Thank you, Mr. Chair.
My question is for Ms. St‑Aubin, but I will provide a brief preamble first.
I'm a researcher myself. The academics and researchers I work with tell me that it was because of the lack of hospital capacity, particularly in Quebec, that schools had to be closed earlier. Schools are obviously under provincial jurisdiction. As a result, the early closure of schools could have had a significant impact on children’s mental health and learning.
As Ms. Voisin said, one way to increase hospital capacity is to increase funding. I have a hard time understanding why there is this kind of unease when we try to delve into this issue, particularly when we ask questions about what we know about the health consequences on children not going to school.
Ms. St‑Aubin, is the Canadian Journal of Public Health a serious publication?
In the absence of an answer, I will tell you: yes, it's a serious publication.
In only five minutes, my assistant and I found the research done on this topic in 2022. There is this article, for instance:
“What is the effect of school closures on learning in Canada? A hypothesis informed by international data”.
I took me two seconds to find this.
Here's a second example of an article:
“Understanding and attenuating pandemic-related disruptions”.
This is the only time you'll hear a Bloc member speak English.