Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for your question. Following the economic statement, the government is committing $1.7 billion to continue supporting provinces and territories in securing rapid testing supplies that they need to keep our citizens safe and healthy.

I’ve also been advised that the government has already authorized 24 of these tests, and we can expect more to be authorized as the technology develops. I have been further advised that the government has ordered over 35 million tests for all provinces and territories. I’m also told that the government has deployed a large number of tests to provinces and territories and has shared guidance as to how they can be used effectively. This will increase our ability to detect, track and address outbreaks of COVID-19 variants in Canada.