Michael Health Harris Planning for Rural p. 4 Canadian policy foreign and broadband briefi ng: trade policy in a post- big look at in post- pandemic COVID-19 COVID universe, pp. 17-30 world p. 16 p. 10 Top experts By Nancy weigh in By Robert W. Murray & Jean-Sébastien Rioux Peckford Heard on the Hill p.2 Hill Climbers p.38 THIRTY-FIRST YEAR, NO. 1722 CANADA’S POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT NEWSPAPER MONDAY, APRIL 27, 2020 $5.00 News Foreign policyNews COVID-19 & U.S. News COVID-19 & MPs Multilateralism Government suff ering Keep border closed until collaboration ‘collective with MPs ‘off breakdown,’ say U.S. ‘breeding ground’ the charts’ amid Parliamentarians COVID-19, says calling for for virus under control, Green Party’s May increased global BY ABBAS RANA cooperation ll MPs and Senators are say public health experts Areceiving a daily technical briefi ng from top government BY NEIL MOSS offi cials on the COVID-19 global pandemic seven days a week, s countries around the world ‘If I were Trudeau I would probably be careful about opening the and Green Party Parliamentary Ashift their attention inward, Leader Elizabeth May says the Canadian Parliamentarians say border with the U.S.’ says Melissa Marx of Johns Hopkins University. level of the government’s coop- they are worried about the state ‘The U.S. doesn’t know who is infected and who is not.’ Two Canadian eration with Parliamentarians has of pivotal international hu- been “unprecedented.” manitarian partnerships, and are experts agree, but Steven Hoff man, who advises governments on Ms. May (Saanich-Gulf Is- lands, B.C.) said that cooperation Continued on page 6 health threats, says partially opening the border could be one of the makes her feel she can infl uence fi rst steps Canada takes to ease the COVID-19 lockdown. Continued on page 32 News COVID-19 & Senate Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and U.S. President News Climate change Some Donald Trump. Mr. Trudeau Senators play said on April 18 that his move to Pandemic forces close Canada's community border with the feds to hit pause United States is paying off: 'It has on climate fi xers with contributed to why we are now legislation; country in in many parts of the country talking environmentalists about seeing a lockdown fl attening of the sanguine about curve, which BY PETER MAZEREEUW is good news.' Publications Mail Agreement #40068926 net-zero pledge The Hill Times tuck in their homes like most photograph by Sof us, some of Canada’s Sena- Andrew Meade BY BEATRICE PAEZ tors are using their time away and courtesy White & PALAK MANGAT from Ottawa amid the COVID-19 House Flickr global pandemic to form virtual nvironmental groups say they policy “working groups,” help Eexpect green programs to researchers collect data on the BY PETER MAZEREEUW the decline, and each one can be “I think the United States has to form the backbone of the govern- crisis, or go to bat for businesses traced and contained—both at get their epidemic under control,” ment’s recovery effort when the and non-profi ts in danger of anada should not reopen home, and in the United States, said Mark Walker, a physician and COVID-19 crisis abates. Cits borders until new cases say three experts in public health Continued on page 7 of the novel coronavirus are on from both sides of the border. Continued on page 31 Continued on page 33 2 MONDAY, APRIL 27, 2020 | THE HILL TIMES is trying to mourn together even as strict response to COVID-19 to Soviet Union’s re- distancing rules amid the COVID-19 out- sponse to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. break keep many apart, and limit funerals “The roots of the pandemic are in a cov- to fi ve people. er-up by CCP [Communist Party of China] “Everybody is coming together to grieve authorities in Wuhan, Hubei province,” the Heard on the Hill in spite of this,” said Ms. Zann, who put out letter reads. two Nova Scotian fl ags at her Truro home, The letter is signed by more than 100 joining others who have put up make-shift politicians and academics from around by Neil Moss memorials in their neighbourhoods or the world, including former Liberal justice tartans in their windows. minister Irwin Cotler, Conservative Leader The messages to her have been non- Andrew Scheer, and Conservative MPs stop, and intense, said Ms. Zann, and Dean Allison, Michael Barrett, James Bezan, ‘It’s just been one wave of shock before the victims’ names were known, Ed Fast, Garnett Genuis, Peter Kent, Pierre people were frantically reaching out to her Paul-Hus, and John Williamson, as well as because they hadn’t heard from loved ones. Conservative Senator Michael L. MacDonald The Liberal MP is among those