Debates of Dec. 3rd, 2020

Health

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, as I have said repeatedly in this House, it is quite the opposite. We have aggressively purchased vaccines. We have seven of the most promising candidates in our portfolio, which is the best portfolio in the world. We will have more doses per capita than any other country.

The member talks about prioritization. That work has been done at the national level. Provinces and territories will further refine their prioritization. We are confident that when a vaccine is approved for use in Canada, we will be able to deploy.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it would give Canadians more confidence if the government would accept the facts.

Dr. Tam has said that she has to refine the priority list for those who will receive the COVID-19 vaccine. The reason she said that is very clear. We do not have enough vaccine to cover everyone who needs it most. We certainly do not have enough vaccine in the first round to cover all seniors over the age of 70. Will the Prime Minister admit he did not do his job to ensure there was enough vaccine in the first round for people who need it most?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, and as I have said repeatedly, we have been aggressive in the purchasing of vaccines. In fact, we have been noted around the world for having the most doses per capita expected here in Canada.

As the member opposite knows, we are working with provincial and territorial partners to ensure people get vaccinated with the goal of stopping the spread and saving lives. That is what is happening. It is happening through planning. It is happening through practice runs. As of yesterday, the provinces and territories participated in a dry run. When a vaccine is approved here in Canada, we will be ready to go.

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Speaker, on November 19 at the public accounts committee, government officials denied the existence of a named operation for COVID vaccine distribution. They told the committee that the Armed Forces had not been tasked with doing any vaccine rollout at all.

Now, leaked documents show the government finally tasked our military with exactly that rollout, but only on November 27 under Operation Vector.

Why did the government wait until the final hours before calling in the military to clean up its mess?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, maybe if my word is not good enough, he would take Major Fortin's word, who cleared that up today at the media conference, indicating that in fact the military has been integrated in our response from the very beginning.

Major Fortin pointed to the integration of military personnel in PHAC for months. We are very grateful for the Canadian Armed Forces, not just in the vaccine deployment, but certainly for the support in long-term care homes in the spring.

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government has known for months that vaccines were coming, but it failed to make any plans to roll it out. Now the military is being sent in to pick up the pieces at the very last minute.

However, the Armed Forces still need more information from the Liberals, but all they are getting is radio silence. Basically, the military is being asked by our government to build a plane while flying it.

Will the defence minister provide more resources to our Canadian Armed Forces and guarantee they can roll out vaccines without compromising core operations?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I have confidence General Vance and the many people leading the Canadian Armed Forces can manage their responsibilities appropriately. That is not for me to say.

I am grateful for the Canadian Armed Forces, not just now but certainly during the spring when they leapt into action to protect seniors' lives in long-term care homes. They are logisticians by trade. They are helpful in helping plan, with provinces and territories, how best to get, especially, these fragile vaccines in place and ready to deploy.

Canadians can be grateful and confident that the Canadian military is helping in this important task.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, when we ask questions in the House of Commons, we are usually told to listen to the technical briefings.

We do listen to the technical briefings, but what we know so far is that less than 10% of Canadians will be vaccinated by the end of March.

Certain groups known as “designated priority groups” have also been identified. I would like the minister to tell us how many people are in those priority groups and whether there will be enough doses to vaccinate them.

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, every step of the way, we have worked with provinces and territories to make sure that we can deploy vaccines successfully.

In fact, yesterday there was a dry run held with provinces and territories to identify gaps in the plan and strengthen them before the vaccine is approved and arrives on Canadian soil.

I can tell Canadians with confidence that when a vaccine is approved for safety here in Canada, we will be ready to deploy.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it is always the same answer: no answer.

We have asked repeatedly why our allies will be getting the vaccine before we do and why Canada will be getting only enough for three million people by the end of March. No one can answer those questions.

Are they refusing to answer our questions because the Prime Minister does not know what is going on with this file and really does not want us to know that?

I am going to ask a question that directly concerns the federal government and does not concern the provinces.

Can the minister explain her plan for distributing vaccines to indigenous communities and members of the Canadian Armed Forces? They fall under federal jurisdiction.

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, let me read a quote from General Vance. He said, “We are as well poised as any country...And when the vaccines arrive, we'll be able to support the federal-provincial-territorial rollout plans. The actual logistics of rolling it out, we are in the same position that our allies are in.” What that says is that the military has been working with the Public Health Agency of Canada. He has been working with our teams, he has been working with Canadians, with provinces and territories.

Let me just say this. Canadians can be confident, they can be optimistic that Canada is at the front of the line and we will make sure, as soon as a vaccine is safe, that we can deploy it.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, at today's technical briefing that was supposed to give Canadians some clarity on the vaccine rollout, one of Canada's top public health officials said the following, “I think we shouldn't be so [obsessed] with the...delivery of the vaccines themselves, the dates and so on.” Really?

