Canada-United Kingdom Trade Continuity Agreement Implementation Act  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her important question. I can assure her that the agricultural sector is part of this negotiation and will be part of the more comprehensive final negotiation. As my colleague pointed out, supply management is very important to Canada. We have protected the supply management system in all of the agreements that we have signed, even though we had to make some adjustments and compensate for losses in certain sectors.

Canada-United Kingdom Trade Continuity Agreement Implementation Act  Mr. Speaker, my colleague has to realize that trade deals take time. They are negotiated. Of course, the U.K. had to work its way through the CETA agreement with the European Union. We have been in conversations with it now for quite a long time. This deal is bridging us to future negotiations, through which we will have a much more comprehensive deal, but this agreement is ensuring the predictability and stability that is needed to move forward, as of day one, on January 1.

Canada-United Kingdom Trade Continuity Agreement Implementation Act  Mr. Speaker, I am always happy to speak in the House of Commons, even if it is virtually. As members know, I am from Nova Scotia. My riding of Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook is quite diverse. We have a very strong Black community, Acadian community, fishing community and agricultural community.

Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2020  Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for that important question. We are responsible for the health of Canadians across the country. We must support all Canadians who are dealing with health problems. We have made investments through a national health fund that is already contributing significant funding to support seniors.

Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2020  Madam Speaker, there is no question that young people and students are facing very challenging times through this pandemic. The program we initiated for students in the summer, the CESB, was very important and it helped many young students in my constituency. Last summer we also increased the Canada summer jobs program.

Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2020  Madam Speaker, as my colleague well knows, we have negotiated some of the most extensive vaccine candidates in the world and the vaccines are coming. More candidates are being added as we move forward. We are distributing vaccines as best as we can to try to initially reach as many of the Canadians who need it most, and we have been very successful in doing so.

Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2020  Madam Speaker, once again I want to wish everyone, including all my constituents, a happy new year, as this is my first official speech in 2021. I am extremely happy to be able to speak today on Bill C-14. Before I do, I want to thank and congratulate the people of Nova Scotia.

Nova Scotia Chief Medical Officer  Mr. Speaker, as we begin 2021, I would like to thank all those who work in public health across Nova Scotia and Canada for their heroic work over the past months. I would especially like to thank Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia's Chief Medical Officer of Health, whom I am lucky enough to have as a constituent.

Veterans Affairs  Madam Speaker, Canadian history has been written in large part by the members of our armed forces, who have taken up the torch from previous generations and continue to inspire the next generation to follow in their footsteps. We are forever indebted to all those who have worn the uniform, for what they have given and what they have given up in the name of cause and country.

Veterans Affairs  Madam Speaker, the number of pending applications has never been 50,000. In fact, with the measures that have been taken to address the backlog, as of October, Veterans Affairs has reduced the number of applications outside of its service standards to under 19,000. That said, this government absolutely agrees that the number of veterans waiting on a decision for disability benefit applications is much too long.

Regional Economic Development  Madam Speaker, the government is taking significant steps to make life more affordable and to advance reconciliation and self-determination in Nunavut. We have supported northern air services, and we continue to update and expand Nutrition North Canada to make it more culturally relevant to northerners.

Regional Economic Development  Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague from Kenora for raising this issue, and to acknowledge that I am on the unceded territory of the Mi'kmaq people. I share the member's concern that the COVID-19 pandemic has created an unprecedented crisis that has resulted in increased need, especially for the people of the north.

Veterans  Madam Speaker, as a government, we are responsible for protecting our most vulnerable citizens while we continue to fight the pandemic. That is why our government proposed measures to support our veterans in the fall economic statement. During the pandemic, the veterans emergency fund has been a lifeline for those at risk due to an urgent or unexpected situation.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague, whom I know very well, for his important question. We need to continue to invest in Canadians. We need to continue to invest in seniors as well, there is no question about that. We are looking at the Conservatives who are quick to say that we are spending too much money, that there is not enough money.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question. It is a very important question, and I definitely want to give her an answer. With respect to quality standards, we need to help everyone, young and old, whether they are in Newfoundland and Labrador, in Ontario or in Quebec. We need to guarantee a minimum standard.