Liberals Block Health Minister from Testifying on Ebola

Ottawa, ON - Dan Mazier, Conservative Shadow Minister for Health, issued the following statement after Liberals on the health committee blocked a request for the Minister of Health to provide a briefing on the Liberals' response to the Ebola outbreak:

"While Canadians are looking for information on the recent outbreak of Ebola, this week, Liberal MPs blocked a request for the Health Minister to provide an update to the health committee on the federal government's preparedness and response.

"With Canada preparing to welcome thousands of foreign visitors for major international events, including the FIFA World Cup, the federal Minister of Health should be transparent and accountable to Parliament. Canadians deserve to know whether the federal government is prepared for the rising global cases of Ebola and whether protocols are in place to prevent the disease from entering Canada.

"This should not be controversial, but instead, Liberals blocked a briefing and kept Canadians in the dark. Liberals have deliberately paralyzed the health committee, blocking an investigation into the $300 million PrescribeIT scandal, and now their obstruction is preventing the committee from doing further work.

"Sadly, this has become a pattern, and serves as yet another example of Mark Carney's Health Minister being more focused on avoiding accountability than doing her job. Conservatives will continue pressing for answers on Ebola preparedness, the $300 million PrescribeIT scandal, and why Liberals are preventing the health committee from working for Canadians."