Poilievre says Conservatives would uphold federal-provincial health-care funding deals
Pierre Poilievre says he would uphold the 10-year deals Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is looking to ink with provinces and territories that would inject $46.2 billion in new funding into Canada's strained health-care systems, if the Conservatives form the next government.
Poilievre said Wednesday that while Trudeau has announced an inadequate amount of new funding to improve the state of Canadian healthcare, based on premiers' initial reactions, "obviously a future Conservative government led by myself will keep in place these additional sums and honour the commitments made."
On Tuesday, Trudeau pitched the premiers a plan that would see federal health funding increase by $196.1 billion over 10 years, in exchange for provinces and territories meeting metrics to improve care.
The offer includes both increases to the amount budgeted to flow through the Canada Health Transfer (CHT), as well as federal plans to sign bilateral deals that are mindful of each province and territory鈥檚 unique circumstances.
While Trudeau is touting the Liberals' commitment as "a major federal investment in health care," early indications suggest the offer doesn鈥檛 satisfy provinces' demands.
Poilievre told reporters on his way into a Conservative caucus meeting on Wednesday morning, it's regrettable that Trudeau didn't come to the table with more new funding. Though, the Conservative leader said he will "honour" any deal that's finalized, agreeing with the Liberals' approach of looking to advance shared goals with the new money.
Metrics the federal government hopes it can use to assess any tangible progress from these funding arrangements include the net-new family physicians in each province and territory, the size of surgical backlogs, and the median wait times for access to mental health services.
Poilievre wasn't clear on whether he'd offer up more money, but vowed that a Conservative government would not cut health-care funding.
"A Conservative government will unleash the productive forces of our economy so there is more money available to support health care. We will cut the waste and mismanagement in the federal government鈥 So that more of your tax dollar goes to the emergency room, and to treating your family," he said.
This commitment from the Conservative leader offers some certainty that any new spending plans to improve staffing, tackle surgical backlogs, and speed up access to emergency and mental health care, can count on funding whether the Liberals or Conservatives win the next federal election.
Ahead of this commitment, the NDP had accused Poilievre of being 鈥渁bsent, silent and missing鈥 from the conversation around the future of health care in Canada.
During a press conference on Wednesday, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said that if he were prime minister, he'd meet with every premier to talk about rebuilding the health-care system.
Reacting to the Conservative leader's remarks on his way into question period鈥攚here health-care spending was a hot topic鈥擳rudeau accused Poilievre of slamming the plan that the prime minister said will improve care for Canadians.
"I haven't heard from any Canadians anywhere in the country who feel like there isn't a need to improve their health-care systems鈥 and I know awful lot of premiers are very eager to roll up their sleeves and get to work," Trudeau said. "Conversations are beginning in the coming days to be able to deliver this money as quickly as possible to make sure that there are concrete improvements."
Premiers are still digesting the prime minister鈥檚 pitch, but with plans to have the agreements solidified ahead of the next federal budget, Trudeau has said the federal government is looking to finalize negotiations with the provinces and territories in the next few weeks.
Some premiers left Tuesday鈥檚 meeting viewing the Liberal offer as a starting point, while others viewed it as more of a take-it-or-leave-it proposal.
"We're going to sit down today and review it, and discuss it with the rest of the premiers. I'm confident we'll get the T's crossed, the I's dotted," said Ontario Premier Doug Ford on Wednesday. "We're grateful for the offer鈥 but we want sustainability. We need certainty, moving forward鈥 And I'm confident we'll work collaboratively together with the federal government, and I look forward to getting the deal done."
Ford and Health Minister Sylvia Jones will be meeting with federal officials Thursday to discuss the details of the new health-care funding deal. has reported, the premier鈥檚 office said Ontario is being offered $776 million in immediate, emergency top-up funding and another $8.4 billion in health-care money over the next decade. The government, however, is not speaking about how it hopes to use the new funds.
P.E.I. Premier Dennis King stuck around to meet with Trudeau on Wednesday. Coming out of that sit-down, King told reporters that he thinks a "significant" amount of money is being offered, but it's nothing new for premiers to push for more from the federal government.
"He who has the gold makes the rules. So I don't know if this is a negotiation. I think it's, we had put forward what we thought was a fair deal. The federal government has come back. At the end of the day the federal government are the ones who say, 'this is the federal money, this is what you have.' So I'm prepared to take that money and put it to good use," King said. "But as I say, I don't think it ends here. I think we need to continue to look for more opportunities to partner with the federal government when it comes to the delivery of health care."
