Canadian PPE manufacturers call for more domestic production

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Canadian PPE manufacturers call for more domestic production

Canadian personal protective equipment (PPE) manufacturers are banding together and calling on governments of all levels to purchase domestically-made products instead of unreliable and faulty gear produced overseas. 

The Canadian Association of PPE Manufacturers (CAPPEM) issued a news release on Thursday following a hasty recall of foreign graphene masks by Health Canada.

“Canadian-manufactured masks go through rigorous testing and adhere to very high standards of quality control. Under Canadian standards and licencing, our national supply of PPE is top quality, reliable and cost effective,” said CAPPEM President Barry Hunt.

“Canadians deserve to know that the technologies being used to keep them safe are safe, effective, and made with the full approval of Health Canada. CAPPEM looks forward to partnering with all levels of government to keep Canadians safe. As Canadian manufacturers we are proud to be the pioneers and innovators in a new Canadian manufacturing sector, and to be part of the fight to protect Canadians. Together we will defeat the COVID pandemic.” 

Collectively, CAPPEM represents nearly 1,000 people involved in manufacturing PPE in Canada and has collectively invested nearly $100 million to ensure Canada has a steady domestic supply of protective gear. 

On April 3, Health Canada issued an advisory regarding grey and blue graphene masks imported from China by the Quebec supplier Metallifer. By the time the recall was initiated, the masks had already been used in daycares, schools and by health-care workers. 

“Health Canada has conducted a preliminary scientific assessment and has identified a potential for early lung toxicity in rats from inhaled graphene,” wrote the advisory. 

Two other masks are currently being reviewed for quality standards. 

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Canada has dealt with issues regarding faulty and poor quality PPE imported from China. 

In May 2020, Procurement Minister Anita Anand’s office notified Canadians that out of a shipment of 11 million N95 respirators from China, eight million of the masks were found to be unusable and not up to Canada’s health standards. 

One month earlier, an additional one million KN95 masks sent to Canada by China were also found to have failed to meet health and safety requirements. 

53% of Canadians $200 away from insolvency: poll

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53% of Canadians $200 away from insolvency: poll

A new poll suggests the majority of Canadian adults are less than $200 away from financial insolvency.

According to the MNP Consumer Debt Index published on Thursday, 53% of Canadians are $200 or less away from missing their bill payments, a 10% jump since December and a five-year high.

“Pandemic-related financial relief measures provided some breathing room over the last year, but now we’re seeing a reversal,” said MNP President Grant Bazian.

“The number of Canadians with virtually no wiggle room in their household budgets has reached a five-year high. The anxiety Canadians are feeling about making ends meet — or already being unable to do so — tells us we may see an avalanche of households falling behind on payments or defaulting on loans, mortgages, car payments, or credit cards.”

MNP found Canadian households are finding it difficult to make ends meet as government pandemic benefits end. Those surveyed reported the money left over after paying their bills has decreased by 15% since December.

During the first months of the pandemic, unemployment in Canada reached unprecedented highs, with government programs replacing employment incomes for millions of Canadians. As pandemic programs end, many Canadians still do not have good jobs to return too.

In recent days, Ontario and Alberta have reintroduced strict lockdowns, putting more financial pressure on vulnerable Canadians. 

MNP says 14% of Canadians surveyed used credit card debt to make ends meet during the pandemic. 

“Even though some Canadians are spending less and saving more as a result of pandemic measures, others are being pushed further into the red, taking on more debt to stay afloat after job, wage, or small business loss,” Bazian said.

15 UCP MLAs push back against latest Alberta lockdown

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15 UCP MLAs push back against latest Alberta lockdown

A group of United Conservative Party (UCP) MLAs have put out a public statement criticizing Premier Jason Kenney’s decision to implement another lockdown in Alberta.

On Wednesday, a total of 15 UCP MLAs wrote that a return to Step 1 restrictions in Alberta goes against the rights and wishes of their constituents.

“We believe that yesterday’s announcement to move our province backwards, effectively abandoning the plan that Albertans have worked diligently over the past months to follow, is the wrong decision,” the statement reads.

“We have heard from our constituents, and they want us to defend their livelihoods and freedoms as Albertans.”

On Tuesday, Kenney announced the province will enter Step 1, the strictest level of Alberta’s lockdown roadmap, after a recent spike in coronavirus cases.

Under the restrictions, all indoor gatherings are prohibited, with strict limits on weddings and funerals. Religious services and retail businesses are limited to 15% capacity, indoor dining also prohibited.

The MLAs, which together make up nearly a quarter of the UCP caucus, say they have voiced their opposition to lockdowns to the government in recent months with little success.

“For months, we have raised these concerns at the highest levels of government and unfortunately, the approach of government has remained the same.”

The UCP MLAs were also joined by Alberta MP Michelle Rempel Garner, who also serves as Conservative Party of Canada health critic, who says the new restrictions will hurt many who have already suffered from last year’s “roller coaster of restrictions.”

