Politics This Morning: Feds’ vaccine advisory panel approves AstraZeneca’s use for seniors

Good Wednesday morning, Ottawa's vaccine task force officially cleared AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine for use by those 65 and older, after it initially withheld approval for that demographic soon after the drug received Health Canada authorization, citing limited data. Dr. Caroline Quach, chair of the National Advisory Committee on Immunization conceded that efforts to explain why they came to different conclusions could have been better, per CBC. Speaking to reporters, she said, "I think the only thing that I would say would have been done differently is the communications support, so that we would have been able to explain all this exactly as we're doing today." The discrepancy prompted some confusion, including among provinces, over which advice to follow and whether they had to adjust their vaccination plans, given that the rollout has given priority to seniors most at risk of suffering severe consequences from COVID-19. Ontario, for example, followed NACI's advice, and will tweak its rollout plans now that the committee has given the thumbs up. Its revised guideline was based on "new real-world data from three studies," including two "large population-level studies," which demonstrated the vaccine's " high safety and effectiveness" in older adults. Still, the committee noted in a statement that the approved mRNA vaccines—from Moderna and Pfizer–"should be prioritized for key populations, especially those at highest risk of severe illness and death and highest risk of exposure to COVID-19." Chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam joined Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in reassuring Canadians that AstraZeneca's vaccine is safe and its benefits continue to outweigh the potential risks. She said Canada has not identified any cases of "unexpected vaccine safety issues" similar to some reports in Europe about blood clots in some vaccine recipients and is "continuously monitoring" the situation. The vaccine maker conducted an investigation and found no causal link between the reports of blood clots and the vaccine. In other news, Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole broke from his predecessor's stance on foreign aid, saying that under his leadership, the party would not move to cut spending, according to the Canadian Press. Andrew Scheer had previously pledged to curb aid by 25 per cent. Still, Mr. O'Toole noted he would focus on areas that have been priorities for the Conservatives, including re-establishing the Office of Religious Freedom, which was set up in 2013 as a standalone post. It was later absorbed into Global Affairs Canada's overall work. Democracy Watch's co-founder Duff Conacher said if opposition parties are "serious" about reforming Canada's legal protections for whistleblowers, they would force the government to respond to a private member's bill while the government presiding over a minority Parliament. “Why are they waiting? Since 2019, they could have introduced bills and passed them. So, unfortunately, I think a lot of the opposition parties love to play gotcha politics and complain because it makes the ruling party look bad,” he said. NDP MP Matthew Green acknowledged that opposition parties have a “short runway” for pushing for reforms, given an election this year is likely and the pandemic has derailed most non-COVID-related legislation to the side. But, he said, he intends to "work with folks inside of our caucus, to come up" with a "legislative response." Justice Minister David Lametti is slated to testify on his government's proposed bill, C-6, requiring judges to undergo training to improve their understanding of the experiences of sexual-assault survivors. An earlier iteration was first put forward in 2017 as a private member's bill by then-Conservative interim leader Rona Ambrose. While the bill was endorsed across party lines in the House, it died in the Senate's hands. There are two House committees scheduled to meet, both set for 2:30 p.m. The Environment Committee is set to hear from departmental officials, including foreign affairs' deputy director of oceans and environment law, on Conservative MP Scot Davidson's private member's bill that would prohibit the export of waste “intended for final disposal” to foreign countries. It will also hold a clause-by-clause vote on the bill. Over at the Finance Committee, MPs will hear from several witnesses, including reps from the Tourism Industry Association and Canadians for Tax Fairness, on Bill C-14, legislation that would implement the measures outlined in the feds' fall economic statement. In other scheduled events, Social Development Minister Ahmed Hussen is slated to headline an event hosted by the University of Ottawa's Public Law Center. An alumnus of the university's law school, he's expected to talk about his "path to the federal cabinet." Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and Special Representative to the Prairies Jim Carr are scheduled to hold a presser at 11:30 a.m. to provide an update on the government's proposed changes to AgriStability, a risk-management program that's jointly administered by federal and provincial governments. The PM's itinerary, meanwhile, includes a call with Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, who was sworn into the post last month. Mr. Draghi ordered a new lockdown last week that is expected to stretch into the first week of April amid concerns of another wave of the pandemic that's being linked to the spread of the variant first detected in the United Kingdom. The Hill Times

Politics This Morning

Politics This Morning: Feds’ vaccine advisory panel approves AstraZeneca’s use for seniors

Plus, Justice Minister David Lametti is slated to appear before the Senate's Legal and Constitutional Affairs on his government's proposed bill requiring judges to undergo training to improve their understanding of the experiences of sexual-assault survivors.

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Politics This Morning

Politics This Morning: Feds’ vaccine advisory panel approves AstraZeneca’s use for seniors

Plus, Justice Minister David Lametti is slated to appear before the Senate's Legal and Constitutional Affairs on his government's proposed bill requiring judges to undergo training to improve their understanding of the experiences of sexual-assault survivors.

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