Premier Jason Kenney and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. File photo. (Canadian Press)

By David Opinko

Kenney & Trudeau meet to mainly discuss pandemic aid for Alberta

Sep 29, 2021 | 3:16 PM

EDMONTON, AB – Canada’s newly re-elected Prime Minister spoke with Alberta’s Premier on Wednesday morning for the first time since the federal election.

Officials with the Alberta Government confirmed that Justin Trudeau and Jason Kenney spoke for about 20 minutes with most discussions revolving around the fourth wave of the pandemic.

Trudeau reiterated the Government of Canada’s offer of support through healthcare resources.

Kenney confirmed that the two governments are working on providing resources for the Canadian Armed Forces and the Red Cross. Military aid had previously been discussed to airlift COVID-19 patients from overflowing hospitals in Alberta to other provinces.

Trudeau thanked the Premier for supplying PPE to other provinces at the start of the pandemic.

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Kenney asked his federal counterpart if they could supply doses of the Janssen (Johnson and Johnson) COVID-19 vaccine to Alberta, indicating that some Albertans in areas with lower vaccine uptake were waiting for those ones to become available. Trudeau affirmed Alberta’s request for 20,000 doses.

The premier asked the prime minister about securing more rapid antigen tests for private-sector employers. Trudeau confirmed that they have a significant inventory of rapid tests and would look into their availability for the private sector.

Another topic that was discussed was Kenney’s desire to work with Trudeau’s new cabinet on ensuring “regulatory stability and predictability” so large-scale investments can proceed.

They also talked about energy security via the completion of the Enbridge Line 3 replacement project, the Line 5 pipeline crossing, as well as the federal government’s child care program.

Kenney said the province approved a new negotiating mandate to get a deal done on child care funding. The exact details of this mandate were not specified.

by David Opinko