On his way into a federal Liberal caucus meeting on Wednesday morning, Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos said that Trudeau asked him to write to his provincial and territorial counterparts to outline the path ahead for negotiating the proposed bilateral deals tailored to each health-care system鈥檚 needs.
Duclos said he'll be doing that "very soon" so that "action plans" the federal government wants to see from the premiers can be finalized, and the $25 billion in earmarked funding can start to flow.
"As we heard yesterday, I think all premiers have indicated that they feel that this is a path forward. It's a big step made yesterday. And now, we need to talk about the way by which those dollars will bring results to patients and workers in Canada. And the good news is that lots of the work鈥 the actual policy that is needed to generate those results, lots of the work on that has been done over the last year with my colleague health ministers," Duclos said.
IN DEPTH
Jagmeet Singh pulls NDP out of deal with Trudeau Liberals, takes aim at Poilievre Conservatives
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has pulled his party out of the supply-and-confidence agreement that had been helping keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberals in power.
'Not the result we wanted': Trudeau responds after surprise Conservative byelection win in Liberal stronghold
Conservative candidate Don Stewart winning the closely-watched Toronto-St. Paul's federal byelection, and delivering a stunning upset to Justin Trudeau's candidate Leslie Church in the long-time Liberal riding, has sent political shockwaves through both parties.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government鈥檚 three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party鈥檚 popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn鈥檛 be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canadians across the country mark Remembrance Day
Today Canadians will remember and honour the sacrifice of men and women in uniform who gave their lives in service of the country's values and principles.
Trump announces Tom Homan, former director of immigration enforcement, will serve as 'border czar'
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump says that Tom Homan, his former acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement director, will serve as "border czar" in his incoming administration.
Why brain aging can vary dramatically between people
Researchers are uncovering deeper insights into how the human brain ages and what factors may be tied to healthier cognitive aging, including exercising, avoiding tobacco, speaking a second language or even playing a musical instrument.
Bleeding and in pain, a woman endured a harrowing wait for miscarriage care due to Georgia's restrictive abortion law
Since the U.S. Supreme Court鈥檚 2022 Dobbs decision eliminated the federal right to abortion, miscarriage management has become trickier and in some cases, deadlier.
The union representing some 1,200 dockworkers at the Port of Montreal has overwhelmingly rejected a deal with their employers association.
Canadian veterans remember how they eased tensions as UN peacekeepers in ethnically split Cyprus
It was the first time that Canadian UN peacekeeper Michelle Angela Hamelin said she came up against the raw emotion of a people so exasperated with their country's predicament.
'I was called;' Murray Sinclair's life and legacy honoured at emotional memorial
Applause erupted over and over at the Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg Sunday as the son of Murray Sinclair, a former judge, senator and chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission into residential schools, spoke about his father.
Children's book by chef Jamie Oliver withdrawn after criticism from Indigenous Australians
A children's book written by British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has been withdrawn from sale after it was criticized for causing offense to Indigenous Australians.
A man who was critically injured in a police-involved shooting in Hamilton late Sunday afternoon has died in hospital, says the province鈥檚 police watchdog.
Local Spotlight
Should Toronto tear up its bike lanes to improve traffic flow? Critics say it's not so simple
A congestion crisis, a traffic nightmare, or unrelenting gridlock -- whatever you call it, most agree that Toronto has a congestion problem. To alleviate some of the gridlock, the Ontario government has announced it plans to remove bike lanes from three major roadways.
For the second year in a row, the 鈥楪ift-a-Family鈥 campaign is hoping to make the holidays happier for children and families in need throughout Barrie.
Some of the most prolific photographers behind CTV Skywatch Pics of the Day use the medium for fun, therapy, and connection.
A young family from Codroy Valley, N.L., is happy to be on land and resting with their newborn daughter, Miley, after an overwhelming, yet exciting experience at sea.
As Connor Nijsse prepared to remove some old drywall during his garage renovation, he feared the worst.
A group of women in Chester, N.S., has been busy on the weekends making quilts 鈥 not for themselves, but for those in need.
A Vancouver artist whose streetside singing led to a chance encounter with one of the world's biggest musicians is encouraging aspiring performers to try their hand at busking.
Ten-thousand hand-knit poppies were taken from the Sanctuary Arts Centre and displayed on the fence surrounding the Dartmouth Cenotaph on Monday.
A Vancouver man is saying goodbye to his nine-to-five and embarking on a road trip from the Canadian Arctic to Antarctica.