FUREY: Ontario is ideologically committed to lockdowns

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FUREY: Ontario is ideologically committed to lockdowns

While many regions in North America are taking a more balanced and targeted approach to COVID-19, the Ontario government is ideologically committed to lockdowns.

It’s been over a year of dealing with this pandemic and the Ontario government has failed to evolve its approach.

Anthony Furey discusses in his latest video.

Doug Ford plunges Ontario into strict lockdown, issuing stay-at-home order

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Doug Ford plunges Ontario into strict lockdown, issuing stay-at-home order

Ontario Premier Doug Ford is ramping up his government’s stringent new lockdown regime after issuing a provincewide stay-at-home order, which begins on Thursday April 8, 2021.

Ford made the announcement Wednesday afternoon following a closed door meeting with his cabinet. 

Beginning on Thursday, the order will go into effect for a 28-day period. Ford also declared a state of emergency due to the recent spike in COVID-19 cases and variants. 

“I can’t stress this enough. Things are extremely, extremely serious right now. And I’m extremely concerned,” said Ford.

“The situation is evolving rapidly, hour by hour. And as things change, as we learn more about these deadly new variants, as we see new problems arise, we need to adapt. We need to move quickly and decisively. And right now, above all else, our plan is to get needles in the arms and protect our hospitals. That’s why, today, on the advice of the chief medical officer of health I’m declaring a state of emergency.”

The order will require all non-essential retailers to be closed for all indoor shopping or in-person dining. Gyms and personal care services like salons are also to be ordered closed. 

Meanwhile, big box retailers are being allowed to remain open to sell only essential items at a 25% capacity. Some categories of stores will be allowed to remain open including rental services, optical stores, vehicle or equipment repair stores and safety supply stores. 

Under the new rules, Ontario residents are only being permitted to leave their house for essential reasons like work, school or trips for essential goods like groceries and healthcare visits. 

“To boil it down as simple as possible, folks please stay home unless it is for an essential reason,” said Ford. 

“The situation is extremely serious and we just need to hunker down right now, we need to limit mobility.”

According to Ontario’s Education Minister Stephen Lecce schools will be allowed to remain open with public health measures currently in place. 

As the pandemic drags on, thousands of doctors and specialists have taken a stand against the use of lockdowns – including the World Health Organization. 

As Canadians’ mental health declines and drug overdoses and unemployment numbers skyrocket, many health experts are asserting that lockdowns are deadlier than the COVID-19 virus.

Jagmeet Singh disagrees with party’s abolishing military resolution ahead of convention

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Jagmeet Singh disagrees with party’s abolishing military resolution ahead of convention

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has come out publicly against a grassroots policy resolution by his own party members which calls on an NDP government to abolish Canada’s armed forces. 

During a press conference on Wednesday, Singh told reporters that he doesn’t agree with that particular plank and that he stands by the military for its COVID-19 support, going even further to suggest that the military should be involved in Canada’s lagging vaccine rollout. 

The party’s Spadina-Fort York Electoral District Association (EDA) submitted the policy resolution titled “Elimination of the Canadian Armed Forces.”

The resolution writes: “in a world with a globalized economy traditional militaries are becoming increasingly unnecessary” and claims that other countries like Iceland have already abolished their armed forces. 

“An NDP government will commit to phasing out the Canadian Armed Forces,” the policy states.

 “All members of the Canadian Armed Forces will be retrained, at the expense of the federal government, into civil service roles that help expand Canadian, provincial and municipal social services, such as expanded health care, education, community services, public transit and parks.”

With regard to other extreme policy suggestions such as removing all statues of Canada’s first prime minister and father of Confederation, Sir John A. Macdonald, Singh took a more cautious approach. 

“We’ve got to be very aware of the message certain monuments and statues send in public spaces, and be open to moving with the times,” Singh said.

“There always will be a place for remembering our history, and sometimes that place maybe is best served in a museum or in history books, and not always in public places.”

NDP party members will be attending the party’s policy convention from April 9 to April 11. 

Convention rules indicate that any NDP member can submit a policy resolution to their local EDA for consideration. Upon approval, EDA presidents forward the policy resolution to the convention floor where they are debated and voted on by party members. 

Other resolutions include abolishing Canada’s monarchy and pulling the country out of NATO. 

Half of Canadians believe journalists mislead the public: poll

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Half of Canadians believe journalists mislead the public: poll

A new poll suggests that half of Canadians believe the media is purposefully misleading the public to support their own agenda.

The study released by consultancy firm Edelman found that 49% of Canadians believe journalists are “purposely trying to mislead people by saying things they know are false or gross exaggerations.”

“Not one information source – traditional media (55%), search engines (47%), owned (32%) or social media (22%) – is trusted in Canada and the latter three are distrusted. All four information sources have witnessed a decline in trust compared to last year,” Edelman wrote.

A total of 52% surveyed also believe most news outlets are more concerned promoting their own ideology than telling the truth.

