Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland says Canadian companies need to shift critical supply lines home from overseas as the world prepares for a second wave of COVID-19.
“I think that one of the consequences of coronavirus is going to mean, for the economy, a shift from a sort of just-in-time, get-the-very-cheapest-input-possible model, to a model that puts a greater emphasis on resilience, puts a greater emphasis on supply chains that are closer to home,” Freeland said in an interview airing Saturday on the CBC’s The House.
The interview covered a range of topics, including a letter sent this week by a group of retired politicians and diplomats calling on the federal government to release Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou, who was arrested in December 2018 on a U.S. extradition warrant.
That letter argues Meng’s case is preventing Canada from defining and pursuing an effective foreign strategy with China. It also claims ending her extradition case could facilitate the release of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, two Canadians arrested by Chinese authorities in what Canada says was an act of retaliation for Meng’s arrest.
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland talks COVID-19, Canadians detained in China and NAFTA 2.0. 11:39
‘Hostage diplomacy’
“China has now openly admitted that the detention of the two Michaels is connected to the Meng case,” Freeland told The House, calling the imprisonment of the two men an act of “hostage diplomacy” by China.
Freeland said that if Canada were to release Meng in exchange for China freeing Kovrig and Spavor, it would send a signal “to every authoritarian regime out there” that the way to get what they want out of Canada is to “arbitrarily detain and arrest a couple of Canadians …
“I think that would be a terrible, dangerous precedent to set.”
Canada’s deteriorating relationship with China has threatened to interfere with its pandemic response. The superpower is a major supplier of goods to Canadian businesses — including the personal protective equipment (PPE) badly needed by medical personnel fighting COVID-19.
Stockpiling for a rainy day
Freeland said making the country less reliant on overseas suppliers is a key part of the federal government’s approach as it prepares for future waves of COVID-19 infections.
That message mirrors a warning Perrin Beatty, president of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, delivered in April when he called on Canadian manufacturers to switch from “just in time” to “just in case” deliveries of key supplies.
He argued that keeping stockpiles handy would serve as a hedge against future calamities while creating jobs in Canada.
Back in the spring, the global stampede to secure supplies of key protective medical equipment like masks, face shields and gloves laid bare the fragility of just-in-time supply lines in an emergency. The federal government, working with the provinces, has moved aggressively to increase domestic production of PPE.
At a news availability Friday at an Ottawa brewery which is now producing hand sanitizer, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada is close to closing its PPE gap.
“We’re now getting to a place where we’re close to self-sufficient on (PPE) and able to turn that around and share with the world, particularly the developing world,” he said.
Convincing major Canadian manufacturers to lean more on domestic supply chains — rather than on material produced more cheaply overseas — represents a new type of challenge for the federal government, even as the new North American trade deal officially kicks in on Canada Day.
While she acknowledged that the pandemic exposed significant weaknesses, Freeland told The House that Canada will continue to depend on and promote global trade deals.
“But I do think this is a moment for us to also be thinking more than ever about the value of resilience here in our own country,” she said. “And that’s one of the reasons … as we get ready for further coronavirus outbreaks, that we’ve been putting such an emphasis on made-in-Canada production.”
EDMONTON – RCMP say a second suspect has been arrested in the killing of an Alberta county worker.
Mounties say 28-year-old Elijah Strawberry was taken into custody Friday at a house on O’Chiese First Nation.
Colin Hough, a worker with Rocky View County, was shot and killed while on the job on a rural road east of Calgary on Aug. 6.
Another man who worked for Fortis Alberta was shot and wounded, and RCMP said the suspects fled in a Rocky View County work truck.
Police later arrested Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, and charged him with first-degree murder and attempted murder, and a warrant was issued for Strawberry’s arrest.
RCMP also said there was a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Strawberry, describing him as armed and dangerous.
Chief Supt. Roberta McKale, told a news conference in Edmonton that officers had received tips and information over the last few weeks.
“I don’t know of many members that when were stopped, fuelling up our vehicles, we weren’t keeping an eye out, looking for him,” she said.
But officers had been investigating other cases when they found Strawberry.
“Our investigators were in O’Chiese First Nation at a residence on another matter and the major crimes unit was there working another file and ended up locating him hiding in the residence,” McKale said.
While an investigation is still underway, RCMP say they’re confident both suspects in the case are in police custody.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
RICHMOND, B.C. – The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the 26-year-old son of a man found dead on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast has been charged with his murder.
Police say 58-year-old Henry Doyle was found badly injured on a forest service road in Egmont last September and died of his injuries.
The homicide team took over when the BC Coroners Service said the man’s death was suspicious.
It says in a statement that the BC Prosecution Service has approved one count of first-degree murder against the man’s son, Jackson Doyle.
Police say the accused will remain in custody until at least his next court appearance.
The homicide team says investigators remained committed to solving the case with the help of the community of Egmont, the RCMP on the Sunshine Coast and in Richmond, and the Vancouver Police Department.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, have broken off without an agreement following 15 hours of talks.
Joe McCann, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they stayed at the bargaining table with help from a mediator until 2 a.m. Friday and made “some progress.”
However, he says the union negotiators didn’t get an offer that they could recommend to the membership.
McCann says that in some ways they are close to an agreement, but in other areas they are “miles apart.”
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people who can’t navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last week, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
McCann asks HandyDART users to be “patient,” since they are trying to get not only a fair contract for workers but also a better service for customers.
He says it’s unclear when the talks will resume, but he hopes next week at the latest.
The employer, Transdev, didn’t reply to an interview request before publication.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
