[Chronique de Konrad Yakabuski] The Justin Trudeau-Doug Ford Alliance

Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland embarrassed herself during the 2021 federal election campaign when she posted a clipped video on Twitter featuring then-Conservative leader Erin O’Toole. According to Mme Freeland, the video in question constituted evidence that Mr. O’Toole was “considering the privatization of the Canadian health care system”. However, Twitter had then estimated that the video published by Mme Freeland had been “manipulated” and had attached a warning to this effect
at his chirp.

The incident was nevertheless very revealing. Mr. O’Toole had simply answered yes to an interviewer who had asked him whether the provinces should be allowed to “experiment” by using more private clinics to carry out operations “within the universal system” of health, i.e. without the patient having to pay any costs out of pocket. Several provinces, including Quebec, had already been using private clinics to unclog their hospitals for many years. But the Liberals had consciously chosen to campaign against any increase in the role of the private sector in health. This violates, according to them, the beautiful principle of universality which is the basis of our public system.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s reaction was quite different this week after Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Premier Doug Ford announced that his province intended to use private clinics to perform more and more surgeries. and diagnostic tests in the years to come. Rather than repeating the discourse favored by Mme Freeland in 2021, Trudeau said he has no problem with Ontario making these kinds of changes to “improve” the current system.

“We will always ensure that the Canada Health Act is respected,” he said during a visit to Quebec. At the same time, we know how important it is to deliver, within the conditions of the Canada Health Act, improvements in health care systems across the country. Mr. Trudeau went even further in an interview with the TorontoStar. “I won’t comment on what Doug Ford is trying to do… We’re supposed to say that some innovation should be a good thing as long as it respects the Canada Health Act. »

What explains this reversal on the part of the Trudeau government? Could it be linked to Mr. Ford’s desire to break the common front of the provinces by accepting conditions that Ottawa wishes to impose for any increase in the Canada Health Transfer? Indeed, everything indicates that an agreement on health refinancing would soon be signed by Ottawa and certain provinces and that Mr. Trudeau could thank Mr. Ford for this release.

The Premier of Ontario would be prepared to accept new national standards, although this term is not necessarily used to describe the conditions that Ottawa would like to impose in exchange for an increase in transfers intended for home care and long duration. According to Globe and Mail, the Ford and Trudeau governments are working on a 10-year deal that would see the province pocket an additional $70 billion in health transfers during that time. It’s major. A similar agreement would amount to approximately $40 billion more for Quebec. It remains to be seen how much money would be made available to the provinces in the short term rather than in five years or more.

The fact remains that MM. Ford and Trudeau appear to have developed a working relationship that is the envy of other provinces. Nothing predestined these two leaders with diametrically opposed political philosophies to become allies of convenience. In 2018, Mr Trudeau actively campaigned against Mr Ford alongside then-incumbent Liberal Prime Minister Kathleen Wynne. And Mr. Ford had started his first term by unleashing a war on the federal carbon tax.

But they soon ended their hostilities upon finding that their interests aligned most of the time. On the issue of transforming Ontario’s auto industry to produce electric vehicles, the two men have practically become teammates in order to attract new investment to the province. Their relationship would now be on the way to getting the better of the common front of healthy provinces.

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