Our late arrival to the procurement of vaccines, combined with the emergence of COVID-19 variants, 'was not just foreseeable, but perspicaciously foreseen months ago, and it only goes to show the dangerous scientific illiteracy of Canadian governments that they now act surprised,' says University of Ottawa professor Amir Attaran.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, left, and Canada's Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam. According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, it is 'crucial that strong measures are kept in place in order to maintain a steady downward trend' in COVID-19 cases. The Hill Times photographs by Andrew Meade
Experts are sounding the alarm that a ‘third wave’ of the pandemic may be headed our way as variants of the COVID-19 virus have been detected across the country, while some regions are easing lockdown restrictions and Canada’s sluggish vaccine rollout continues to dominate news headlines.
People. Policy. Politics. This is an exclusive subscriber-only story.
Mike Lapointe joined the The Hill Times in June 2019 and covers the federal public service, deputy ministers, the Privy Council Office, public service unions, the Phoenix pay system, the machinery of government, and the Parliament Hill media. Follow - mlapointe@hilltimes.com
New prescribed policies, procedures forced people to think about how they were acting, creating a 'profound' change in terms of staff understanding how they need to relate in the workplace, says the PMO's Marci Surkes.
'I think [the Canadian government] needs to demonstrate a stronger case that there is a real security problem and it has never been able to do so,' says former diplomat Daniel Livermore.
Ontario ISG Senator Rosemary Moodie says the new group shows the ‘significant investment’ the Senate is putting into pursuing ‘meaningful improvement.’
'It’s like you walk around and you have a target on your back … there is something a bit, not sadistic, but satisfying in getting rid of the last MP standing,' says McGill Prof. Daniel Béland.
Requiring free, prior, and informed consent is not a veto, says a former judge, it’s about how the government ‘operationalizes’ its approach to projects early on.
It was more important for NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh to distinguish his offer from the Liberal government, say politicos, with both parties presenting resolutions that offered similar progressive policy solutions.