Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

FORSETH: If government is providing $46.66 million for 3M Canada to expand production of N95 masks – shouldn’t we be sharing in the profits 3M will make from this investment?

 

This morning, Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, and the Premier of Ontario, Doug Ford, announced an agreement -- between the Government of Canada, the Government of Ontario and 3M Canada -- on a joint investment to expand a manufacturing facility for N95 respirators in Brockville, Ontario.

The Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario are supporting 3M’s capital investment by contributing $23.33 million each.

The facility will produce 25 million N95 respirators for the Government of Canada and 25 million for the Government of Ontario per year over five years.

This will provide 50 million N95 respirators annually to help health care workers, first responders and other essential workers with the equipment they need to continue their vital work.

That means, according to the joint media release, the investment equals approximately $1 per mask (93 cents each) -- based on the total investment of $46.66 million dollars -- with the government receiving for 50 million masks.

HERE’S THE QUESTIONS I wondered about when I read the joint media release form the Governments of Canada, and Ontario: 

  1. What will 3M Canada themselves be investing into the expansion of their facilities -- and new equipment -- that will enable them to increase production of these masks?

  2. How many additional masks will 3M now be able to manufacture, with this $46.66 million dollar “contribution” to 3M, using taxpayer resources?

  3. What additional “long-term profits” will 3M be able to realize, due to the people of Canada contributing to their ability to create more of these respirators?

  4. What benefits will the people of every other province in Canada receive from this deal? ... and finally ...

  5. If government is providing $46.66 million for 3M Canada -- to be able to expand production of N95 masks – shouldn’t Canadians share in the profits 3M will be making from this investment?


So, those are my questions – do you have any to add that I may have missed?

I just have to say it sure seems like a pretty sweet deal for 3M Canada, with our government acting like an ATM providing them with cash ...

... what do you think?

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Budget 2027: After a Decade of Decline, NDP Budget Delivers an Assault on Seniors, Working Families, and Small Businesses

Peter Milobar, BC Conservative Finance Critic, condemned the NDP government’s latest budget as the result of a decade of decline that has left British Columbians broke, unsafe, and paying more for less.   “After ten years of NDP mismanagement, this budget is an assault on seniors, working families, and the small businesses that drive our economy,” said Milobar. “The NDP have turned their back on the people working hardest to make ends meet and the seniors who built this province.” Milobar pointed to a new $1.1 billion annual income tax increase and warned that the government is piling new costs onto households already struggling with affordability.   “This government keeps asking British Columbians for more, while delivering less,” Milobar said. “The question people are asking is simple: Where has all the money gone?” Milobar noted that BC has gone from a surplus in the first year of NDP government to a projected deficit of more than $13 billion this year, while prov...

FORSETH – My question is, ‘How do we decide who is blue enough to be called a Conservative?’

How do we decide who’s blue enough to be a Conservative? AS OF TODAY (Friday January 30 th ), there are now eight individuals who have put their names forward to lead the Conservative Party of British Columbia. Having been involved with BC’s Conservatives since 2010, and having seen MANY ups and downs, having 8 people say “I want to lead the party” is to me, an incredible turn-around from the past. Sadly, however, it seems that our party cannot seem to shake what I, and others, call a purity test of ‘what is a Conservative’. And that seems to have already come to the forefront of the campaign by a couple of candidates. Let me just say as a Conservative Party of BC member, and as someone active in the party, that frustrates me to no end. Conservatives, more than any other political philosophy or belief, at least to me, seems to have the widest and broadest spectrum of ideals.   For the most part, they are anchored by these central thoughts --- smaller and less intru...

BC cannot regulate, redesign, and reinterpret its way to a stable forestry sector. Communities need clear rules, predictable timelines, and accountability for results.

Photo credit:  Atli Resources LP   BC’s Forestry Crisis Continues with Closure of Beaver Cove Chip Facility   As industry leaders, Indigenous partners, and contractors gather this week at the BC Natural Resources Forum in Prince George, the gap between government rhetoric and reality could not be clearer. Just hours after the Eby government once again touted reconciliation, certainty, and economic opportunity under DRIPA, Atli Chip Ltd, a company wholly owned by the ’Na̱mg̱is First Nation, announced it is managing the orderly closure of its Beaver Cove chip facility. The closure comes despite public tax dollars, repeated government announcements, and assurances that new policy frameworks would stabilize forestry employment and create long-term opportunity in rural and coastal British Columbia. “British Columbians are being told one story, while communities are living another,” said Ward Stamer, Critic for Forests. “This closure makes it clear that announcement...

Labels

Show more