trudeau

Operator:

Thank you. The first question “the canadianpress.”

Question:

[voice of interpreter] with respect to quÉbec’s request for assistance, you talked about the army and the red cross. Have you sent in the army and the red cross to help quÉbec?

Answer:

Well, quÉbec has already given us two requests for assistance that we were able to respond to immediately with the rangers in inuvik and the lower north shore. Yesterday we received a third request for help, which we’re looking at, because it’s a bit different than what is normally asked of the c. a.f. Right now we’re looking at this and trying to see how we can help quÉbec during these difficult times. and of course I realize that people are worried for the health of their parents and other seniors who are in these seniors’ homes and other facilities. We know that we have to find other ways to help and we will be there to help. But we will need to discuss thiswith quÉbec to see exactly how we can support them and respond to this request, which is not the usual type of request. Of course this is not a usual situation either.

Question:

Are you saying it’snot usual because we’re talking about health in long-term care facilities?

Answer:

Yes. Partly it is for medical help or people with medical training. Of course we do have doctors in the Canadian armed forces, but not that many. So we’re looking at how we can help. These are discussions that are ongoing. Of course when there is flooding, the armed forces are there to help out. They’ve been trained to provide support in that kind of situation. Now, this is a new situation. So we are talking to quÉbec about this to figure out how we can support them. We will be there to help and we know how important it is.

Question:

Good morning, Mr. Trudeau. Could you be more specific about the request from quÉbec. Are we talking about help in long-term care facilities?

Answer:

Well, this is the request for assistance we received yesterday from quÉbec and we are looking at it and working with quÉbec, to see how we can provide that kind of help in seniors’ homes and long-term care facilities. We’re reviewing this and seeing what exactly we can do. We will continue to work with quÉbec to provide that support. We know how important it is. We will be there to help.

Question:

and My follow-up question. What is going to happen on Monday? the house of commons is scheduled to start up again on Monday. If there is no agreement with the conservatives, what exactly is going to happen?

Answer:

Well, obviously there is nothing to worry about. We have a healthy democracy and our institutions have to continue to work, not in spite of the crisis but because of thecrisis. So we are currently discussing the situation with the opposition parties to try and find a way to continue to do the important work that is done by our institution and at the same time we are following the advice of our public health authorities. So we are going to be concluding those discussions very soon. I expect to be able to provide details as to how the house of commons will operate in the coming weeks, very soon. [end of translation].

Operator:

Thank you. Next question Ryan Tillman “national post.” line open.

Question:

Good morning, Prime Minister. I’m wondering when you’re meeting with the premiers today, are you going to discuss how to phase the reopening of the economy? I’m wondering if you’re concerned that some provinces that are doing better may reopen before others, creating a strainthere.

Answer:

I think one of the things we’ve seen from across the country from leaders and citizens is a desire to know when this is going to be over, how soon we will start getting back to normal life. But I think everyone understands that while – until we have a vaccine, until we are in a place where there is proper treatment, there is a massive amount of testing, we are not going to be able to talk about getting back to normal. We will, hopefully in the comingtime, be able to loosen certain restrictions. But our health professionals and leaders understand that has to be done at the right moment and very, very carefully. It would be absolutely disastrous for us to open up too early or too quickly and have another wave hit us that could be just as bad as this one and find ourselves in a situation of having to go back into quarantine the way we are right now and have everything we’ve done in these past weeks be for nothing. We know that there are lots of conversations to be had about how we reopen our economy, what happens in the right order, what the sequencing is, how we keep people safe. But we’re a long way from having the ability to do that. Of course conversations are ongoing now, but we’re many weeks away from being able to reopen our economy, even with the variations of the local states of the pandemic.

Question:

In terms of that discussion, do you envision it will be based on metrics, will it be based on the number of new cases or some sort of metrics-based approach to makingthat decision?

Answer:

I think looking at where we are on the curve, the number of new cases, the decline in cases, will be an important piece of it. I think what is even more important is the measures we will have in place to be vigilant, to respond if and when there are resurgences of the virus in local pockets in particular areas. We’re going to need to be extremely vigilant, extremely prepared to respond quickly with massive testing, with contact tracing, with measures that people will be able to kick in very quickly if that comes. I don’t think we can talk about a reopening of things until we are confident that we have exactly the plan on responding to future resurgences in place. That’s a lot of what the conversations are going on rightnow.

Thank you. Next question, operator.

Operator:

Thank you. Next question David lindgren, “reuters.”

Question:

On your g7 call, what, if anything, did others say to president trump about his decision to suspend funding to the world health organization?

Answer:

I think we all recognized on the call how important it is to coordinate the measures on the pandemic and public health and to share information about vaccine development and treatments. There is a need for international coordination, and the W.H.O. is an important part of that collaboration and coordination. We recognize that there have been questions asked, but at thesame time, it is really important that we stay coordinated as we move through this. That is certainly what Canada isgoing to do.

Question:

Secondly, president trump yesterday suggested that the border with Canada, the restrictions could be loosened. What is your point of view on that?

Answer:

I think there was a recognition, as I’ve highlighted many times, that the closeness, the collaboration, the friendship between Canada and the United States is quite unlike any other. Therefore, the work that we continue to do to keep our citizens safe, while coordinating very carefully, is unlike our approaches with other countries around the world. There is a recognition that as we move forward there will be special thought given to this relationship. But at the same time, we know that there is a significant amount of time still before we can talk about loosening such restrictions. [voice of interpreter] we recognize that Canada and the United States have a friendship that is unlike any other in the world. We have been working together and continue to work together Ina more integrated fashion than any other country. That is what the president pointed out and I’ve often pointed it out myself. We will continue to cooperate and coordinate our efforts. The reality is there are still many weeks to come before we can talk about relaxing the current restrictions at our borders or when it comes to physical distancing. [end of translation].

