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Mr. Yasir Naqvi (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health, Lib.)

Jun/5/24 8:11:36 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for his very thoughtful question. I appreciated the question when he asked it in the House, and I have had an opportunity to speak to him in the hallways about it as well. The question is regarding the urgent need for effective treatments for pulmonary arterial hypertension, or PAH, as he outlined. This serious condition significantly impacts the lives of many Canadians and can impose severe health risks. We are aware of the recent approval of the drug sotatercept by the FDA in the United States, which offers a new option for those affected by PAH. Naturally, the question arises, as the member is asking, when can Canadians expect to be able to access this new medication here in Canada? Our number one priority is the health and safety of Canadians, which includes supporting them in accessing the necessary medications for the health conditions they face. The process for approving new drugs in Canada is thorough and designed to ensure that any therapeutic product made available on the Canadian market meets our high standards for safety, efficacy and quality. While understanding the need for more therapeutic options, we must also ensure that the benefits of any drug outweigh any potential risks. The approval process for a new drug, like this particular drug that we are talking about, involves several key and necessary stages. To market a drug in Canada, manufacturers must first file a submission with sufficient evidence of the product's quality, safety and efficacy. Health Canada reviews the data, which comes from clinical trials, research studies and other sources, to determine whether the product's benefits outweigh its risks. This rigorous evaluation is necessary to ensure that when a new drug, like sotatercept, is approved, it is safe and effective for use by Canadian patients. I can confirm that Health Canada is currently reviewing this specific drug submission under priority review. Priority review is a pathway that supports access to safe, effective and high-quality products. By accelerating the review process, we are committed to ensuring that potentially life-saving treatments reach patients without unnecessary delays. It is important to note that timing for the completion of Health Canada's reviews depends on many factors, including timelines for receiving requested additional data or information, discussions with the sponsors, and the acceptability and completeness of the information submitted. Given these considerations, the timing of when a decision will be made on this submission is not available at this time. However, we expect a decision to be made in the coming months. In conclusion, Health Canada recognizes the important role that sotatercept could play for patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension, which is why it was granted priority review status. A decision will be made once all of the required information has been thoroughly evaluated by Health Canada and upon ensuring that the benefits of this particular drug outweigh the risks of its use. We are committed to a comprehensive review process to ensure that the products Canadians consume are safe and effective.

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Mr. Scott Reid

Jun/5/24 8:15:10 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, last Friday I had the opportunity to sit in the Speaker's chair for an hour. I had no idea until that moment how hard it is to remember the names of people's ridings, so you have my empathy. I appreciate what the parliamentary secretary said in his response. It sounds like the November deadline, which I speculated and hoped would be achieved, is likely to be achieved. I am hoping the parliamentary secretary has information as to whether or not the manufacturer has provided all information and whether the process has begun. I do not know if that is available to him, or if that was in his briefing deck, but if it is, I would like to get confirmation that, indeed, the process has begun and the manufacturer is not lagging behind. It is a relevant consideration, because Canada is a relatively small market, and this is a relatively small production run. I would just seek any reassurance he can give on that subject.

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Mr. Yasir Naqvi

Jun/5/24 8:16:09 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, again, I thank the member for his thoughtful and considerate way of approaching this really important issue. As I mentioned in my response earlier, there is a priority review that is going on, which requires an expeditious review of the process and the timelines that are associated with it. It requires, of course, the sponsor or the manufacturer of the medication to provide all the necessary data for Health Canada to review. The information that I have available to me is that there is no indication that the process is not taking place. I understand that it is taking place. I am hopeful that, for the sake of Canadians who are suffering from PAH, the review will be completed and approval granted in the requisite time. However, that is not my decision. No politician should be making those types of decisions. That is the decision of officials at Health Canada, ensuring that the health and safety of Canadians remain paramount.

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Ms. Leslyn Lewis (Haldimand—Norfolk, CPC)

Jun/5/24 8:17:14 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am here tonight to ask the government to answer to Canadians for the state of despair, hunger and homelessness that Canadians are experiencing. After years of the Liberal government, propped up by the NDP, Canadians are struggling with hunger and homelessness as they never have before in this country. This country is a noble nation. We have always been a beacon of hope and opportunity for people seeking refuge from all around the world. Today, that national legacy is at risk of being lost. How can Canada continue to be a land of opportunity and freedom when so many Canadians are no longer able to feed and house themselves? According to the Parliamentary Budget Officer, chronic homelessness is up 38%. The number of individuals living in unsheltered locations has increased by 88%. That is almost double the number of unsheltered people in 2018. The level of suffering in this country is shocking, especially considering that the government has added half a billion dollars of new annual spending to reduce homelessness, an increase in spending by the government of 374%. Why, if the government is spending more, is life getting harder for Canadians? Canadians are afraid for their financial future and what it will bring. We know that 76% of the mortgages that exist today will be renewed by 2026, and Canadians are worried about their mortgage interest rates. They worry that their payments will double, or even triple, because of increasing interest rates. Canadians can expect a payment shock, according to the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions. The Liberals have added $61 billion of new spending to their new budget, which the Governor of the Bank of Canada confirmed was not helpful in bringing down interest rates. Canadians, especially young Canadians, just want to be able to afford a home, to be able to afford shelter and basic food. How many homes has the government actually built with its $4.4-billion housing accelerator fund? It is zero. Even worse, housing starts are down and home prices keep going up in most jurisdictions across Canada. The facts are as follows: When the Prime Minister was first elected, he promised to expand the middle class, but in fact, it has significantly reduced. He has increased homelessness by more than a third; he has priced middle-income Canadians out of owning a home, and he has allowed food bank use to jump by 50% over the past three years, with over two million Canadians a month accessing food banks. I hope that my hon. colleague can respond to the matter at hand so that Canadians can finally get a straight answer. When will the NDP-Liberal government cap its inflationary spending and build the homes that Canadians need to live in dignity?

