OTTAWA —
The headline Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wanted from his news conference Tuesday was one heralding Canada’s return to our glory days as a domestic vaccine producer in the fight against COVID-19.
Right idea. Wrong pandemic.
We will indeed bring back better vaccine production, which is a crucial public health asset to inoculate us against foreign blockades to a coronavirus cure.
But, while it didn’t stop him from trying, Trudeau cannot frame his announcement as part of his oft-repeated plan to vaccinate every willing Canadian by the end of September.
He told reporters the arm-ready rollout of the Novavax made-in-Canada vaccine could happen this summer.
Um, no, said his innovation minister an hour later. The factory won’t be finished until summer and certification could take several months before test production begins. Look for injections before the end of the year, several months after the promised vaccination wrap-up.
This leaves our much-ballyhooed domestic vaccine timetable looking like this: Canada will produce the Novavax vaccine by the end of the year IF it passes clinical trials, IF the factory is finished and certified for production, IF it gets Health Canada’s time-consuming approval and IF, by the time it reaches the injection phase to immunize New Year’s Eve celebrations, there’s any lingering demand for it.
Unless this government’s vaccine timetable is a fanciful fabrication, Canadians should be inoculated, unmasked and filling up restaurants by 2022 with COVID-19 set to join the SARS, H1N1, Asian flu lineup as another deadly bug beaten into submission by the power of science.
It could leave our domestic production era dawning in a world awash with vaccines and Canada with 76 million vials of surplus vaccine to be shipped straight from the factory to stockpiling in refrigerated warehouses.
At least in the U.K., as CTV’s Kevin Gallagher pointed out to a ducked answer by the prime minister, they returned to domestic production very quickly and have now vaccinated 14 per cent of their population to Canada hard-stopped at 2.5 per cent.
So let’s call Trudeau’s big Tuesday news what it is: his shot at redemption for a doomed vaccine partnership with an unreliable and hostile China; a channel-changer from a news cycle focused on increasingly shaky foreign contracts; and perhaps a better shot at winning an election if it’s held before the pandemic winds down.
Meanwhile, we’re stuck in limbo with more orders per capita than any other country on Earth which, unfortunately, has a delivery schedule that’s subject to change without notice. It’s like we’ve ordered a snowblower in January and we’re being told it could be delivered in July.
Of course, it is entirely (and hopefully) possible Trudeau and his ministers are correct that Pfizer will send along the promised four million doses before April despite the European Union’s protectionist sabre-rattling.
Why we’re not on the EU friends list and why there’s nothing in writing to guarantee the timely arrival of vaccines which could save tens of thousands of Canadian lives is a good question with no clear answer from the prime minister.
But one thing Trudeau clearly knows for sure is that his political fate is in the hands of ensuring the Canadian vaccination pace keeps up with the other G7 countries.
If Canadians are delayed and die waiting for their shot at normal life while U.S., British and Europeans case-counts free-fall in tandem with mass vaccinations, Trudeau is a dead prime minister walking.
But if he delivers on his September promise, with or without a domestic source of vaccine, it’ll be like Canadians getting a rush while riding a major Disney World attraction after a two-hour lineup.
They’ll immediately forget about the wait – and line up behind Trudeau again.
TORONTO – Canada Goose Holdings Inc. says it has signed a deal that will result in the creation of its first eyewear collection.
The deal announced on Thursday by the Toronto-based luxury apparel company comes in the form of an exclusive, long-term global licensing agreement with Marchon Eyewear Inc.
The terms and value of the agreement were not disclosed, but Marchon produces eyewear for brands including Lacoste, Nike, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Longchamp and Zeiss.
Marchon plans to roll out both sunglasses and optical wear under the Canada Goose name next spring, starting in North America.
Canada Goose says the eyewear will be sold through optical retailers, department stores, Canada Goose shops and its website.
Canada Goose CEO Dani Reiss told The Canadian Press in August that he envisioned his company eventually expanding into eyewear and luggage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Almost seven years since news broke of an alleged conspiracy to fix the price of packaged bread across Canada, the saga isn’t over: the Competition Bureau continues to investigate the companies that may have been involved, and two class-action lawsuits continue to work their way through the courts.
Here’s a timeline of key events in the bread price-fixing case.
Oct. 31, 2017: The Competition Bureau says it’s investigating allegations of bread price-fixing and that it was granted search warrants in the case. Several grocers confirm they are co-operating in the probe.
Dec. 19, 2017: Loblaw and George Weston say they participated in an “industry-wide price-fixing arrangement” to raise the price of packaged bread. The companies say they have been co-operating in the Competition Bureau’s investigation since March 2015, when they self-reported to the bureau upon discovering anti-competitive behaviour, and are receiving immunity from prosecution. They announce they are offering $25 gift cards to customers amid the ongoing investigation into alleged bread price-fixing.
Jan. 31, 2018: In court documents, the Competition Bureau says at least $1.50 was added to the price of a loaf of bread between about 2001 and 2016.
Dec. 20, 2019: A class-action lawsuit in a Quebec court against multiple grocers and food companies is certified against a number of companies allegedly involved in bread price-fixing, including Loblaw, George Weston, Metro, Sobeys, Walmart Canada, Canada Bread and Giant Tiger (which have all denied involvement, except for Loblaw and George Weston, which later settled with the plaintiffs).
Dec. 31, 2021: A class-action lawsuit in an Ontario court covering all Canadian residents except those in Quebec who bought packaged bread from a company named in the suit is certified against roughly the same group of companies.
June 21, 2023: Bakery giant Canada Bread Co. is fined $50 million after pleading guilty to four counts of price-fixing under the Competition Act as part of the Competition Bureau’s ongoing investigation.
Oct. 25 2023: Canada Bread files a statement of defence in the Ontario class action denying participating in the alleged conspiracy and saying any anti-competitive behaviour it participated in was at the direction and to the benefit of its then-majority owner Maple Leaf Foods, which is not a defendant in the case (neither is its current owner Grupo Bimbo). Maple Leaf calls Canada Bread’s accusations “baseless.”
Dec. 20, 2023: Metro files new documents in the Ontario class action accusing Loblaw and its parent company George Weston of conspiring to implicate it in the alleged scheme, denying involvement. Sobeys has made a similar claim. The two companies deny the allegations.
July 25, 2024: Loblaw and George Weston say they agreed to pay a combined $500 million to settle both the Ontario and Quebec class-action lawsuits. Loblaw’s share of the settlement includes a $96-million credit for the gift cards it gave out years earlier.
Sept. 12, 2024: Canada Bread files new documents in Ontario court as part of the class action, claiming Maple Leaf used it as a “shield” to avoid liability in the alleged scheme. Maple Leaf was a majority shareholder of Canada Bread until 2014, and the company claims it’s liable for any price-fixing activity. Maple Leaf refutes the claims.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:L, TSX:MFI, TSX:MRU, TSX:EMP.A, TSX:WN)
TORONTO – TD Bank Group, which is mired in a money laundering scandal in the U.S., says chief executive Bharat Masrani will retire next year.
Masrani, who will retire officially on April 10, 2025, says the bank’s, “anti-money laundering challenges,” took place on his watch and he takes full responsibility.
The bank named Raymond Chun, TD’s group head, Canadian personal banking, as his successor.
As part of a transition plan, Chun will become chief operating officer on Nov. 1 before taking over the top job when Masrani steps down at the bank’s annual meeting next year.
TD also announced that Riaz Ahmed, group head, wholesale banking and president and CEO of TD Securities, will retire at the end of January 2025.
TD has taken billions in charges related to ongoing U.S. investigations into the failure of its anti-money laundering program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
