Canadians do not trust Dr. Theresa Tam’s Public Health Agency and will not blindly follow its advice, MPs on the Commons health committee yesterday told the chief public health officer. Conservatives read into the record a string of incorrect statements made by Tam during the initial stage of the pandemic..“Hindsight is 20-20,” said Tam. “Information and the evolution of the understanding of the virus was changing all the time.”.“We need to have humility in the face of these viruses for sure,” testified Tam. “I am sure there’s a lot we can do.”.Conservative MP Matt Jeneroux (Edmonton Riverbend, Alb.) read into the record a selection of misstatements by Dr. Tam from the earliest days of the pandemic. “We’d love to hear your insights based on those quotes,” said Jeneroux. Tam had said:.• “Canadians should not be concerned they can pick up the virus from an infected individual by any casual contact such as walking through the airport” (January 27, 2020);• “Sealing off the borders is not an effective approach to containing the virus” (March 4, 2020);• “There is no need to use a mask for well people” (March 28, 2020);• “Putting a mask on an asymptomatic person is not beneficial” (March 30, 2020);• “Effectiveness of the use of non-medical masks has not been well demonstrated” (April 1, 2020)..According to Blacklock's Reporter, Tam in 2020 also mistakenly predicted only 10% of Canadians would become infected with COVID-19, a figure ridiculed at the time by epidemiologists. She also announced June 29, 2020, "transmission is largely under control.”.“Is the Public Health Agency and Health Canada planning to conduct a full review and report on the handling of COVID?” Jeneroux asked yesterday. “That decision is not up to me,” replied Tam..“What is your plan to build back that trust?” asked Conservative MP Randy Hoback (Prince Albert, Sask.). “This is really important and this is why we must come together and work together and earn that trust,” replied Tam..Hoback said his constituents were frustraed by poor Public Health Agency advice that was apparently based on science. Hoback noted Agency directives occasionally contradicted medical advice from Saskatchewan’s own chief medical health officer Dr. Saqib Shahab..“What one of the concerns I have coming out of the riding of Prince Albert is lack of credibility now in our government institutions all the way around,” said Hoback. “Coming from Saskatchewan Dr. Shahab would make a recommendation that we could remove masks. I’d fly to Ottawa and we’d be fully masked. Canadians would say, ‘Oh, how come the science in Saskatchewan says one thing yet the science in Ottawa says something different?’”.Hoback asked Tam how she would build back her credibility in similar scenarios going forward. “What really scares me is we don’t have credibility in the organizations now and if there was a bad virus that’s really bad, where you needed to bring forward the lockdowns and things we had to do supposedly at the start of COVID, Canadians wouldn’t listen to you.”.“They would say, ‘Never. We’re never doing this again. We don’t trust you, we don’t listen to you,'” said Hoback. “And we’d see then the massive deaths that would result from that because we don’t have the credibility or the trust of Canadians.”
Canadians do not trust Dr. Theresa Tam’s Public Health Agency and will not blindly follow its advice, MPs on the Commons health committee yesterday told the chief public health officer. Conservatives read into the record a string of incorrect statements made by Tam during the initial stage of the pandemic..“Hindsight is 20-20,” said Tam. “Information and the evolution of the understanding of the virus was changing all the time.”.“We need to have humility in the face of these viruses for sure,” testified Tam. “I am sure there’s a lot we can do.”.Conservative MP Matt Jeneroux (Edmonton Riverbend, Alb.) read into the record a selection of misstatements by Dr. Tam from the earliest days of the pandemic. “We’d love to hear your insights based on those quotes,” said Jeneroux. Tam had said:.• “Canadians should not be concerned they can pick up the virus from an infected individual by any casual contact such as walking through the airport” (January 27, 2020);• “Sealing off the borders is not an effective approach to containing the virus” (March 4, 2020);• “There is no need to use a mask for well people” (March 28, 2020);• “Putting a mask on an asymptomatic person is not beneficial” (March 30, 2020);• “Effectiveness of the use of non-medical masks has not been well demonstrated” (April 1, 2020)..According to Blacklock's Reporter, Tam in 2020 also mistakenly predicted only 10% of Canadians would become infected with COVID-19, a figure ridiculed at the time by epidemiologists. She also announced June 29, 2020, "transmission is largely under control.”.“Is the Public Health Agency and Health Canada planning to conduct a full review and report on the handling of COVID?” Jeneroux asked yesterday. “That decision is not up to me,” replied Tam..“What is your plan to build back that trust?” asked Conservative MP Randy Hoback (Prince Albert, Sask.). “This is really important and this is why we must come together and work together and earn that trust,” replied Tam..Hoback said his constituents were frustraed by poor Public Health Agency advice that was apparently based on science. Hoback noted Agency directives occasionally contradicted medical advice from Saskatchewan’s own chief medical health officer Dr. Saqib Shahab..“What one of the concerns I have coming out of the riding of Prince Albert is lack of credibility now in our government institutions all the way around,” said Hoback. “Coming from Saskatchewan Dr. Shahab would make a recommendation that we could remove masks. I’d fly to Ottawa and we’d be fully masked. Canadians would say, ‘Oh, how come the science in Saskatchewan says one thing yet the science in Ottawa says something different?’”.Hoback asked Tam how she would build back her credibility in similar scenarios going forward. “What really scares me is we don’t have credibility in the organizations now and if there was a bad virus that’s really bad, where you needed to bring forward the lockdowns and things we had to do supposedly at the start of COVID, Canadians wouldn’t listen to you.”.“They would say, ‘Never. We’re never doing this again. We don’t trust you, we don’t listen to you,'” said Hoback. “And we’d see then the massive deaths that would result from that because we don’t have the credibility or the trust of Canadians.”
