Politics This Morning: Hajdu says take first dose on offer amid concerns over conflicting advice

Good Monday morning, Health Minister Patty Hajdu sought to tamp down on concerns from some Canadians over the very rare but serious blood clots linked to the AstraZeneca vaccine, echoing assertions that the best vaccine is the first one on offer. She told CBC that Health Canada is continuously poring over data on all the vaccines authorized to fight the pandemic, and the government "wouldn't hesitate to cease or pause the use of a product if it was shown to not have value, safety or effectiveness." Some recipients of that vaccine have been feeling buyer's remorse after National Advisory Committee on Immunization advised Canadians to conduct "an individual risk assessment" to determine whether they can wait for either Pfizer or Moderna if they don't live in a hot spot, for example. Ms. Hajdu herself received her first dose of AstraZeneca late last month, joining more than 15 million other Canadians who have received at least one dose of the vaccines approved. There's still no word from Health Canada on when the public can expect to get its hands on the one-dose Johnson & Johnson shot. Though it has regulatory approval, the first batch is being inspected to ensure there aren't issues with quality control. Both Moderna and Pfizer are scheduled to deliver a total of more than three million doses this week. The feds' pandemic-election bill, C-19, which has been stuck at second reading, is poised to be referred to committee after the government moved to limit debate. The Liberals and Conservatives have been playing the blame game over the stalling of the bill that seeks to implement key measures Elections Canada has called for such as weekend voting and the setup of drop-off boxes for ballots at polling stations to mitigate the potential spread of the virus. The latest salvo had Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc accusing the Conservatives of stymying its progression in order to discourage voters from participating if they were an election in the summer or fall. In other news, Canada's ambassador to the United States, Kirsten Hillman, said she's been working with the Biden administration to figure out how Michigan and Enbridge can come to a resolution to avert the looming shutdown of Line 5 on Wednesday. The pipeline runs through the Great Lakes region and is a source of energy for Quebec and Ontario. Ms. Hillman told CTV that she's sought to underscore the stakes, saying if it's decommissioned, the "alternatives" for transporting crude and natural gas would mean "significant increases" in "rail and truck transport." Those are less-than-ideal options, she said, "because it's more expensive," carbon intensive, and it's unclear that either countries have the capacity to ramp up delivery. Michigan's Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer, who is behind the bid to pull the plug, has argued the pipeline poses "an unreasonable risk" to the environment. There are 13 House committees scheduled to meet, including the Heritage Committee, which will hear from departmental officials for another round as members work through more than 100 amendments to Bill C-10, which would expand the CRTC's regulatory oversight. Last week, the Liberal government proposed a new amendment that seeks to limit CRTC's ability to regulate posts on social media following outcry over an earlier change that critics said would infringe on free speech. The new proposal, if passed, would allow the regulator to require platforms to implement a discoverability feature aimed at surfacing Canadian content to users. That change still has detractors of the bill concerned. Over at the Ethics Committee, Privacy Commissioner Daniel Therrien has been invited to testify on his office's spending plans and to field questions related to the use of facial recognition technology. The House Health Committee, meanwhile, has a handful of witnesses lined up to discuss the current state of the pandemic, including officials from the Privy Council Office, Public Safety, and Israel's Ministry of Health. All three committees mentioned above are scheduled for 11 a.m. Later in the evening, MPs on the Special Canada-China Committee are expected to hear from law clerk Philippe Dufresne, Public Health Agency of Canada's Iain Stewart, and the Department of Justice's Christian Roy. It's likely tied to an ongoing push to compel PHAC to release documents tied to the firing of two scientists from Winnipeg's National Microbiology Laboratory. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's itinerary includes a virtual talk, which will be livestreamed on Twitter at 1 p.m., with nurses and nursing students in Manitoba for National Nursing Week. And, at 2:45 p.m., Mr. Trudeau and Liberal MP Kamal Khera, a nurse by training, will virtually visit a pop-up vaccine clinic at the Brampton Islamic Centre. It was one of two special clinics designated for all Peel residents (18 and older). The Hill Times

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Politics This Morning: Hajdu says take first dose on offer amid concerns over conflicting advice

Plus, the House Heritage Committee will hear from departmental officials for another round as members work through more than 100 amendments to Bill C-10

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