Ottawa, ON – Today, the Hon. Erin O’Toole, Leader of Canada’s Conservatives and the Official Opposition, unveiled the Canada Emergency Preparedness Plan.
The comprehensive plan will serve as the roadmap to secure our country and protect Canadians from COVID-19 and future pandemics.
“When COVID-19 hit, the Trudeau government wasn’t ready,” said O’Toole. “Caught unprepared, they made decisions that put lives at risk and crippled our economy. Canada has faced pandemic before, like SARS and H1N1, and we’ve learned lessons and prepared for future pandemics.”
Tragically, the Trudeau government undid much of that preparation. Pandemic preparedness was not their priority and they cut funding for key programs. They shut down the Global Public Health Intelligence Network, our pandemic early warning system. They let the National Microbiology Laboratory decline and then depleted Canada’s PPE stockpile. They fought with the pharmaceutical industry and stacked the Public Health Agency with bureaucrats –not scientists.
“We must never again be caught as unprepared as we were when COVID hit last year,” said O’Toole. “Canada’s Conservatives will make Canada more resilient, reduce our reliance on foreign countries like China, and take seriously our responsibility to protect the health of Canadians.”
Canada’s Conservative will implement the Canada Emergency Preparedness Plan. The Plan will be measured and updated regularly, and will include partnering with pharmaceutical companies to ramp up domestic manufacturing of critical medicines and active ingredients, working with the United States to strengthen the North American supply chain, overhauling Canada’s Pandemic Plan and National Emergency Stockpile
System, calling an immediate public inquiry to examine the government’s pandemic response, and working with our allies to support an investigation into the origins of COVID-19.
“Our goal is simple: be prepared and take rapid action so that we can protect the health of Canadians while avoiding long-term impacts on the economy and on the mental health of Canadians. Canadians deserve a secure country, and there is only one choice – Canada’s Conservatives,” concluded O’Toole.
