Thank you very much, Mr. Acting Chair.
Madam Minister, we're pleased to welcome you. Thank you for taking the time to be with us.
I listened carefully to your speech. I have two questions for you.
We all agree that, during this particular period we're experiencing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, our seniors across the country have suffered greatly in many ways, both financially and health-wise.
I imagine that even though you've had discussions with all of your colleagues, you're fairly close to what's going on in the health field and in caucus.
I hear about staff shortages, I hear about staffing and I hear about national standards for long-term care. With all due respect to my colleagues, that's not the solution. Health care is exclusively a provincial responsibility.
If there's a solution to effectively address the needs of seniors and health needs in our provinces, it's through an increase in the Canada health transfer. This increase must also take demographics into account, which the program doesn't do. In fact, the provinces are unanimous on this issue.
As Minister of Seniors within the government, close to health, do you have any work that will highlight this response to the pressing issues facing our seniors?