QP: Blaming Trudeau for Ford’s inaction

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Prime minister Justin Trudeau was in town but chose not to appear at QP today, but fortunately his deputy was present in his stead. Erin O’Toole led off, listing countries that are using rapid tests and railing that Manitoba can’t procure their own. Chrystia Freeland led off with belated congratulations to O’Toole for his election as leader before stating that they have recently purchased millions of rapid tests. O’Toole railed that provinces couldn’t procure them, but Freeland insisted that they worked with the provinces on the Safe Restart Agreement. O’Toole switched to French to ask the same thing and Freeland repeated her response in kind. O’Toole returned to English to carry on his lament for rapid tests, and Freeland assured him that they would start arriving next week, and more announcements were forthcoming. O’Toole then attempted some revisionist history around border closures, and Freeland insisted that they got it right. Alain Therrien led off for the Bloc, and he, unsurprisingly, demanded increased health transfers, and Freeland assured him that they reached the Safe Restart Agreement with the provinces. Therrien said that it wasn’t enough, that they demanded $28 billion, and Freeland very calmly annunciated that Quebec got nearly $300 billion for health and economic recovery. Jagmeet Singh appeared by video to lead for the NDP, where he demanded a plan for testing and long-term care, both of which are provincial responsibilities. Freeland responded that they were working with provinces and municipalities. Singh stumbled over his attempt to pin the blame on the prime minister, to which Freeland agreed that the country was at a crossroads, before she reiterated that the government was working with provinces and municipalities. 

Round two, and Gérard Deltell accused the government of dragging its heels on testing (Hajdu: We have to work with provinces to improve testing and contact tracing), and lamented rapid testing (Hajdu: We are there for provinces and territories that need additional help with testing, tracing or long-term care), and Michelle Rempel Gardner called Hajdu “incompetent” around testing (Hajdu: We have been working with Ontario to help with their backlog; You’re indicating a lack of awareness about what rapid testing actually entails). Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay demanded help for businesses’ fixed costs (Freeland: We have made announcements to help businesses), and Martin Champoux demanded help for the cultural sector (Guilbeault: We have provided $4 billion for the sector). Pierre Paul-Hus returned to the demand for rapid testing (Hajdu: How dare you attack hard-working healthcare workers). Heather McPherson decried the commercial rent assistance programme (Freeland: We have offered CEBA, and we are working on more supports for fixed costs), and Jenny Kwan blamed the health minister for healthcare workers getting high rates of infections (Hajdu: I did take responsibility, and the nurses union was at the table in our discussions on PPE).

Round three saw questions on unemployment rates in foreign countries (Freeland: Our economic policy is working for workers), a gang shooting in Greater Vancouver where members of crime syndicates *gasp* had photos taken with Liberal MPs (Blair: Your government cut funding to combat organized crime), Chinese activists trying to undermine Hong Kong (Champagne: Here are actions we have taken around Hong Kong and we have more on the way), support for airports and airlines (Garneau: We are working to find assistance for the airlines in Canada), mental illness awareness (Hajdu: All members on this side understand the struggles with mental illness, and at the beginning of the pandemic we gave an additional $500 million for mental health as well as launched an online tool), a federal review ordered for a mining project (Schiefke: We are supporting our energy sector workers, and look at our investments), a clinic that closed because doctors are burning out (Hajdu: We one healthcare workers such a debt of gratitude), not being tough enough on China (Champagne: Look at our leadership on the world on the Chinese issue), the needs of Western premiers (LeBlanc: We have been working collaboratively with these premiers), inaction on the MMIW Inquiry report (Bennett: We are determined to work with provinces and territories to ensure that we can put in concrete actions to stop this tragedy), and the racism that killed Joyce Echequan (Miller: Systemic racism in our healthcare system is a national problem and we respect Quebec’s decision to hold an inquiry).

Overall, it was a fairly average day in terms of exchanges, though there does seem to be an escalation in the assignation of blame on the federal government when we have proof that it was provincial governments – Ontario most especially – that didn’t use the additional funds that the federal government transferred to them to boost their lab capacity and contact tracing abilities over the summer when they had the chance. This isn’t in dispute, and yet the attempt to boil this down to rapid testing – much of which is not less useful on an individual level and is more suited for population-level data – is not only eye-roll inducing, but is actively misleading the public as to what options are available. And to her credit, Patty Hajdu did finally call out Michelle Rempel Garner at one point to say that she appears to be fundamentally misunderstanding just what rapid testing is useful for, but that isn’t penetrating so long as this remains couched in polite terms and in trying not to escalate any blame to the provinces, where it belongs. And so, we get federal ministers repeatedly mouthing that they are working with the provinces and territories without actually coming out to say that “Doug Ford didn’t bother to invest in increasing capacity when he had the chance and now we’re all paying for that inaction,” we leave those who are responsible for this mess not actually being held accountable. It’s utterly boggling.

Sartorially speaking, snaps go out to Chrystia Freeland for her black dress and matching jacket and to Steven Guilbeault for an eggplant suit with a pink shirt and printed lavender tie. Style citations go out to Gerald Soroka for a dark grey suit with a butterscotch shirt and a brown tie, and to Rosemarie Falk for a brown and floral smock top with black slacks. 

2 thoughts on “QP: Blaming Trudeau for Ford’s inaction”

  1. I really like Justin and think he’s done a great job, especially with the pandemic and handling Trump. But I worry some times for the party, and for him too. He’s a very polarizing leader, thus an easy target, and not always the most deft communicator. He’s also much too nice of a guy, too accommodating to these lying scoundrels who blame him for their own ineptitude or project their own malfeasance. If/when Chrystia follows in his footsteps, I think she’s more nimble in some ways than he is, certainly when it comes to handling the garbage media. Maybe the “therapist” needs to go give Ford a swift kick in his big clown pants and wrestle the zealot Kenney to the dirt. Though I’m not sure what either of them, JT or Freeland, can do about the gaslighters who ignore jurisdictional realities just to own the Libs. Throw shoes through the window of the CBC with a note on them that says “understand jurisdiction!” …and then blame the vandalism on O’Toole?

  2. It probably wouldn’t change anything but I think that all MP’s should be given a handbook which delineates the responsibilities of each branch of government. lt would save time as the speaker could just refer to it and remind the questioner that their inquiry is not germane. Also, the government leaders must patiently point out whose responsibility is involved. The ignorance, posturing and misinformation in QP is a joke.

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