Facing questions about why the federal government has yet to release comprehensive national projections on the scale of the virus’ spread and how long it’ll be before Canadians can expect a return to some sense of normalcy, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that information is coming “soon.”
Trudeau continues to implore Canadians to stay home if they want to come out of the pandemic sooner rather than later, saying there are still too many people going out unnecessarily, to the detriment of front-line workers. He also reemphasized the need for cross-Canada collaboration in advance of his call with the premiers.
In recent weeks, Trudeau has fielded numerous questions about the time it’ll take before Canada emerges from the pandemic, and has yet to offer specifics on what his government’s death toll projections are, despite such fatalities projections being shared publicly in other countries.
The prime minister said he will talk to the premiers about making sure all data coming from each region is aligned, to inform more accurate federal models.
The inconsistency in the data from across Canada is part of the delay in offering a nationwide picture, he said, adding that he understands that Canadians want further analysis on the daily case counts, to know when they could head back into their office, or when their kids can see their friends again in-person.
“We’re constantly getting and validating more data, that means we can share more information with you,” Trudeau said.
Thursday marks the tail end of the third week many Canadians have stayed at home, watching the virus spread and wondering how long the public health measures to curtail the pandemic will be in place.
As of midday Thursday, the number of confirmed cases rose to 11,068 in Canada, with 130 people dead and another 1,688 people recovered from the virus.