The Current

The Current for Feb. 3, 2021

Today on The Current: Nurses discuss the pandemic’s impact on mental health; the federal government announces plans to produce vaccines here in Canada; Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil reflects on his last year in office; and retailers pull products over allegations of forced monkey labour.
Matt Galloway is the host of CBC Radio's The Current. (CBC)

Episode Transcript

Today on The Current

Nurses may have been hailed as heroes in the pandemic, but some say they're not treated that way. Matt Galloway talks to three nurses — Meaghan Thumath in Vancouver, Brianna Stewart in La Loche, Sask., and Amie Archibald-Varley in Ontario's Niagara region — about stress and mental health on the front lines.

Then, the federal government has announced a plan to produce vaccines here in Canada. Why now? And when would those doses actually reach Canadians? We talk to Dr. Caroline Quach-Thanh, chair of the National Advisory Committee on Immunization, and biologist Robert Van Exan.

Plus, with voting underway for a new Nova Scotia Liberal Party leader and premier of the province, outgoing leader Stephen McNeil reflects on his last year in office, amid tragedy and COVID-19.

And some retailers have pulled products from their shelves after animal rights activists alleged that monkeys were being tied up and forced to harvest coconuts in Thailand. We discuss the allegations and moral implications with Kendra Coulter, associate professor and department chair of labour studies at Brock University, and a fellow of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics.