Chrystia Freeland

Friday May 7, 2021

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday May 7, 2021

The Political Blame Game

February 6, 2021

For months now, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has blamed everyone for Canada’s trickle of COVID-19 vaccines but himself.

Trudeau and his ministers have gone so far as to blame former Progressive Conservative prime minister Brian Mulroney — who was prime minister from 1984 to 1993 — for the privatization, or “the selling off“, of Connaught Laboratories. What he fails to mention is that Connaught Labs didn’t go anywhere. It’s now part of Sanofi Pasteur, the world’s largest manufacturer of vaccines. The Connaught Campus in Toronto accounts for one-fifth of the company’s global vaccine sales.

Experts in Canada’s innovative pharmaceutical industry — as opposed to the generic pharmaceutical industry — say Trudeau’s attempt to pin the blame on Mulroney or a more recent Conservative prime minister, Stephen Harper, is ironic, because were it not for Mulroney, the innovative industry likely wouldn’t exist here at all.

March 9, 2016

Paul Lucas, who was president and CEO of GlaxoSmithKline Canada from 1994 to 2012, started speaking out and wrote an opinion piece in the Financial Post after he heard federal Liberal Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs Dominic LeBlanc being interviewed on CTV’s Power Play with Evan Solomon, saying that GlaxoSmithKline had closed its manufacturing facility for vaccines during Harper’s Conservative government, which is false.

“This facility didn’t close, it’s still producing most of the flu vaccine for Canada on an annual basis,” Lucas said during a recent telephone interview.

“I’ve been very concerned and frankly upset about the lies that are coming from the federal government about this whole (COVID vaccine) file,” says Lucas, who was integral to the production and distribution of the Canadian vaccine for the H1N1 pandemic in 2009. All of the vaccine for that outbreak was produced in the GSK factory in Quebec City.

“Trudeau has badly botched Canada’s COVID-19 vaccine procurement,” states Lucas.

“First, he blamed Harper for his own failings. Then he blamed Mulroney and then he blamed the provinces. Then he actually turned on his own vaccine task force. He blamed them for about a day or two. Then he blamed the companies — Pfizer for delaying the delivery of its vaccines in January,” explains Lucas. (Calgary Herald) 

November 19, 2020

Meanwhile, Ontario Minister of Long-term Care Merrilee Fullerton faced a call from the Opposition to resign her cabinet post on Tuesday, in the wake of two reports that reviewed her ministry’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In recent days, Fullerton has been pressed to explicitly acknowledge whether she feels she shares any responsibility for the more than 3,700 deaths of long-term care residents with COVID-19 in Ontario.

During question period Tuesday, NDP Leader Andrea Horwath asked when Fullerton was made aware that some residents had died of dehydration or basic neglect, which led a tense exchange between the two.

“The premise of your question is bordering on obscene,” Fullerton said. “And the reason why is because all of the ministry, public health, medical officers of health, thousands of people have been working to shore up these homes and they were no match for COVID-19.”

Fullerton said that some long-term care homes became “warzones” within days of the first confirmed cases among residents and staff. 

“What we were doing 24 hours a day was trying to get support to those homes, with an unknown virus that wasn’t fully understood and a shortage of supplies globally,” she added.

May 4, 2021

Fullerton then said the NDP had failed to pressure the previous Liberal government into fixing Ontario’s beleaguered long-term care sector.

“Look at your failure. I was left to pick up the pieces from a devastating 15 years of neglect,” she said. “I will not be spoken to that way by the leader of the opposition that neglected this sector.” 

Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk and the Ontario Long-term Care COVID-19 Commission both released their respective reports last week. While the probes examined different aspects of COVID-19’s impact on the long-term care sector, they reached similar conclusions: the ministry was not prepared for a pandemic, in part due to years of inaction to prevent a crisis. (CBC) 

 

Wednesday April 21, 2021

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday April 21, 2021

Will Doug Ford meet the same fate as Mike Harris?

Conservative politicians are sometimes suspicious of advice coming from experts for good reason: The experts just want them to not be conservatives.

But sometimes, their suspicions cause them to ignore good advice. This may have led Ontario Premier Doug Ford to take actions that could doom his government. If so, it won’t be the first time.

July 4, 2001

Former premier Mike Harris’s determination to keep cutting regulations, despite the warnings of experts, contributed to the deaths of seven people in the town of Walkerton, and to the Progressive Conservatives’s defeat at the next election. Mr. Ford may face the same fate, and for the same reason.

In May, 2000, Walkerton’s municipal water supply was contaminated by E. coli bacteria. Along with the deaths, more than 2,300 fell ill, some severely.

A public inquiry led by Justice Dennis O’Connor concluded that the public utilities manager, Stan Koebel, caused the contamination through his own incompetence, and then tried to cover up his misdeeds when people started getting sick. He was eventually sentenced to a year in jail.