Recently, there have been various instances of journalists promoting their own opinions rather than reporting factual information. 

Since the coronavirus pandemic began, legacy media outlets have targeted anyone who opposes strict lockdowns in the past year.

Canadian journalists have also gone out of their way to fawn over the Biden administration in the United States.

In January, the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) found that a CTV National News program violated the code of ethics for Canadian broadcasters by lying about former President Donald Trump.

Edelman notes that the media, along with the government and other institutions, enjoyed a brief period of increasing trust during the beginning of the pandemic which has since evaporated.

“In Spring 2020, business, government and NGOs all saw a spike in trust, moving them into the trusted category among the Canadian general population. Since then, the trust bubble has burst, with all institutions giving back most (if not all) of the gains they saw and returning to the neutral zone.”

The survey also suggests “academic experts” and corporations have lost the public’s trust in the past year, with credibility at all-time lows for most people in positions of authority.

Alberta police raid and close GraceLife church

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Alberta police raid and close GraceLife church

An Alberta church that continued to hold services in defiance of public health orders has been physically closed by authorities.

On Wednesday morning, police and agents from Alberta Health Services raided GraceLife Church outside Edmonton and prevented members from entering the building.

Video posted online shows security fencing and placing tarps over the entrance to the church. Agents have also physically blocked the entrance to the property.

In a statement, Alberta Health Services said they closed GraceLife until the church agrees to obey restrictions.

“Alberta Health Services (AHS) physically closed GraceLife Church (GLC) and has prevented access to the building until GLC can demonstrate the ability to comply with Alberta’s Chief Medical Officer of Health’s (CMOH) restriction,” they wrote.

“GLC has decided not to follow these mandatory restrictions, nor have they attempted to work with AHS to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission.”

GraceLife Pastor James Coates was arrested in February after he continued to hold services that violated Alberta’s strict 15% capacity limit for religious services. Coates was forced to remain in jail until trial unless he agreed to not hold services, which he refused.

In March, Coates was released after prosecutors dropped all but one charge against him.

Coates was represented by The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF). The JCCF said it is outraged that the Alberta government entered a private church and erected a double barrier around the building.

“Freedom of conscience and religion is the first fundamental freedom listed in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It is listed first because it is one of the key bedrock principles on which Canada is built,” JCCF president John Carpay told the Edmonton Journal.

“The government has so far refused to justify the limits on worship and gathering.”

AHS believes the church continues to violate public health orders.

“With COVID-19 cases increasing and the more easily-transmitted and potentially more severe variants becoming dominant, there is urgent need to minimize spread to protect all Albertans,” AHS wrote.

This is a developing story and will be updated as additional information is available. 

Restaurant group says lockdown reopenings cost businesses over $100 million

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Restaurant group says lockdown reopenings cost businesses over $100 million

In an open letter addressed to Ontario Premier Doug Ford, Restaurants Canada estimated that Ontario food service businesses had to dish out over $100 million in reopening and closing costs as a result of the province’s third lockdown.

Restaurants Canada President and CEO Todd Barclay and Ontario Restaurant Hotel & Motel Association President and CEO Tony Elenis both signed the document calling on the provincial  government to intervene and help save the industry. 

“Last week’s abrupt move to shut down all dining so soon after easing restrictions has cost Ontario’s restaurants more than $100 million in reopening and closing costs alone. They are counting on your government to act quickly to save our industry, which typically employs more than 450,000 people,” the letter claims.

“This is not an ‘emergency brake’ as evidenced by the crowded retail stores and plentiful private gatherings over the weekend, scapegoating the restaurant sector is clearly not going to get the province’s third wave under control.” 

Both Barclay and Elenis go on to call for “fair and effective” measures to be implemented to all industries equally. The letter also recommends that the provincial government keep patio dining open as an “alternative to private gatherings” and to support ailing restaurants through additional funding. 

A number of restaurant owners have not taken Ford’s order lightly, including Antler Kitchen and Bar who sent the Ontario government a $431.55 invoice for beer that will be spoiled because of Ford’s lockdown announcement.

Prior to the Easter long weekend, Ford announced a new spat of province-wide restrictions which included a ban on indoor gatherings of all sizes and a limit of five people for outdoor gatherings. Under Ontario’s current rules restaurants were also ordered to close their doors for indoor and outdoor dining. 

Further restrictions are expected this week as the Ford government is set to announce a provincewide stay-at-home order. Under the government’s latest lockdown, nonessential retail will be restricted to curbside pickup only and big box stores will be restricted to essential items only. 

FUREY: Community leaders can play a role in lifting lockdowns

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FUREY: Community leaders can play a role in lifting lockdowns

Public officials are not the only leaders in our society. There’s an entire civil society of community leaders that play an important role in our lives.

Faith leaders, organizers of community sports and other leaders can help lift lockdown restrictions and bring society back online. 

Anthony Furey discusses in his latest video. 

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