SoVote

Apr/26/22 3:28:19 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, in fact, my answer is yes. What we have found out during the last two years of this pandemic is that we need to do stuff in Canada again. We need to build stuff in Canada. We need to manufacture stuff in Canada. We need to be sure that we can rely on ourselves, especially for food security and especially for food sovereignty, so we are not once again finding ourselves beholden to dictators and thugs, such as Putin and his regime. This is not just for fertilizer. It is about so many issues that we saw over the last 24 months during this pandemic, whether it was PPE, vaccine production or anything else that we saw being outsourced, so we are reliant on foreign countries rather than producing it right here, with the bright talents we have here in Canada.

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Context: House Hansard - 58 - Apr/26/22

Mr. Irek Kusmierczyk (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, Lib.)

Apr/26/22 7:17:30 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, as the provinces and territories ease public health measures, we need to recognize that COVID-19 has not disappeared. COVID-19 continues to circulate in Canada, with hospitalization trends still elevated in some parts of the country. Provincially and territorially, vaccine mandates were implemented in the summer and fall of 2021 for the federal public service, Crown corporations and federally regulated air, rail and marine transportation sectors to pursue key objectives, including to ensure the safety and security of the transportation system, passengers, transportation employees and the public, delivering immediate protection from infection and severity of illness in workplaces and for travellers; to increase uptake to provide broader societal protection, including within the federal public service; and to play a leadership role in protecting the health and safety of our workplaces, our communities and all Canadians. Provincially, vaccine mandates were implemented across the country in the fall of 2021 to support higher levels of vaccination. At the time, uptake rates had plateaued, and a fourth wave was upon us. Following mandatory vaccination, vaccination rates in Canada increased. This has contributed to the public health goal of minimizing serious illness and death overall. This situation is not unique in Canada. A recent comparative study revealed that Denmark, Israel, Italy, France, Germany and Switzerland saw significant increases in vaccinations 20 days before mandates were implemented with lasting effects up to 40 days after. Eighty-five per cent of the eligible population in Canada has received two doses. Studies have shown that vaccine effectiveness against the circulating variants omicron and BA.2 is lower than against previous variants. However, two doses continue to give good protection against severe disease, against omicron, but protection decreases after several months. Evidence indicates that a third or booster dose moderately increases protection against infection, to about 60%. It also increases protection against transmission and offers very good protection against severe disease, upward of 90%. While the duration of protection from a booster or third dose varies and is expected to decrease over time, it is nonetheless important for Canadians to keep their vaccines up to date and get their booster shot when eligible. This will help them protect themselves and others. When considering mandates, several factors should be considered, including the global and domestic epidemiological situation and the benefits and longer-term consequences of those measures. The Government of Canada COVID-19 vaccine mandate for the federal public service was implemented in October 2021 to help protect workers, their families and their communities. The mandate remains in place, and the government has committed to review the ongoing need for the policy based on evolving science and evidence and in the context of a multipronged approach to help protect Canadians against COVID-19. Given the uncertainty and the ever-changing nature of the variants, as we learned from omicron and now its subvariants, an agile approach will be needed. We continue to monitor the emerging evidence around vaccine effectiveness, and the spread and impact of COVID-19 in Canada, to inform our vaccination strategy for the coming weeks and months to ensure that we continue to protect the health and safety of Canadians. Vaccination is an important layer of protection that, when used with other measures such as masking, testing and distancing, can protect us from COVID-19.

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Context: House Hansard - 58 - Apr/26/22

Mr. Michael Barrett

Apr/26/22 7:21:26 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. friend for his response, but the question we are left with is whether the intent of the vaccine mandate for federal public servants was to drive up the vaccination rates. They have largely plateaued across the country, so the primary objective has been achieved and the mandates are not going to get any closer to their end goal by being maintained. Unless the parliamentary secretary is prepared to offer to the House tonight that boosters will be mandated for federal public servants, and I would encourage him to bring that information forward if that is the case, the government needs to let us know, and let the public service and all federally regulated employees know, when it will end those mandates. In my community, vaccine uptake is over 91.5%. It is the highest in the province of Ontario and one of the highest in the country, but it is not going to get any higher because of the vaccine mandates that are in place. If the mandates have achieved their objective, what are the epidemiological or other factors that will need to be met before the parliamentary secretary and his minister will lift the mandates?

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Context: House Hansard - 58 - Apr/26/22

Mr. Irek Kusmierczyk

Apr/26/22 7:22:30 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the Public Health Agency of Canada continues to examine vaccination strategies in the short and long term, including opportunities to build vaccine confidence and reduce barriers faced by individuals and communities across Canada. Canada has benefited significantly from COVID-19 vaccination efforts that include vaccine education, outreach and accessible programs with provinces, territories and indigenous partners. Vaccines, including boosters, will continue to be key to Canada's long-term recovery. They will be important to manage emerging variants, prevent severe illness and death, support our health systems and continue the path to living normal and full lives.

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