The global scramble to vaccinate the human race against COVID-19 is bigger than Canadian politics. But every Canadian politician no doubt understands the political and human importance of this country seeming to do well in this multinational competition.
The result this week is anxiety and a rush to assign blame that has failed to produce easy answers to the central question of what, if anything, Canadian officials could be doing to procure more of what’s arguably the most precious commodity on Earth.
But this consternation among Canadian politicians might be obscuring a bigger question for the world: Is this really the best way to go about vaccinating 7.6 billion people against a common threat?
The latest spasm of concern about Canada’s vaccine supply can be traced to a production facility in Puurs, Belgium, where Pfizer has been manufacturing one of the two approved vaccines for use in Canada. Pfizer has decided to retool that facility so that it can increase production. In the short-term, that means fewer doses will be available.
In response to Pfizer’s change of plans, Ontario Premier Doug Ford quickly declared that, if he were prime minister, he’d be on the phone to Pfizer’s top executive demanding the previously scheduled shipments. “I’d be up that guy’s ying-yang so far with a firecracker he wouldn’t know what hit him,” Ford said.
WATCH | Ontario premier says Trudeau’s ‘No. 1 job’ is to get vaccines:
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says Prime Minister Justin Trudeau needs to fight to get the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to Canada and he suggests the alternative to the Belgian plant may be Pfizer’s Michigan facility. 0:55
It stands to reason that if getting a plentiful supply of the Pfizer vaccine was as easy as getting up Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla’s ying-yang with a firecracker, nearly every leader on the planet would be doing so. But Ford got a chance to test his theory — a day later he spoke with the president of Pfizer Canada. If a firecracker was lit during that conversation, it has so far failed to change Pfizer’s plans.
In Ottawa, the consternation has been only slightly less colourful, culminating in an “emergency debate” in the House of Commons on Tuesday.
The Conservatives argue that an ill-fated partnership between the National Research Council and China’s CanSino Biologics distracted Justin Trudeau’s government from pursuing better options — but Public Services Minister Anita Anand told the Canadian Press in December that Canada was the fourth country in the world to sign a contract with Pfizer and the first to sign with Moderna, the other major supplier of an approved vaccine.
The New Democrats argue that the federal government should have negotiated for the right to domestically produce the currently approved vaccines — but that presumably depends in large part on the willingness of companies like Moderna and Pfizer to do so.
A real effort to ensure Canada had domestic capacity to produce a pandemic vaccine likely would have had to have been implemented years ago.
Little control over vaccine supply
Eventually, Tuesday night’s debate landed on questions of transparency. The government says it has a plan for vaccinating Canadians, but the opposition says that plan isn’t detailed enough.
The opposition insists the government should release the details of the contracts it has signed with manufacturers, but the government says those contracts are necessarily confidential. There are suggestions that Europe’s supply of the Pfizer vaccine might be smaller than the interruption to Canada’s supply, but it’s not clear why that might be the case.
The Liberals surely understand the gravity of the vaccine race, but they have never shown much interest in explaining themselves in detail. They insist that their agreements with seven potential manufacturers have put Canada in a decent position and that their medium-term and long-term targets for vaccinating Canadians over the course of this year will not be affected by the current shortfall.
WATCH | EU threatens to slow vaccine exports, increasing concerns about vaccine nationalism:
The European Union is threatening to slow exports of the Pfizer vaccine after Astra-Zeneca announced a delay in production. With vaccines in short supply, global health leaders are growing increasingly concerned about the rise of vaccine nationalism. 2:00
But Pfizer’s decision to retool the plant in Puurs underlines how little control the Liberal government can claim to have over the situation and how little sympathy they’ll receive if things don’t work out the way they said they would.
It was just over a month ago that the federal government was able to answer a previous panic with earlier-than-expected approvals and shipments of the new vaccine. If the Liberals were only too happy to bask in that good news, this interruption feels like the universe’s way of telling them to not get cocky.
Canada vs. other countries
In the meantime, even the definition of success will be up for debate.
On Monday, for instance, Conservative MP Pierre Paul-Hus complained that Canada was not doing as well as the Seychelles, which had delivered at least a first dose to 20.22 per cent of its population through January 25. By comparison, Canada’s rate of vaccination was 2.23 per cent.