Does the minister think that families with family members in long-term care facilities should not be so obsessed with the details of the delivery of the vaccine?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, we have utmost confidence in the public health experts, the scientists, the researchers, the logisticians who are helping not only to deploy vaccines, but to get us through this pandemic every step of the way. Unlike the opposition party, we have confidence in public health officials, we have confidence in public health guidance and we certainly have confidence in vaccination.

We are going to be there for Canadians with optimism, with courage and with planning. Canadians can be confident that when a vaccine is safe for use in Canada, we can deploy.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Premier of Alberta said that vaccines would be received on January 4, but today the same public health official that I just quoted refused to confirm that and, in fact, said, “I think we shouldn't be so [obsessed] with the...delivery of the vaccines”. I cannot believe this. It is ridiculous. We are seeing other countries around the world deliver these vaccines today, yet we have no details about this and the government is telling us to just be optimistic and trust it.

When are Canadians, who are obsessed with getting this information, going to be able to get a vaccine?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians expect that whatever we deploy in terms of vaccines in Canada will be safe for Canadian use and that is why I am so proud of our gold-standard regulators. In fact, around the world, countries look to Canada for approval of vaccines, drugs and medical equipment. Do members know why? It is because of the integrity of our system.

Canadians can be confident that, when a vaccine is approved for use here in Canada, it is safe and we are ready to deploy.

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Quebec National Assembly unanimously agrees.

A significant and sustainable increase in health transfers is needed by the end of 2020. The Government of Quebec and the provinces have been calling for just that. The House voted in favour of that yesterday, including the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, yet this government still refuses. It is no longer just being stubborn; it is being harmful.

Will the government listen to the will expressed by the House of Commons yesterday and increase health transfers?

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague knows full well that we are working very closely with all the provinces, including Quebec.

We were collaborating with Quebec on several plans well before the pandemic, we have done so during the pandemic and will continue to do so after the pandemic. Soon, on December 10, there will be a meeting where we will address several topics, including this one.

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Speaker, health transfers mean more money for our long-term care facilities.

Health transfers mean Quebec and the provinces having the capacity to hire health care workers. I am taking about doctors, nurses, orderlies, experts and paramedics.

Transfers mean sending people a message that we want them to have good care. Do the Liberals have a problem with that? I do not get it.

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, we have been there for provinces and territories since the beginning of this pandemic with historic amounts of funding, including $24 billion in transfers for things like personal protective equipment, testing, contact tracing, data, long-term care and mental health supports.

We will continue to be there for Quebec. We will work with the provinces every step of the way.

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government wants to impose pan-Canadian standards on long-term care facilities under Quebec's jurisdiction.

I suggest it imposes standards on federal long-term care facilities. Oh, that's right, there are none. Perhaps it is not pan-Canadian federal standards that the provinces need, but transfers to help them get through this health crisis.

Every party but the Liberal Party understands that. Why are they refusing to transfer money, as everyone is asking, to support our long-term care facilities? What is the problem?

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, as we have said several times in the past, our seniors are not a jurisdictional matter, or a comma, paragraph or line in our Constitution.

They are human beings made of flesh and blood who have suffered more than anyone else from the outset of this pandemic. Instead of coming here to pick a fight, as the Bloc is currently doing, why not figure out how all of us, including our friends in the Bloc Québécois, can work together to do better for our seniors across the country?

Official Languages

[Gérard Deltell, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we, the Conservatives, recognize that the French language is fragile and that we must do everything we can to support it.

That is why, in one of his first announcements, our Conservative leader, the member for Durham, stated that Bill 101 must be applied to federal institutions. That is important, and only the Conservatives can do it.

Today, the mayors of Quebec's six largest cities agreed with our position. In fact, everyone agrees, except the Liberal government. Why is the Liberal government afraid to apply Bill 101 to federal institutions?

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages]

Mr. Speaker, I can see that my colleague is sincere in his good faith.

However, the reality is that in all the years they were in government, the Conservatives never recognized the vital importance of the French language. Given the cuts to Radio-Canada, their opposition to saving Ontario's French-language university, the cuts to culture and to organizations defending the French fact in this country, I have to wonder about their good faith—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Mégantic—L'Érable.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, let us talk about the good faith of all Quebeckers. The official opposition, the Quebec National Assembly, the Legault government, big city mayors, and a number of grassroots, cultural, agricultural and labour organizations are calling for federally regulated businesses to be subject to Bill 101. The Prime Minister is becoming increasingly isolated. He talks a lot but refuses to do anything. For my question to the Prime Minister, I want to quote a letter published in the papers this morning.

Does the Prime Minister agree that “Quebeckers should be able to work in their language, French”, and that “Quebec laws should be enforced on the entirety of the Quebec territory”, yes or no?