Senator Martin: No. I heard the leader say he would be reporting back, so thank you for looking into that.

[Translation]

Hon. Yonah Martin (Deputy Leader of the Opposition): Honourable senators, my question is also for the government leader in the Senate. In response to the recent emergency in my province, the Government of Canada announced it would match every dollar donated to the British Columbia Floods and Extreme Weather appeal of the Canadian Red Cross until December 26. Last week, a request was made from four Conservative members of Parliament from B.C. for the federal government to broaden this support and match donations to other registered charities also involved in the ongoing efforts. This request is not to criticize the important work of the Red Cross here in B.C. but an acknowledgement that the need on the ground remains great and no single organization can do it all. Leader, what is your government’s response to this specific request?

Senator Martin: I want to just acknowledge the incredible work of the military as well as community leaders and various organizations working on the ground. But I know there will continue to be issues here. The rainfall warnings are here again today. The rain is falling. The gas rationing is extended for two more weeks. The Port of Vancouver remains in distress, according to the premier’s words. CN has decided to proactively close a key portion of its rail network. Leader, you mentioned there is a shared responsibility, but part of the problem with the very first flood we experienced a few weeks ago is there was a lot of finger pointing and the usual blame game by different levels of government. There is the current emergency situation, but in the recovery ahead and planning to ensure there is greater coordination, would you speak to what the government will be doing to ensure there are no gaps and no more finger pointing? We did see that on the ground here.

Hon. Yonah Martin (Deputy Leader of the Opposition): My question is also for the Leader of the Government in the Senate, and it concerns the impact of the catastrophic flooding and landslides in various communities across my home province of B.C. Even before the current emergency began, local businesses in B.C. were dealing with the ramifications of the pandemic on their operations. According to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, as of last week, only 37% of small businesses are earning their normal revenue or higher here in B.C. The outlook is now much worse for many businesses in small and remote communities devastated by the flooding. Leader, what is your government doing specifically to support the immediate needs of small businesses affected by catastrophic flooding in British Columbia?