The Liberal cabinet says it’s just fine for the Health department to pay social media influencers and C-list celebrities to tell them they are doing a good job..The department was doing the best it can, said Sen. Marc Gold (Que.), Government Representative in the Senate..“The Government of Canada and the scientific committees that advise it and Health Canada are providing information to Canadians to the best of their ability and in real time,” Gold told Senate Question Period..His comments came about over stories that revealed the Health department had hired people to praise them on social media like Twitter and Facebook..“Health Canada has hired social media influencers and minor celebrities to tout the great work it’s doing on Canada’s response to the pandemic,” said Sen. Linda Frum (Ont.)..The department in a March 24 notice said Twitter “influencers” would be paid by the hour to “build the department’s credibility” on the condition they not “tarnish Health Canada’s or the Government of Canada’s reputation.”.“These government-paid influencers are not required to reveal they are government-paid influencers because that, of course, would be very embarrassing,” said Frum, who described the campaign as a tax-funded attempt to “spread disinformation about Health Canada’s response to the pandemic.”.No budget for the campaign was disclosed. The identities of the C-listers to be paid to praise the department were not named..The health department issued a contract notice for the Twitter campaign one day ahead of the scheduled March 25 release of a federal audit confirming managers were unprepared for COVID-19 despite the Public Health Agency’s $675 million-a year budget..“The Agency was not as well prepared as it could have been,” said the audit..Auditors confirmed earlier internal reports and memos that the Agency “did not assess the pandemic risk” until it was too late, and as late as March 9, 2020 “assessed that Covid-19 would have a minimal impact if an outbreak were to occur in Canada.”.A global pandemic was declared two days later..Auditors did not examine Agency mismanagement of a national stockpile of pandemic supplies that resulted in immediate shortages of masks, gowns, medical gloves and other goods..“Later on this year we will be issuing a report on personal protective equipment,” Auditor General Karen Hogan told reporters..Health Minister Patricia Hajdu said “Canada has been learning” from the pandemic, but did not explain past failures to prepare..“I will say the Public Health Agency has learned many, many things about the need to constantly be refreshing pandemic planning,” said Hajdu..Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.,dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com,.Twitter.com/nobby7694
