PM TRUDEAU EXPECTS MOST OF CANADA TO BE VACCINATED BY SEPTEMBER

Sat 28 November 2020:

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday he expects more than half of Canadians to receive a COVID-19 vaccine by next September after he came under criticism for saying Canadians won’t be among the first to get doses.

Prime Minister Trudeau said there are “very good chances” that most Canadians will be able to be vaccinated against COVID-19 by next September, as new infections surged in the country’s most populous province.

Speaking to reporters in the capital, Ottawa, on Friday, Trudeau said his government is working closely with provinces and territories to prepare for a vaccine roll-out.

Trudeau said earlier this week Canada will have to wait for a vaccine because the first ones are likely to be given to citizens of the countries they are made in. He noted the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany have mass vaccine-production facilities but Canada does not.

Opposition parties criticized Trudeau for not ensuring Canadians get priority access to vaccines.

Trudeau said Friday he expects vaccines to start arriving early next year—but what month Canadians will get the first doses remains an open question.

“The race to get to the starting line first, I can understand, but this pandemic doesn’t get over until we reached the finish line,” Trudeau said.

📣 Attention young Canadians! Help protect yourself and your community from #COVID19 by using the #COVIDAlert app. Download it here: https://t.co/5nL0Ff4VYm pic.twitter.com/wPryWwAqVE

— CanadianPM (@CanadianPM) November 28, 2020

“What really matters is when we get to cross the finish line and the fact that the doctors highlighted that if all goes according to plan, we should be able to have a majority of Canadians vaccinated by next September, puts us in a very good stead.”

He also named the Canadian army’s Major-General Dany Fortin, who previously led NATO forces in Iraq, to head a national operations centre that will coordinate the country’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan.

“Canada is well prepared for large-scale roll-outs of vaccines, but this will be the biggest immunisation in the history of the country. We must reach everyone who wants a vaccine no matter where they live,” Trudeau said.

COVID-19 has surged in recent weeks across Canada, with several regions putting stricter travel restrictions in place and closing non-essential businesses and services to try to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The province of Ontario – home to more than 14 million people – recorded 1,855 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, its highest single-day tally since the start of the pandemic, as well as 20 additional deaths linked to the virus.

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