consulted with us.
What do you need?
What can we do for you?
How does this budget will help you?
When you're in low income, you're not able to say
oh the budget is too much you know there's a deficit.
We understand that there's a deficit but right now we need assistance.
[Reporter] Azikee wants to get back to work and support herself.
But for now, because of COVID, she's stuck.
And that's the case for thousands of Canadians across the country.
Mike's in the same boat.
He hates that he can't support himself
that he needs government help to stay open.
The reason why I'm here
and the reason why I'm passionate about the budget
is to feed my family
to make sure that they're safe, they're sheltered, they're fed
keep them comfortable.
I mean that's the only reason why I'm here
and I, again, I don't know how long I can do that
and that's what the real scary part is.
[Reporter] After more than a year of COVID,
the only thing we know is that the future is uncertain
and a budget all by itself can't put an end to that.
Nick Purdon, CBC News, Toronto.