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Mr. Yasir Naqvi (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health, Lib.)

Jun/5/24 8:21:15 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank the member opposite for the question she has posed. I appreciate the opportunity to highlight the work that our government is doing to tackle affordability in Canada. I would like to start by welcoming the Bank of Canada's decision to lower the interest rate. It was a very significant moment today. It is truly great news for Canada and for Canadians. In fact, Canada is the first country in the G7 to have an interest rate cut take place. It is the result of the federal government's economically responsible plan. It is a plan that the government has been working really hard on to create the economic conditions that would make it possible for the Bank of Canada to lower the interest rate. It does not happen in a vacuum. It is as a result of the economic plan and the agenda the government has been working on. We are seeing the fruit of that hard work now. On the matter of housing and building more homes faster, the Liberals are absolutely committed to tackling housing affordability by building more homes. The best way to bring down home prices is to increase supply and increase it quickly. The $4-billion housing accelerator fund is already cutting red tape across the country, with 179 agreements with municipalities, provinces and territories, which will enable the construction of over 750,000 new homes over the next 10 years. In fact, in budget 2024, that work is built on by proposing to top the fund up with $400 million to build more homes faster in more communities. Budget 2024 also proposes an additional $15 billion in new loan funding for the apartment construction loan program, bringing the program's total to over $55 billion. This investment will help build more than 30,000 additional new homes across Canada, bringing the program's total contribution to over 131,000 new homes by 2032. To support this new housing, we are investing in the infrastructure community's need to grow, which is why budget 2024 proposes to provide $6 billion to launch a new Canada housing infrastructure fund that would allow our communities and municipalities to build infrastructure, like sewer systems, and access to electricity and natural gas, in order for people to enjoy their homes. Furthermore, budget 2024 takes action to unlock new pathways for young renters to become homeowners, and to protect middle-class homeowners from rising mortgage payments. For example, budget 2024 announced the government's intention to strengthen the Canadian mortgage charter to allow 30-year mortgage amortization for first-time homebuyers purchasing newly constructed homes. To help our younger generation purchase their first home faster, we are proposing to increase the homebuyers' plan withdrawal limit from $35,000 to $60,000. Yes, there are a lot of measures here in place, but it is a big task to ensure the government enables the building of more homes across the country in all communities. This will be done not just in large urban centres, but in smaller communities in the country as well. It will require multiple initiatives, like the ones I have outlined, for that to happen. What will not help are mere slogans. Just to say that we will build homes, as we hear from the Conservatives and as we hear from the member opposite, is not going to build a single home. These measures will.

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Ms. Leslyn Lewis

Jun/5/24 8:25:18 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, over the last nine years, we have seen the government engage in inflationary spending that has driven up interest rates, and Canadians are paying the price of that. I will remind the member that 76% of Canadians who have mortgages now will have their mortgage renewed in 2026. Canadians have had enough of a government that has failed to ensure affordable housing, energy bills and food. Canadians are desperate. A whole generation of Canadians have lost hope on the dream of owning a home and having even the same standard of living that their parents enjoyed. Only Conservatives are committed to reducing taxes, fixing the budget and building homes that Canadians can afford.

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Mr. Yasir Naqvi

Jun/5/24 8:26:22 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I did not hear any concrete solutions from the member opposite. Yet again, it was just a slogan. I can assure the House a slogan is not going to help improve the lives of Canadians. When the member opposite refers to inflationary spending, she is saying that the Government of Canada, during the pandemic, which was the worst crisis of our lifetime, should not have spent the money to help Canadians and to help Canadian businesses. That is the spending she is arguing against. That is the spending she is blaming for the challenges we are facing with the increase in inflation and the increase in interest rates. That is the aftermath of coming out of a pandemic. The government had no choice but to ensure that we protected Canadians. We had to make sure that Canadians had enough money to put food on the table and that businesses survived. That is what we did, and that is why our economy is growing. We are able to see the impact of that.

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Jun/5/24 8:27:28 p.m.
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The motion to adjourn the House is now deemed to have been adopted. Accordingly, the House stands adjourned until tomorrow at 10 a.m. pursuant to Standing Order 24(1). (The House adjourned at 8:27 p.m.)

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