who are and Conservative leadership candidates Pe- and grief after the other’: Grit raising questions about why an emer- ter MacKay, Erin O’Toole, and Derek Sloan. gency alert wasn’t issued over the 12 hour In a statement, the Chinese embassy span in which the gunman evaded police. said the MLI “grossly interfered in China’s MP Zann calls Nova Scotia RCMP has said they were in the process of internal affairs” by publishing the letter. preparing a message not long before police “We urge the MLI to abide by the killed the man believed responsible. professional ethics, focus on the work a Twitter, the only place RCMP had been think tank is supposed to do, refrain from rampage a ‘living nightmare’ posting information, is not widely used in politicizing the research work, and give up her region, she said. anti-China nonsense,” the statement read. “It’s just been one wave of shock and After she got a call from the Prime Former Canadian ambassador to China grief after the other,” she said, since resi- Minister’s Offi ce on April 19 warning of David Mulroney tweeted that the rebuke dents awoke April 19 morning to learn a the active danger, she quickly posted it to was “another example of serious overreach gunman had been on the loose since the Facebook, because that’s where she said by an embassy that needs to be reined in.” night before. most in her riding would see the news. Mr. Kent added that it was a “preposter- The death toll rose in the hours and days “I would imagine the premier and RCMP ous statement.” after, meaning people have remained “in a will both look at what happened and wheth- “I would like to congratulate the PRC state of shock” in Cumberland-Colchester, er it could have been handled differently,” [People’s Republic of China] Embassy- a largely rural riding where most of the said Ms. Zann, who said she thought an alert Ottawa for helping draw more scrutiny carnage occurred, she said. should have been sent across the province. to the Communist Party’s intimidation of Among the victims of Canada’s worst Still, the former longtime MLA noted noth- its own people, and its continued abuse Liberal MP Lenore Zann, who represents the mast killing are RCMP Const. Heidi Steven- ing had happened like this in Nova Scotia abroad,” tweeted MLI senior fellow Shu- riding where much of the violence occurred, says son, a teacher, a couple who were correc- before, and details were still coming in. valoy Majumdar, a former policy director Nova Scotians are fi nding ways to grieve together tional offi cers, and a family of three. The There’s been an outpouring of support to multiple foreign affairs ministers in the despite the pandemic forcing physical distance. RCMP has not released information about for Nova Scotians, who she said have been Harper government. Photograph courtesy of Lenore Zann’s offi ce the shooter’s motives. The 51-year old man fi nding ways to connect and support each seriously assaulted his girlfriend before other, actions that show they do not want n the days after a gunman killed 22 Nova beginning the killing spree that ended when to be remembered for this awful event. IScotians along a trail of 16 crime scenes he was shot and killed by a police offi cer. “We are a beautiful, loving, kind com- MPs change mailing rules last weekend, Liberal MP Lenore Zann, “We are far from the edge of those munity here in northern Nova Scotia,” she who represents the Cumberland-Colches- ripples, we’re still in it,” said Ms. Zann in said. “Everyone realizes sadly this kind to contact constituents on ter riding where the deadly rampage took a phone interview April 23, the day before of thing can happen anywhere. We do not COVID-19 place, said her province was still going the Nova Scotia Remembers vigil, a broad- want to be defi ned by one angry man’s through a“living nightmare.” cast she pointed to as one way the province violent act.”— Samantha Wright Allen MPs have temporarily changed parlia- mentary mailing rules so they can send constituents information about COVID-19, More than 500 days of including about health measures and fed- eral fi nancial support. detainment have passed As with other Hill services, the central- ized mailing from Ottawa had been shut since arrests of Michael down since mid-March, which some MPs worried was closing down a key communi- Kovrig and Michael cation line to inform Canadians about the Spavor; Chinese embassy novel coronavirus. As of April 17, MPs were given permis- lashes out at MLI sion to use outside printing services for up to two mailings to every household in their Last week the 500th day passed since Mi- riding, House Speaker Anthony Rota told chael Kovrig and Michael Spavor have been them in an email that day.