Feds say risk low of coronavirus outbreak in Canada, as WHO declares global health emergency
Health Minister Patty Hajdu says the risk of the coronavirus outbreak spreading to Canada from China remains low, as the WHO moved on Thursday to declare a global health emergency. “The World Health Organization is about helping countries that do not have the same level of sophistication [in their processes] to protect their citizens,” Ms. […]
Coronavirus vaccine could be a year away, says public health chief, as Canada eyes evacuating those stranded in China
Canada’s chief public health officer says a vaccine for the coronavirus that has left more than 130 dead in China and infected more than 6,000 people could be at least a year off. Speaking to members of the House Health Committee on Wednesday evening, Dr. Theresa Tam said that the “current medical treatment is supported […]
PM convenes Incident Response Group, as feds, provinces ramp-up co-ordinated response to coronavirus
Canada’s co-ordinated response to the novel coronavirus that has so far killed more than 100 in China ramped-up dramatically this week, with a new special advisory committee announced the same day Prime Minister Justin Trudeau convened Canada’s Incident Response Group to discuss the outbreak. The developments have occurred in the midst of one confirmed case […]
Scoring China’s coronavirus response
LONDON, U.K.—In an emergency, the good thing about a dictatorship is that it can respond very fast. The bad thing is that it won’t respond at all until the dictator-in-chief says that it should. All the little dictators who flourish in this sort of system won’t risk their positions by passing bad news up the […]
It’s time to move beyond siloed mental health care
Jan. 29 marks almost a decade since the launch of Bell’s “Let’s Talk,” a program committed to building mental-health awareness. Since its inception, Let’s Talk has captured the attention and enthusiasm of many Canadians. With the influx of programs, such as Let’s Talk, mental-health awareness has increased. However, during this time, Canadians’ ability to easily […]
In 2020, Canada needs to push back against populism
Liberal democracies are entering this new decade under heavy strain. Virulent populism, weakened parties, and pervasive misinformation spread by social media are among the forces eroding confidence in the Western democratic consensus. The year 2020 must be the one that good governments recognize the magnitude of these threats and respond with imagination and resolve. According […]
Polio funding needed to destroy the virus, Canada should step up
The world has been fighting polio for almost 70 years, beating it back to tiny final reservoirs in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The goal is to at last eradicate this terrible, incurable disease as we did smallpox, and it’s within our reach. Canadians tend to be complacent about infectious diseases “over there,” believing borders will protect […]
Legislative preview: Grits face tricky landscape with dozens of legal changes promised in mandate letters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has given his cabinet ministers dozens of objectives that will likely require changes to federal laws, setting up an ambitious legislative agenda for his first foray through a minority Parliament. Mr. Trudeau’s (Papineau, Que.) Liberals managed to pass 88 bills during four years of majority government in the last Parliament. Some […]
A roadmap for the government to act against gender-based violence
To its credit, the Trudeau government, 2.0 edition, has responded to the call I and other advocates have been making for a national action plan to combat gender-based violence. The Throne Speech was understandably short on details. Needless to say, the action plan should be truly comprehensive in its scope, embrace best practices, and be […]
‘Small but mighty’: New Democrats say they’re up to the task as MPs pile on critic jobs
The NDP’s lead critics say they’re feeling good about their “small but mighty” caucus, which they say can bring change in a minority government and attention to their “critical work” by hammering home the party’s “widely popular” priorities. At the Nov. 28 critic announcement, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh (Burnaby South, B.C.) said he was proud […]
