Hello,
In an effort to offset COVID-19 expenses, the federal government announced a one-time tax-free payment of $300 for seniors eligible for the Old Age Security pension and an additional $200 for seniors eligible for the Guaranteed Income Supplement.
Seniors Minister Deb Schulte said Tuesday the measure mean seniors will be given a total of $500 for individuals eligible to receive both the OAS and GIS.
Speaking at his daily press conference, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there is no question COVID-19 has taken its toll on seniors emotionally and financially.
Mr. Trudeau also said Canada will need stronger screening measures to deal with an anticipated increase in the number of people entering the country from the United States. He did not say if he expects the Canada-U.S. border to reopen when a mutual ban on non-essential travel expires next week.
This is the daily Politics Briefing newsletter, usually written by Chris Hannay. Michelle Carbert is taking over today. The newsletter is available exclusively to our digital subscribers. If you’re reading this on the web, subscribers can sign up for the Politics newsletter and more than 20 others on our newsletter signup page. Have any feedback? Let us know what you think.
TODAY’S HEADLINES
Canadian researchers are joining the effort to develop a Chinese vaccine against the coronavirus, with plans to begin human trials in Canada of a potential defence against COVID-19 that employs genetic technology from the National Research Council. The trials will bring Ad5-nCoV, a vaccine candidate under joint development by a Chinese company and the country’s military, to Canadian soil.
International Development Minister Karina Gould says Canada will put $790-million toward vaccinating the world’s more vulnerable populations through the Global Alliance for Vaccine Innovation (GAVI). Ms. Gould promised $600-million over four years to help GAVI provide routine immunizations to children all over the world and administer a potential COVID-19 vaccine. Canada will commit another $190-million over four years to support the alliance’s polio eradication strategy.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he believes people can now gather with immediate family after two of his daughters visited his home on Mother’s Day weekend while COVID-19 physical distancing rules were still in effect. The gathering contradicted a provincial emergency order that prohibits social gatherings of more than five people from outside of the same home.
The gradual reopening of Quebec accelerated Monday at a pace far quicker than in parts of Canada with much greater control over COVID-19 outbreaks. The Globe digs into a persistent question that comes up inside and outside Quebec: What is Premier François Legault’s hurry?
Dozens of mobility, green, business and urbanist groups are pressing the federal government to bail out Canadian transit agencies. In an open letter set to be released on Tuesday, the groups add their voice to growing concerns that the pandemic has slashed transit ridership so much that revenue losses are pushing the agencies toward an existential crisis.
Robyn Urback (The Globe and Mail) on covering up plans to renovate Harrington Lake: 'If nothing else, government and its agencies ought to be more upfront when doling out millions of dollars worth of taxpayers’ money, particularly when it comes to personal amenities for elected leaders that the average person will never see or get to enjoy. Canadians are smart enough to decide whether the expenditures are reasonable. Covering them up often implies the costs are not."
Campbell Clark (The Globe and Mail) on the sales job for bailing out big business: “Making announcements, with major explanations to follow, is now standard. Six weeks ago, it was a byproduct of emergency response. Now, it is part of the sales plan.”
André Picard (The Globe and Mail) on why Quebec should not be heading back to school : “When schools return and the economy opens up, there will be more [COVID-19] cases. That’s inevitable, but also manageable – if we’re able to detect new infections quickly and do contact-tracing swiftly, within 24 hours. Until Quebec – and other provinces – can do that sort of containment, school reopenings should certainly not be a priority.”
Jeffrey Jones (The Globe and Mail) on Ottawa’s large business aid plan: ”Of the billions of dollars of taxpayer money injected into the oil patch since the COVID-19 crisis began, this latest tranche is notable by what’s absent: any mention of the oil patch. It’s clear that the federal Liberal government has no stomach for another bailout package going to support the fossil fuel industry exclusively. This program is making credit backstops available to all large companies."
Paul Wells (Macleans) on Theresa Tam’s paper on how to plan for a major outbreak: “So on the eve of the worst public-health threat Canada had faced in a century, Canada’s chief public health officer was arguing for a restrained reaction to a new virus. If we deny ourselves the dubious benefit of hindsight—the knowledge that this year’s outbreak would be the worst in a century—it’s actually not all that surprising that Tam would be warning ahead of time against overreacting."
Got a news tip that you’d like us to look into? E-mail us at tips@globeandmail.com. Need to share documents securely? Reach out via SecureDrop