I’m so happy to be back in Saskatoon today at the St. Ann’s Senior Citizens Village. It’s great to be here with provincial Minister Hindley, thank you very much for being part of this today.

Every Canadian deserves to be safe, no matter their age or where they live. The pandemic was very hard on seniors, especially those living in long-term care homes. It was important to be there for them then, but it is important to continue to be there for them now.

Here at St. Ann’s, the facility just upgraded its rooms and washrooms, and made the building more accessible; that’s good news for people who live here. As we recover from this pandemic, we must all continue to work together to improve care for our seniors, and that’s exactly why we’re here today.

We’ve reached an agreement with the Government of Saskatchewan through the Safe Long-Term Care Fund; the federal government will provide $32 million to the province to help improve care for seniors. This investment will support, for example, safer dining practices and increased cleaning and housekeeping, it’ll also support enhanced screening protocols for staff.

During the past years, I’ve had the opportunity to talk with many long-term care workers to thank them and hear their stories, but also their concerns, and I know that for caregivers and managers here at St-Ann’s, teamwork is at the centre of everything you do to support residents. Well, our government will continue to be here for you, because it’s clear that better conditions of work for caregivers lead directly to better conditions of care for residents.

Now, including Saskatchewan, our government has signed and announced agreements through the Safe Long-Term Care Fund with nine provinces and territories: Saskatchewan, B.C., New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Ontario, PEI, Yukon, and Northwest Territories. These investments are making a real difference for people and for caregivers. We’re also continuing our work with the other provinces and territories to be there for seniors right across the country.

Whether it is through investments to support residents, long-term care homes or research and innovation in brain health, or to improve access to health care in rural and remote areas, we are working to make sure that no one gets left behind and to build a better future for all.

One of the things that has characterized these past two difficult years is the extent to which Canadians have been there for each other. And we got reminded of that during the pandemic, but I know that we also know that that’s the path forward. As we deal with new challenges, as we continue, as this pandemic runs its course, we need to continue to be there to support each other, to listen to each other, to be there for each other, just like Canadians, particularly here in Saskatchewan, have always been there for their neighbours.