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Results: 1 - 15 of 24
Jamie Fox
View Jamie Fox Profile
Hon. Jamie Fox
2021-05-21 11:41
Thank you very much, Gabriel.
I wouldn't really be prepared to speak on that today. I think that would be best put forth to the health minister for the province. He would be the best person to deal with that. It wouldn't be fair for me to answer on behalf of the province or the premier's office on that matter today.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I will leave it to you to introduce the officials later on, but let me say thank you very much to the officials for being with us.
Mr. Chair and members of the committee, thank you for inviting me to speak to you today about Bill C-30, Budget Implementation Act, 2021, No. 1.
After more than 14 months of uncertainty and challenges, Canadians are continuing to fight COVID-19, but we know there is light at the end of the tunnel. As we fight the third wave, more and more Canadians are getting vaccinated.
Bill C-30 is an essential piece of legislation that, once enacted, will allow us to implement our plan to finish the fight against COVID, create jobs and a swift recovery from the COVID recession and lay a foundation for robust, inclusive, green, long-term economic growth.
This budget is about helping middle-class Canadians, helping workers and helping more Canadians to join the middle class. It is about embracing this moment of global transformation to a greener, cleaner economy. It is a plan that will help Canadians and Canadian businesses heal the wounds of COVID and come roaring back.
First, we need to finish the fight against this virus. This bill includes a one-time payment of $4 billion to the provinces and territories to support their health care systems, support that is so essential as we fight the third wave. This is in addition to the $1 billion to support the provinces and territories as they ramp up their vaccine campaigns.
We are making progress in our vaccination efforts, and I know that team Canada can vaccinate even more Canadians even more quickly, and we will. I was vaccinated with the AstraZeneca vaccine at a Toronto pharmacy 15 days ago, and I encourage all Canadians to get vaccinated as soon as it is their turn.
The pandemic has caused a recession, so we need to start by rolling out a comprehensive plan for jobs and growth, to address the disproportionate impact the recession has had on women, young people, racialized Canadians, low-wage workers and small business.
A cornerstone of our plan is a historic investment of $30 billion over five years, reaching $9.2 billion annually, in permanent investments to provide high-quality, affordable and accessible early learning and child care across Canada. Our goal is that within five years, families everywhere in Canada should have access to high-quality child care for an average of $10 a day. Dear colleagues from all political parties, let's make a commitment together today to all Canadians. Let's get this done.
I want to take a moment to recognize Quebec's leadership, especially that of feminist Quebeckers, who have led the way for the rest of Canada.
While we know better days are ahead, many families are still struggling. Around a million Canadians either remain out of work or are working significantly fewer hours than they were pre-pandemic. We must support hard-hit Canadians and businesses across the country so they can recover as soon as possible.
Bill C-30 includes emergency supports for Canadian workers, businesses and families.
The legislation extends the Canada emergency wage subsidy, the Canada emergency rent subsidy, and lockdown support through to September 25, 2021 which will help protect millions of jobs.
With this legislation, we are providing a bridge for people who are unable to work because of COVID by extending income supports, maintaining flexible access to EI benefits, and extending the EI sickness benefit from 15 to 26 weeks.
Bill C-30 also introduces a $15 an hour federal minimum wage. It expands the Canada workers benefit, extending income top-ups to about a million more low wage workers, and lifting nearly 100,000 Canadians out of poverty. These are measurable concrete steps to help Canadians who need help.
We must also help small business, the backbone of our economy and every main street in the country. To do that, we need to improve access to capital and help businesses hire more workers, in particular, through the new Canada recovery hiring program.
Young Canadians have made tremendous sacrifices this past year to protect their elders, and now, they need our collective support.
Through Bill C-30, we will make college and university more accessible and affordable by extending the waiver of interest accrual on federal student loans until March 2023. This will mean savings for more than 1.5 million Canadians repaying student loans. We will not let young Canadians become a lost generation.
Mr. Chair, I have spoken today about just a few of the measures included in Bill C-30, measures which will make a tangible positive difference in the lives of millions of Canadians.
This is a plan for jobs, growth and the middle class. It is a plan built around helping Canadians recover, succeed and thrive.
I recognize the critical role parliamentary committees play in scrutinizing government legislation, and I'm grateful to all of you for your hard work.
Bill C-30 is a historic first step towards recovery and new economic growth for future generations of Canadians.
I would be pleased to answer any questions you have as you study this critically important piece of legislation.
Thank you.
Thank you very much.
Marc Ruel
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Marc Ruel
2021-05-03 11:45
We must continue to address both threats simultaneously, the threat of COVID-19 and the threat of other diseases, including cardiovascular disease, which unfortunately cannot be treated in a timely manner because of COVID-19.
View Patty Hajdu Profile
Lib. (ON)
Thank you, MP Thériault.
Mr. Chair, I'll just say that they are incorrect assumptions. Budget 2021 investments include $500 million for the Canada Foundation for Innovation; $250 million to create a new tri-council biomedical research fund; $92 million for adMare to support company creation, scale-up, and training activities in the life sciences sector; $59.2 million for the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization to help develop its vaccine candidates—
View Patty Hajdu Profile
Lib. (ON)
If I have a moment, I'll first of all pick up on the last part of the conversation and indicate that not only is it direct research that's being funded, but that through the biomanufacturing sector there are also investments of $1 billion over seven years for the strategic innovation fund so that we can fund research in domestic life sciences and biomanufacturing firms, $250 million over three years to increase clinical research capacity—
View Patty Hajdu Profile
Lib. (ON)
—and $50 million on a cash basis over five years to create a life sciences stream.
Mr. Chair, I'll say that our commitment remains strong to support research through a number of different arms of the government and in a number of different ways with different partners.
On provincial transfers, as the member opposite knows, the Prime Minister has been very clear that he is committed to having conversations about increases to transfers, but first we stay focused on getting the country through COVID-19.
We have not hesitated to be there with money—
Michael Strong
View Michael Strong Profile
Michael Strong
2021-04-30 13:35
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm pleased to respond to that question.
Michael Strong
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Michael Strong
2021-04-30 13:36
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
In fact, the numbers that the member was referring to actually include what are called statutory dollars as well, within the $2.6 million component. Those are the dollars that were invested by this government directly into the COVID-19 response, the whole-of-government research component of it. They are dollars that were rapidly brought into play and led to more than 20 different research programs to address the pandemic response.
They are, however, one-time dollars. The core budget of the CIHR has in fact grown between those two years and will continue to support the types of really valuable research that is non-COVID-directed and that you have asked about. The numbers to look at are in fact the comparators of 2019-20 with those for the current fiscal year, and not last year's, because of the extraordinary investments that were made.
Thank you very much.
View Patty Hajdu Profile
Lib. (ON)
Thank you very much.
I'll just say that one of the world-leading experts on infectious disease that we are so fortunate to have is Dr. Theresa Tam. Thank you, Dr. Tam, for your hard work over the last many months and indeed for your expertise.
You're absolutely right, MP Van Bynen. I'll just say that this government firmly believes that science and research investment—not just in the context of a pandemic, by the way, but certainly accelerated by it—is incredibly important to the health and safety of Canadians. In particular, health research helps unlock many mysteries, reduces suffering and helps Canadians have healthier lives now and into the future.
That's why we've made historic investments of over $10 billion since 2015. We had a long ways to catch up after the previous government and the ongoing attacks on science, both from a financial perspective and from a destruction of evidence perspective, if you can believe it, Mr. Chair.
We're been working with provinces and territories. We've been leveraging the expertise of virologists, immunologists and other experts all around the country who have stepped up—many times in voluntary ways—to help the Government of Canada and the provincial governments have the best possible response to COVID-19. We led a rapid and unprecedented response to COVID-19 through the CIHR. I'll never forget that early announcement in February of 2020 in Montreal with some of my colleagues. That was within weeks of COVID-19 appearing on the world stage. Obviously, it took just several weeks to get in order.
Of course, budget 2021, if passed, would provide a further $2.2 billion to grow our domestic life sciences sector.
It is really about an ongoing and sustained investment, Mr. Chair, in research, science, the science community and in generating that next crop of researchers and scientists. The many investments we've made through my colleague Minister Qualtrough's department, ESDC, focus on ensuring that Canadians have access to post-secondary and integrated learning opportunities that will foster the next crop of researchers.
Thank you very much.
Michael Strong
View Michael Strong Profile
Michael Strong
2021-04-30 14:08
I can give a further clarification on that question.
There are really two issues at hand here. The budget for research, in and of itself, for the CIHR to support all—
Michael Strong
View Michael Strong Profile
Michael Strong
2021-04-30 14:09
First, there have been no cuts to the budget of CIHR. The dollars that you are specifically asking about were one-time investments for an immediate response to the pandemic, such as the measures that the minister referred to within weeks of the declaration. These were one-time investments, not a cut to the budget in and of itself.
Michael Strong
View Michael Strong Profile
Michael Strong
2021-04-30 14:11
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
The budget mains that the members are looking at do not include the substantive investments that have just been made by the government in ongoing research, including clinical trials and research networks to support biomanufacturing. These numbers will look considerably different as those investments are included, and they are multi-year.
View Patty Hajdu Profile
Lib. (ON)
Mr. Chair, I think it's misinformation.
We have injected millions of dollars into Quebec, and indeed into all provinces and territories. We'll continue to be there for the provinces and territories including Quebec and—
View Patty Hajdu Profile
Lib. (ON)
I'll just repeat myself.
We've been there for provinces and territories with billions of dollars for specialized streams of health care and, indeed, generally for COVID-19. As the Prime Minister has said, we'll continue to be there for Quebec and Quebeckers. Right now, we stay solely focused on getting Canadians through COVID-19. That's what we'll do with all Canadians, including Quebeckers.
Louis Perrault
View Louis Perrault Profile
Louis Perrault
2021-04-26 11:43
I think it's risky and misses the point. We already know what the consequences will be for patients who do not have COVID-19 if we do nothing for this majority. I hope I have described them well in my statement.
There are many COVID-19 patients, but they are still a minority compared to all the other patients who suffer from cancers and cardiovascular diseases, among others. We are putting all the money in one place. Although there is a need to invest for COVID-19 patients, this strategy lacks vision.
I don't think we can wait. We can't predict exactly when the pandemic situation will be resolved. Every day that goes by without investments for patients who don't have COVID-19 is a missed opportunity, thereby leading to the long-term consequences that we can easily predict.
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