The inquiry also concluded that the Harris government had contributed to the disaster. The ministry of the environment was no longer able to properly monitor municipal water supplies because of cuts to its budget and changes in regulations.

“If the MOE had adequately fulfilled its regulatory and oversight role, the tragedy in Walkerton would have been prevented … or at least significantly reduced in scope,” Justice O’Connor concluded.

Common Sense Revolution, 1995

The public had broadly supported the Harris government’s Common Sense Revolution, which slashed taxes, spending and red tape, while balancing the budget.

But people expect government to protect public health. Experts warned that spending cuts, deregulation and privatization had gone too far, endangering public safety, and Walkerton proved the experts right. In 2002, Mr. Harris stepped down as leader; his successor, Ernie Eves, led the PCs to defeat. The Tories remained in the wilderness for 15 years.

January 17, 2019

Since the pandemic began more than a year ago, Mr. Ford has sought to balance the needs of workers and businesses alongside the recommendations of public health and medical officials, an approach that until recently earned strong public approval.

But in the winter, the government appeared to lose that balance. A number of public-health officials and medical specialists warned that a third wave of COVID-19 infections, fuelled by more infectious variants of the virus, could slam into the province unless the government kept tight restrictions in place. Seeking to preserve jobs and personal freedom, the government instead relaxed restrictions. Now, we’re in the thick of it.

September 5, 2020

Last week, with the case counts rising and ICUs approaching capacity, the Ford government appeared to panic. The Premier on Friday announced a series of unpopular and seemingly counterproductive measures, such as banning outdoor gatherings, where risk of transmission is known to be lower, while permitting some indoor workplaces to remain open, where risk is higher. All of this was accompanied by draconian warnings that police could stop and fine people who ventured outside their home without sufficient cause.

Reaction was so intense – even strong Progressive Conservative supporters were appalled by what appeared to be arbitrary and perverse regulations – that the government was forced to back down on some measures within a day. Now, critics are calling for Mr. Ford’s resignation.

Conservative governments often arrive in power with a mandate from voters to root out vested and wasteful interests, both within and outside of government.

The hard part comes with the transition from the reform phase to the steady-government phase. Some conservative politicians manage that transition: Stephen Harper, federally; Brad Wall in Saskatchewan; Gordon Campbell (a Liberal who was really a conservative) in British Columbia.

Young Doug Ford: The Series

Other conservative politicians fail to mediate the conflicts between rural and urban members of caucus. They cut past the fat, into muscle and bone; their skepticism of elites blinds them to advice they should be taking.

The Ford government’s problems are not unique: Outside Atlantic Canada, infection rates have been rising across the country. Vaccination levels are rising, too, and may eventually beat back this third wave. The next election is more than a year away. The Premier and his government may get through this.

Or Doug Ford may meet the same fate as Mike Harris. If so, the third wave will be his Walkerton. (Globe & Mail) 

 

Tuesday April 20, 2021

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday April 20, 2021

Liberals promise $30B over 5 years to create national child-care system

December 7, 2005

After decades of broken promises and half measures on child care, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced today the federal government will invest roughly $30 billion over five years to help offset the cost of early learning and child care services.

This federal investment — the single largest line item in the massive 739-page budget document tabled today — is designed to significantly reduce what parents pay for care in the coming years. The government’s stated goal is to make life more affordable and to drive economic growth by drawing more women into the workforce.

The federal government estimates the COVID-19 pandemic has driven at least 16,000 women out of the job market altogether, while the male labour force has grown by 91,000 over the same period.

Another recent analysis by RBC found that almost half a million Canadian women who lost their jobs during the pandemic still hadn’t returned to work as of January. Employment among women in Canada who earned less than $800 a week has fallen almost 30 per cent, the bank reported.

May 4, 2019

Freeland said this child care investment will help counter some of the gender disparities fuelled by the pandemic crisis.

Freeland said that, as result of the new spending, the next 18 months could see a reduction of up to 50 per cent in the average child care fees paid by parents. With child care expenses running nearly as high as rent or mortgage payments in some cities, the household savings could be significant.

But to get average fees down to that lower level, the provinces and territories would have to kick in more funding as well. The promise of additional federal money could be used as a bargaining chip to convince provinces and territories to boost their own spending in this area.

Freeland said such an affordable child care system could increase the overall size of the economy — as measured by the gross domestic product (GDP) — by some 1.2 per cent.

“It’s expensive, but it’s an investment worth making,” she said.

July 9, 2020

Of the $30 billion promised today, $27.2 billion will be used to “bring the federal government to a 50/50 share of child care costs with provincial and territorial governments,” says the budget document. 

The government’s stated goal is to drive down child-minding costs within five years to just $10 a day per child, nationwide — significantly less than what most working parents pay now in all jurisdictions outside Quebec.

The budget earmarks another $2.5 billion for the Indigenous early learning and child care system — to create new spaces, to build or renovate existing centres and to support after-school care programs on-reserve.