But the tiny island nation has a population of 98,000 people (roughly the equivalent of Red Deer, Alta). In absolute terms, the number of people who had received a dose in the Seychelles was 19,889. Canada, meanwhile, had administered doses to 839,949 people.
WATCH | Ottawa offers assurances about COVID-19 vaccine supply:
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is trying to reassure Canadians about the COVID-19 vaccine supply after the European Union raised the possibility of imposing export controls on vaccines leaving the EU. Canada’s Pfizer-BioNTech shots are made in Belgium. 1:44
On Tuesday, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland countered that Canada was ahead of Germany, France, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. But three of those countries — Japan, Australia and New Zealand — haven’t yet begun their vaccination programs. And in two of those countries — Australia and New Zealand — COVID-19 is almost non-existent.
‘This is pure nonsense’
During the emergency debate on Tuesday night, the NDP’s Don Davies said Canada ranked 16th per capita in doses administered. He meant it as a complaint. But it could just as easily be framed as a compliment — if Canada ends up being the 16th fastest country to vaccinate its population, it will have finished ahead of 174 other countries. Among the 32 OECD countries who have begun vaccinations, Canada ranks 12th in doses administered per capita.
A few countries — the United States, United Kingdom and Israel — seem to be benefiting from their own unique circumstances. The U.S. and U.K., for instance, have access to domestic production of the available vaccines.
In every other country, there might be some version of the Canadian debate playing out; Trudeau said last week that he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel had commiserated about the similar criticism that they were each facing.
WATCH | COVID’s one year anniversary in Canada:
One year after the first confirmed case of COVID-19, are we really all in it together? A PSW speaks about the reality of working the front lines in long-term care homes, and an artist questions life after CERB. PLUS, why first-world countries like Canada are being accused of hoarding vaccines. 45:36
But all of this might underline the questions of whether an every-country-for-itself scramble to acquire vaccines from a limited number of private manufacturers is the sensible way to go about vaccinating the human race.
“‘Could Canada have done more?’ The problem for me is that this is not the right question. What we’ve been seeing, for me, is a bit of a catastrophe,” said Marc-Andre Gagnon, a political science professor at Carleton University who focuses on pharmaceutical policy.
“You end up with a handful of companies that are developing their own vaccines, each by themselves, working in silos. So then you have a product with a patent, so monopoly rights on the product. And then you end up with this vaccine nationalism of all countries basically doing a free market negotiation in terms of who can jump the queue in order to get faster access to the vaccines. In terms of priorities of global public health, this is pure nonsense.”
A better approach, Gagnon suggests, would have focused on collaboration, data sharing and making use of all available manufacturing capacity around the world.
Pfizer’s new deal with Sanofi, a rival producer, might at least be a step in that direction. But any serious rethinking of global vaccination policy might have to wait for the next pandemic.
TORONTO – Will Taylor Swift bring chaos or do we all need to calm down?
It’s a question many Torontonians are asking this week as the city braces for the massive fan base of one of the world’s biggest pop stars.
Hundreds of thousands of Swifties are expected to descend on downtown core for the singer’s six concerts which kick off Thursday at the Rogers Centre and run until Nov. 23.
And while their arrival will be a boon to tourism dollars, it could further clog the city’s already gridlocked streets.
Swift’s shows collide with other scheduled events at the nearby Scotiabank Arena, including a Toronto Raptors game on Friday and a Toronto Maple Leafs game on Saturday.
Some locals have already adjusted their plans to avoid the area.
Aahil Dayani says he and some friends intended to throw a birthday bash for one of their pals, until they realized it would overlap with the concerts.
“Ultimately, everybody agreed they just didn’t want to deal with that,” he said.
“Something as simple as getting together and having dinner is now thrown out the window.”
Dayani says the group rescheduled the birthday party for after Swift leaves town. In the meantime, he plans to hunker down at his Toronto residence.
“Her coming into town has kind of changed up my social life,” he added.
“We’re pretty much just not doing anything.”
Max Sinclair, chief executive and founder of A.I. technology firm Ecomtent, has suggested his employees stay away from the company’s downtown offices on concert days, since he doesn’t see the point in forcing people to endure potential traffic jams.
“It’s going to be less productive for us, and it’s going to be just a pain for everyone, so it’s easier to avoid it,” he said.
“We’re a hybrid company, so we can be flexible. It just makes sense.”
