As-Salāmu ʿAlaykum
We’ve just published our weekly edition of Muslims in The House for the week of February 4 – February 8 2019!
This week’s edition covers issues relating to the proposed universal pharmacare, the federal deficit and homelessness and affordable housing.
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Universal Pharmacare
MP Guy Caron (Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC - NDP) raised the issue of pharmacare and the current lack of affordability of medication. He asked the government why they are not moving forward on universal pharmacare when they have stated that they support a national-universal pharmacare program. Prime Minister Trudeau responded by stating that in the 2018 budget, the government created an advisory council on the implementation of national pharmacare and that they will use the council’s final report to guide implementation of the national pharmacare program.
Federal Deficit
MP Gérard Deltell (Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC - Cons) raised the issue that the government will not deliver a balanced budget in 2019, as the Prime Minister promised, and that the deficit has reached nearly $60 billion. The Prime Minister responded that the deficit spending was necessary to make investments in the middle class and communities which have resulted in economic growth.
Homelessness and Affordable Housing
MP Sheri Benson (Saskatoon West, SK - NDP) raised the issue of 9,000 people being homeless in Toronto and 180,000 people on waiting lists for affordable housing, asking if the government will step up to address these issues of homelessness and affordable housing. The Minister of Families, MP Jean-Yves Duclos (Quebec, QC – Lib), responded that the government’s national housing strategy which was announced in 2017 is designed to decrease chronic homelessness and increase the availability of affordable housing.