Senator Gold: I will add that to my list of questions.

[English]

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): The report and recommendations are very important. I don’t have a specific answer as to what follow-up has been done, but I will try to find out.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for highlighting a part of our history that unfortunately is not that well known. The effects of this problem are still felt today.

The government is committed to supporting the Canadian survivors of thalidomide to help them live out their days in dignity. The Canadian Thalidomide Survivors Support Program, or CTSSP, uses a three-step medical assessment process based on probability and international best practices.

People who consider themselves to be survivors of thalidomide are encouraged to submit an application to the CTSSP before the deadline on June 3, 2024. Applicants who are missing information or whose application has been denied at one of the three steps of the assessment process can submit additional information to the program administrator in support of their application. Pursuant to a Federal Court decision in August 2022, all applicants whose application was previously denied can now seek reconsideration.

I also want to point out that in 2017, the government changed the program to make it more flexible and to make it easier to demonstrate proof. Before 2017, claimants had to demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt that their disability had been caused by their mother’s use of thalidomide. Today, thanks to the government, claimants must submit concrete evidence to demonstrate that their disability was likely caused by thalidomide.

Once again, as a result of an August 2022 Federal Court decision, all previously denied applicants may now apply for reconsideration.

Senator Gold: Thank you for the question. I do not have the answer, but I will ask the government and try to get an answer as soon as possible.

Hon. Donald Neil Plett (Leader of the Opposition): Senator Gold, I want to follow up on my questions from yesterday on the extravagant $400,000 invoice that Canadian taxpayers are having to pay for hotel rooms in London for Canada’s delegation to Her late Majesty the Queen’s funeral.

Senator Gold, yesterday you defended the cost of a $6,000‑per‑night hotel room in London — I think you said hotel rooms in London are expensive — while also claiming you didn’t have enough information about the number of people and the length of their stay.

Senator Gold, Brian Lilley had an article in the Toronto Sun a few days ago. I’m surprised you had not been informed of this, as you represent the government in this chamber.

Global Affairs indicated through an access to information request that the Canadian delegation stayed at one of the top luxury hotels in Central London. Canadians are on the hook for rooms as of September 11, with the bulk of the delegation arriving on September 16 and staying until September 19 or 20.

Canada’s official delegation was led by the Governor General and her husband; Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife; and it included diplomats, top bureaucrats, former prime ministers and governors general and celebrities.

Senator Gold, will you continue to defend this undefendable invoice not only to this chamber but to Canadian taxpayers?

Senator Gold: The appropriateness of expenditures varies with the context and circumstances. I repeat that I think it was appropriate for the Canadian delegation to be in London and to be accommodated in the appropriate circumstances.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for your question. The Bank of Canada has an independent monetary policy that best suits the country’s economic situation. The bank’s mandate is to monitor and ensure the stability of the rate of inflation in the interest of all Canadians.

The bank has started to bring the inflation rate back within the target range and has the necessary tools and expertise to prevent inflation from becoming entrenched. The government believes that a sound monetary policy framework is the best weapon in its arsenal to protect Canadians against inflation.

Honourable senator, Canada has the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7, and the government has a plan to make life more affordable by providing direct support to the Canadians who are the most vulnerable to inflation and who need it most. As the Minister of Finance recently stated, and I quote, “Canada is a country of peace, order and good government.”

This institutional stability includes the independence of the Bank of Canada, which the government remains firmly committed to supporting. The independence of the Bank of Canada is essential, and we can have confidence in Governor Macklem’s leadership.