Thank you, Minister.
Minister, Deputy Prime Minister Freeland has claimed that drawing vaccine doses from COVAX was always part of the federal government's procurement strategy. However, Gavi, which is the organization leading procurement and delivery for COVAX, has noted that for self-financing countries like Canada, “the Facility serves as a critical insurance policy that will significantly increase their chances of securing vaccines,...if their own bilateral deals fail”.
Is the Government of Canada's decision to draw from the COVAX program an admission that our bilateral deals have failed?