Evidence of meeting #31 for Procedure and House Affairs in the 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was election.
A recording is available from Parliament.
11:45 a.m.
Liberal
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Thank you.
Will elections workers be required to have completed COVID-19 vaccines? Answer yes or no here, please.
11:45 a.m.
Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada
This is not a requirement at this time.
11:45 a.m.
Liberal
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Will Elections Canada be providing COVID-related health and safety training for elections workers? Answer yes or no, please.
11:45 a.m.
Liberal
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
I think you've mentioned this. Will Elections Canada install barrier protections in polling stations to protect poll staff, voters, campaign staff? Answer yes or no, please.
11:45 a.m.
Liberal
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Will Elections Canada have COVID-19 compliance officers inside polling stations, yes or no?
11:45 a.m.
Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada
At all stations we'll have a person in charge of ensuring that the set-up respects the measures we have determined in accordance with the directives of the health authorities.
11:45 a.m.
Liberal
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Will Elections Canada ensure, should contact tracing be required, that some information is collected?
11:50 a.m.
Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada
We are planning right now for contact tracing at all polling locations and returning offices.
11:50 a.m.
Liberal
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Thank you.
Is there a communications plan for how electors can vote during a pandemic election, yes or no?
11:50 a.m.
Liberal
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Will that include what electors can expect at a voting station during a pandemic election, yes or no?
11:50 a.m.
Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada
Yes, we have a safety campaign for voters to inform them of all the measures they can expect to see.
11:50 a.m.
Liberal
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Thank you.
In how many languages will election information be provided?
11:50 a.m.
Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada
That varies on the kind of information we have. I think it's 51 languages for basic information, but there are a range of products in a lesser number of languages, for example, in 16 indigenous languages.
We also will be using the CanTalk application that allows for, I believe, 24 indigenous languages as an interpretation service for electors who interact with us, for example, for special ballots.
11:50 a.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Ruby Sahota
Thank you, Dr. Duncan.
We have Mr. Therrien for two and a half minutes.
11:50 a.m.
Bloc
Alain Therrien Bloc La Prairie, QC
I must take at least 10 seconds to acknowledge the interpreter. Ms. Duncan put her to the test and she really rose to the occasion. Ms. Duncan, your questions were very good, but the interpreter did a magnificent job.
Hear, hear! I wanted to tell you this. I'll try not to speak too quickly.
In terms of an election call, you said earlier that you had to talk to public health in the event of an election. Is this done systematically? For example, as soon as the government calls an election, do you immediately call on public health to assess the situation? Is that how it will work?
11:50 a.m.
Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada
Our working group is currently in regular contact with provincial and territorial public health authorities. This is an ongoing process. Yes, we'll be in contact when the election is called, to ensure that there aren't any changes.
We must also be able to anticipate. If the provincial public health department, for example, changes certain guidelines, we need to know. We already have a whole network of contacts in place so that we can find out about changing public health requirements.
11:50 a.m.
Bloc
Alain Therrien Bloc La Prairie, QC
I imagine that you talk to the Public Health Agency of Canada and then turn to the provinces and Quebec to find out which provinces have easier or more challenging situations. You then make adjustments according to the circumstances. Is that right?
11:50 a.m.
Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada
We must also find out, for example, whether any curfews are in place. This may affect voting hours. We must know to what extent. Right now, masks are required everywhere. Things are going well. It makes our job easier, in a way. If things start to loosen up in some places and masks are no longer mandatory, we'll need to look at this again. We'll keep encouraging people to wear masks. If masks aren't mandatory in a province, we may not be able to require them. However, these types of adjustments must be made constantly in a pandemic.
11:50 a.m.
Bloc
Alain Therrien Bloc La Prairie, QC
Okay.
I'll move on to my last question.
In October, when you came to see us, you spoke about the difficulty of recruiting employees. How does having two days, Saturday and Sunday, instead of one day, Monday, make recruitment easier?