Toronto Transit Commission spokesperson Stuart Green says the public agency has been preparing for over a year to ease the pressure of so many Swifties in one confined area.
Dozens of buses and streetcars have been added to the transit routes around the stadium, while the TTC has consulted with the city on how to handle potential emergency scenarios.
“There may be some who will say we’re over-preparing, and that’s fair,” Green said.
“But we know based on what’s happened in other places, better to be over-prepared than under-prepared.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 13, 2024.
REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – Electronic Arts has incorporated the Professional Women’s Hockey League into its NHL 25 video game.
The six teams starting their second seasons Nov. 30 will be represented in “play now,” “online versus,” “shootout” and “season” modes, plus a championship Walter Cup, in the updated game scheduled for release Dec. 5, the PWHL and EA Sports announced Wednesday.
Gamers can create a virtual PWHL player.
The league and video game company have agreed to a multi-year partnership, the PWHL stated.
“Our partnership with EA SPORTS opens new doors to elevate women’s hockey across all levels,” said PWHL operations senior vice-president Amy Scheer in a statement.
“Through this alliance, we’ll develop in-game and out-of-game experiences that strengthen the bond between our teams, players, and fans, bringing the PWHL closer to the global hockey community.”
NHL 22 featured playable women’s teams for the first time through an agreement with the International Ice Hockey Federation.
Toronto Sceptres forward Sarah Nurse became the first woman to appear on the video game’s cover in 2023 alongside Anaheim Ducks centre Trevor Zegras.
The Ottawa Charge, Montreal Victoire, Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost and New York Sirens round out the PWHL. The league announced team names and logos in September, and unveiled jerseys earlier this month.
“It is so meaningful that young girls will be able to see themselves in the game,” said Frost forward Taylor Heise, who grew up playing EA’s NHL games.
“It is a big milestone for inclusivity within the hockey community and shows that women’s prominence in hockey only continues to grow.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 13, 2024.
Maple Leaf Foods Inc. continued to navigate weaker consumer demand in the third quarter as it looked ahead to the spinoff of its pork business in 2025.
“This environment has a particularly significant impact on a premium portfolio like ours and I want you to know that we are not sitting still waiting for the macro environment to recover on its own,” said CEO Curtis Frank on a call with analysts.
Frank said the company is working to adapt its strategies to consumer demand. As inflation has stabilized and interest rates decline, he said pressure on consumers is expected to ease.
Maple Leaf reported a third-quarter profit of $17.7 million compared with a loss of $4.3 million in the same quarter last year.
The company says the profit amounted to 14 cents per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a loss of four cents per share a year earlier. Sales for the quarter totalled $1.26 billion, up from $1.24 billion a year ago.
“At a strategic level … we’re certainly seeing the transitory impacts of an inflation-stressed consumer environment play through our business,” Frank said.
“We are seeing more trade-down than we would like. And we are making more investments to grow our volume and protect our market share than we would like in the moment. But again, we believe that those impacts will prove to be transitory as they have been over the course of history.”
Financial results are improving in the segment as feed costs have stabilized, said Dennis Organ, president, pork complex.
Maple Leaf, which is working to spin off its pork business into a new, publicly traded company to be called Canada Packers Inc. and led by Organ, also said it has identified a way to implement the plan through a tax-free “butterfly reorganization.”
Frank said Wednesday that the new structure will see Maple Leaf retain slightly lower ownership than previously intended.
The company said it continues to expect to complete the transaction next year. However, the spinoff under the new structure is subject to an advance tax ruling from the Canada Revenue Agency and will take longer than first anticipated.
Maple Leaf announced the spinoff in July with a plan to become a more focused consumer packaged goods company, including its Maple Leaf and Schneiders brands.
“The prospect of executing the transaction as a tax-free spin-off is a positive development as we continue to advance our strategy to unlock value and unleash the potential of these two unique and distinct businesses,” Frank said in the news release.
He also said that Maple Leaf is set on delivering profitability for its plant protein business in mid-2025.
“This includes the recent completion of a procurement project aimed at leveraging our purchasing scale,” he said.
On an adjusted basis, Maple Leaf says it earned 18 cents per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of 13 cents per share in the same quarter last year.
The results were largely in line with expectations, said RBC analyst Irene Nattel in a note.
Maple Leaf shares were down 4.5 per cent in midday trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange at $21.49.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 13, 2024.
