Madam Speaker, from day one, the Prime Minister and the government have been very clear in terms of what the priority is. We understand and appreciate the significance of the pandemic, and we have been there in a very real and tangible way for Canadians from coast to coast to coast, whether it is protecting the health and well-being of Canadians, or looking at ways to ensure the damage of the pandemic is minimized. That has been a top priority from this government.
We recognize that the Government of Canada cannot do it alone, and it has been really encouraging to see virtually all sectors of society recognize the importance of what needed to be done and coming together in order to get that job done.
I want to start by reading a couple of specifics from a letter written by Brian Pallister, the Progressive Conservative Premier of Manitoba. This came after Ottawa invested $19 billion into the safe restart agreement with the provinces and the territories. I will quote specifically from the letter from the premier:
This federal funding will help support work already undertaken by the Government of Manitoba to increase daily testing capacity from a baseline of 1,000 tests to more than 3,000 tests per day.
Another point states:
The Government of Canada will provide $700 million to support health care system capacity to respond to the potential future wave of COVID-19. A further $500 million will address immediate needs and gaps in the support and protection of people experiencing challenges related to mental health, substance use or homelessness. This investment will help keep Canadians safe and healthy with the health care supports they need.
The throne speech highlights many of the initiatives that the Government of Canada has taken with co-operation from a wide spectrum of society. Literally dozens of programs were created from absolutely nothing. We have some of the best civil servants in the world making sure that those programs were being administered, so we could get the necessary funds and supports into the pockets of Canadians in all regions of our country. It has been quite encouraging to see provinces, territories, indigenous leaders, municipalities, non-profit organizations and entrepreneurs came together.
We recognized the feedback provided by individual members of Parliament. Members of Parliament have worked day in and day out through these last eight months assisting their constituents through a wide variety of issues. They took some of those issues and brought them to cabinet, whether directly through a minister or indirectly through the deputy House leader, and there are many other ways which that was achieved.
That direct input was requested by the Prime Minister, who wanted to see members of Parliament, not only from Liberal benches, but also from all sides of the House, talk to their constituents and find out where the Government of Canada could continue to build the consensus necessary to deal with COVID-19. We are here today voting on a throne speech that encapsulates many of those initiatives, and puts a detailed plan on paper. I encourage all members to support and vote for this—