By Canadian Press

Bloc leader slams Trudeau over ‘unacceptable’ handling of COVID-19 vaccine orders

Nov 25, 2020 | 8:45 AM

OTTAWA — Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet is blasting the prime minister’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, calling Justin Trudeau’s pledge that vaccines will start to arrive in the coming months “unacceptable.”

Trudeau sought to reassure Canadians yesterday even as he acknowledged that some other countries are likely to start inoculating their citizens first, citing Canada’s low capacity to churn out vaccines.

Blanchet says the federal government should have moved sooner to help obtain manufacturing rights and beef up production capacity on Canadian soil.

The Bloc leader also says the short-term COVID-19 emergency centres on limiting viral spread, which he accuses Ottawa of managing with an “uncertain” hand.

The United States, Britain and Germany have said their residents could start to receive vaccinations as early as December.

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Trudeau said yesterday the federal government has signed orders for millions of doses from a variety of foreign pharmaceutical companies in recent months, and that Canada has been pushing the international community to ensure equal access for all. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 25, 2020.

The Canadian Press