Question:

You said there would be a significant amount of time I guess to having this border discussion. What is the danger to Canada to opening that border?

Answer:

We are having ongoing discussions on border issues, on supply chains with the United States all the time. We have an integrated economic relationship and a close people-to-people friendship within our countries that allowed us to move forward on closing the borders in a way that ensured essential services and supplies continue to travel. We will continue to look at wayswe can move forward to help eachother deal with this pandemic. We recognize that it will be time still before we can loosen the border restrictions.

Question:

What is the danger, though, Prime Minister?

Answer:

We recognize there ISS need to protect our citizens, as every country is doing. Most countries around the world moved forward on restricting travel and Canada and the United States are no exception.

Question:

Are you – sorry, in french.

Answer:

[voice of interpreter] there are many countries around the world that have limited travel and are controlling their borders and only allowing essential goods come in and that is what we will continue to do. [end of translation].

Question:

Are you worried about retaliation from the Americans if we don’t open on a timeline that they want?

Answer:

The coordination and collaboration between Canada and the United States on this issue and on all issues has been entirely exemplary. The reflection that the president shared was one of how close we are and how the status of the Canada-United States relationship is different than the status of relationships that we have with other countries around the world. There was a recognition that we will do things perhaps differently than other countries, but there is still a recognition that we need to continue holding the measures that we have in place for a goodwhile to come still.

Question:

Janet silver, global news. With people dying at long-term care homes and for those with disabilities, what is your government planning to do to support the most vulnerable citizens, not only now but in the weeks to come?

Answer:

Tonight I will be speaking with the premiers and we will be talking directly about how to ensure better protection for our elders in long-term care. It is impossible to imagine the anguish that families and, indeed, our elders are going through in this situation. There is just so much fear and uncertainty. We need to do a better job of being there for them. The federal government is looking for support as we deal with this issue. We’re discussing pay top-ups forthose that work in those situations because the conditions are getting more and more difficult. There are also more regulations we can talk about bringing in todo a better job at protecting our most vulnerable. I think that’s what Canadians expect. [voice of interpreter] this evening we will be talking about the need to protect our seniors. We recognize that they have particular vulnerability in seniors’ homes. We know that this is a terrible thing that they’re experiencing right now. Their fear, their isolation, theuncertainty, so we will and we must be there for each other. Our conversation this evening with the premiers will be about how the federal government can support the provinces in meetingthat challenge, how we can support the workers in those facilities, and better support our seniors directly. [end of translation].

Question:

About quÉbec’s request for military assistance, I’m wondering if you’ve received request from other premiers relating to the help for long-term care facilities and what sort of role do you see themilitary playing when it comes to long-term care facilities?

Answer:

We have received three requests in total from quÉbec, two for Canadian rangers to help out in northern and remote areas, both in nunavik and BA’s st. Laurent. These requests are different than the kinds of requests that the federal government usually gets around support for provinces, which is usually for things like floods and forest fires. But we are working with quÉbec to figure out how we can best help in this situation because this is a situation that is unprecedented at many, many levels. What we will continue to say is we will figure out how to help and be there for each other.

Question:

Salimah shivji, CBC News. It is April 16 today. That is the date that your federal modelling said there would be between 500 and 700 deaths in Canada. We’re at nearly double the number of deaths. What went wrong with the modelling and what does this mean for Canadians?

Answer:

I think people need to understand that modelling is a framework that allows us to plan for different scenarios in the future. It is not a declaration of what is going to happen, but a discussion of what might happen in the coming days and weeks and allows us to plan and prepare for it. I think one of the things we’ve seen over the past number of weeks is a far-more severe impact on seniors’ residences and long-term care facilities than we had certainly hoped for or more than we feared. Therefore, we need to take more measures to protect our seniors. That’s what I will be talking with the premiers about tonight. [voice of interpreter] the modelling does not predict and does not say exactly what is going to happen. It allows us to prepare for various scenarios that could occur. I think that what we’ve seen in recent weeks is that our seniors’ residences have been hit harder than what we were expecting. That is why we will be addressing that issue this evening with the premiers of theprovinces and territories. [end of translation].

Question:

is the Canadian government prepared for some front line medical workers to die in the fight against COVID-19 and what would be the government be looking at to support family members and dependants left behind?

Answer:

There have been far too many deaths already in Canada. That is why we need to do everything we can to slow the spread of the disease and to protect our front line workers with P.P.E. That we’re ordering in, with support for them, for their families, as we get through this difficult time. The most important thing is for Canadians to continue to stay home, to slow the spread of thisvirus, to ensure that those who go to work every day to keep therest of us safe and to fight this virus are able to do so in safety for themselves and their loved ones. We will continue to do everything we can to protect these heroes.

Question:

[voice of interpreter] radio-Canada. I understand that you’re in negotiations with quÉbec. We understood that point. But in concrete terms, how many individuals or how many physicians or nurses can you send? I’d just like to have an actual idea of what could be offered toquÉbec.

Answer:

Well, as I said, this is an unusual request that we have never received before. So we’re looking at scenarios and different ways of helping. We will be there to help. We want to help. But what it looks like at this point, well, that’s what we’re talking about now.

Question:

So you don’t have any idea that it will be 50 doctors or –

Answer:

No, no. We’re discussing that right now, as to how we can help. But we also know this is a very serious situation, if quÉbec is asking the federal government for government. So we will be there to support them, but we have to develop the situation together.

Question:

When?

Answer:

Well, in the coming hours and days. We are having those discussions and we know that it’s urgent. So we will do this as quickly as possible so we can send them the support that they need. Thank you very much, everyone. [end of translation]