So, I’ve just come from what has now become a daily briefing on the wildfire situation out west, and as Canadians are seeing in the horrific images they see of devastation and fear of residents in the Northwest Territories and in B.C.; it is an extraordinarily serious situation.

I have to highlight as well, though, that even as we’re seeing those terrible images, we’re also seeing images of how Canadians across the country, particularly out west, are stepping up to help their fellow citizens, their neighbours, residents who are fleeing for their lives, in many cases have lost everything.

These are things where emergencies happen and Canadians pull together, and it’s always comforting to see. The federal government is continuing to step up, we’re there with Canadian Armed Forces resources, we’re active in coordinating with regional and local governments to make sure people are safe, make sure we’re doing everything to protect lives and property, but there’s a lot more to do and we’re going to continue to stay focused on that. I spoke with Premier Eby of British Columbia yesterday, I’ve spoken with Premier Cochrane of the Northwest Territories a few days before; we had an IRG meeting yesterday of cabinet and tomorrow we’re going to be taking some time to ensure that during this cabinet retreat further coordination and actions to keep people safe during this ridiculously bad summer in terms of extreme weather events. During our session tomorrow, the minister of Emergency Preparedness will be joining us but virtually. He’s staying home in British Columbia to continue leading the federal response and coordinate closely with the province on the situation, not just in Kelowna, but across the central Okanagan and in places where they’re further threatened by fires. I have to say again though, that wherever it is across the country that I’ve been this summer, to see people fleeing fires, to see people, first responders responding to emergency situations, Canadians have stepped up, have shown who they truly are as people are there for each other, welcoming friends, neighbours, strangers into their homes, into their communities to support them. This is what we do as Canadians. We’re there for each other. We continue to step up for each other and even amidst all the horrible images, there is a reinforcement of who Canadians are when times are tough like this.

I’ve just come from what has now become my daily briefing on the forest fire situation out west and in the north. I have to say that, as Canadians are seeing, the images of the fires, of people fleeing for their lives, are extremely hard to see, but at the same time we are consistently seeing mutual aid, people who are there to help one another, opening up their homes, their community, welcoming friends, family members, but also strangers who are going through extremely difficult times. We’re witnessing our strength as Canadians; people are always there to help each other out. The federal government is of course doing the same, we’re there with the Canadian Armed Forces, a number of federal government departments are extremely active in coordinating with regional and local governments to make sure people are safe, that we can manage the situation, and that we bring people to back safety as quickly as possible, but we’re going through these difficult times now. We had an IRG meeting yesterday to discuss the fires with our cabinet members; I spoke with Premier Eby of British Columbia yesterday, and I spoke with the Premier of the Northwest Territories a few days prior. We’ll continue to coordinate and work with people.

Tomorrow we’ll have a cabinet meeting, and we’ll take the time to ensure that the federal government is doing everything possible to coordinate and provide help on the ground where Canadians need it. Our Minister of Emergency Preparedness will be there virtually, but Minister Sajjan decided to remain at home in British Columbia to help lead the federal response and coordinate directly with the province to make sure that everything is being done as a priority to help people. Once again, I have to say that this has been a summer like no other. Across the country, whether it’s near here in Nova Scotia, or across Western Canada, we’ve seen extreme weather events, especially forest fires, which have had a huge impact across the country. But every time, whether in northern Quebec or elsewhere, people are there for each other, Canadians help each other out in difficult situations, and it’s really heartwarming to see how Canadians are always ready to go the extra mile to help their neighbours, their fellow citizens, in difficult situations. We’ll keep doing that, we’ll keep getting through these difficult times together. Thank you.