The budget also sets aside money to make over 400 existing child care centres nationwide more accessible for children with disabilities.(CBC) 

 

Saturday March 20, 2021

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday March 20, 2021

Biden Takes First Jab At Vaccine Diplomacy, Sharing Doses With Mexico, Canada

Under pressure to share AstraZeneca vaccine doses not yet being used to inoculate Americans, the Biden administration is finalizing plans to loan millions of doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to Mexico and Canada. It’s a first foray into vaccine diplomacy for the Biden administration, weeks after global competitors China and Russia began using vaccine doses to exert influence.

March 13, 2021

The U.S. government has contracts to buy hundreds of millions more vaccine dosesthan there are people living here, but with most of those doses not yet delivered and Americans still struggling to get vaccination appointments, the Biden administration has so far focused on making sure Americans get vaccinated first. 

While AstraZeneca’s vaccine has been approved for use in many other countries, including Mexico and Canada, it still hasn’t been given emergency use authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. So, the White House announced it is working through the technicalities to loan 2.5 million doses to Mexico and 1.5 million doses to Canada from its stockpile of 7 million doses. 

“This action will allow our neighbors to meet a critical vaccination need in their countries, providing more protection immediately across the North American continent,” said Jeff Zients, White House coronavirus coordinator.

February 9, 2017

While the United States has vaccinated more than 12% of its population according to Johns Hopkins data, Canada has vaccinated only 1.7% of its population and Mexico only 0.5%.

Zients said the loans will be repaid through dose deliveries from AstraZeneca later in the year. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said many countries have asked to borrow from the stockpile, but said it’s not yet clear whether other requests may be granted.

After briefly pausing vaccinations with AstraZeneca in Europe due to concerns about blood clots developing, health officials there this week announced they believe the vaccine to be safe and effective and resumed administering the vaccine. (NPR) 

 

Tuesday December 2, 2020

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday December 2, 2020

COVID-19 doesn’t care about politics

Remember the Team Canada approach to fighting COVID-19, the one where political parties would put the collective fight above partisan interests? Remember “we’re all in this together?”

October 8, 2020

That was all so yesterday. Today, there is very little non-partisan co-operation between federal parties. And Canadians, too, have become increasingly partisan and divided. 

It was probably all inevitable, but it’s unfortunate, nonetheless. 

Partisanship has entirely replaced bilateral co-operation in Ottawa. The government stands accused of flubbing Canada’s vaccine program. Because of that mismanagement we are at “the back of the line,” according to federal Conservatives.

It is true that the government, and especially the prime minister, have been unnecessary vague about vaccine delivery and rollout details. It is not true that we are at the back of the pack. Canada was the fourth country in the world to strike an agreement with Pfizer, one of the vaccine producers. It was one of the first to sign up with Moderna, another producer.

December 1, 2020

Moderna co-founder and chair Noubar Afeyan, who came to Canada as a refugee from Beirut before he moved to the U.S., says this country is in good shape. In an interview with CBC News, he said “Canada’s not at the back of the line,” adding “Each of the contracts we negotiated — and Canada was among the first to enter into a supply arrangement with Moderna — is individual, and of course the people who were willing to move early on, with even less proof of efficacy, have assured the amount of supply they were willing to sign up to. I know in the case of Canada their number is about 20 million doses.”

It is fair to criticize the Liberals for their communication to date around vaccines, but it is not factual to claim Canada is at the back of the line. However, that is a good example of how partisan strategy has replaced the collaboration that was a welcome feature of the pandemic’s early days. 

November 28, 2020

It is also true that Canada will not get vaccines as quickly as countries like the U.S. and U.K., where vaccines were developed and produced. This country doesn’t have that production capacity. It did at one point. There was publicly owned Connaught Labs, which was privatized under the Mulroney Conservative government in the ’80s. Later, the Harper government cut research and development spending and other pharmaceutical companies closed shop and moved elsewhere. Now that capacity is largely gone, and it needs to be replaced, urgently.

A similar partisan divide exists among Canadians overall, according to recent opinion polling data. In general, Liberal and NDP voter respondents in several different polls were more likely to be primarily concerned about the health impact of COVID-19, while those who identified as Conservative were more likely to be concerned about the economic and business impact. According to polling by the Angus Reid Institute, 89 per cent of respondents who voted Liberal, NDP or Bloc reported regularly wearing masks, while 71 per cent of Conservative voters reported doing the same. 

May 8, 2019

Interestingly, one poll by Leger suggests many Canadians are not so concerned about getting the vaccine at the same time as the U.S. or U.K., where vaccines are produced. Forty-eight per cent said that they were “not that concerned” and feel “a few months won’t make much of a difference,” while 37 per cent said they are worried that we won’t get the vaccine at the same time. 

The point that matters most is this: COVID-19 doesn’t care about our political leaning. It is an equal opportunity virus. And that should unite us more than anything else. (Hamilton Spectator Editorial)