(Ottawa) The Trudeau government could suspend vaccination requirements for people entering Canada as of September 30. Concretely, this would mean that a traveler who is not vaccinated would no longer have to submit to a 14-day quarantine upon arriving in the country.
Posted at 5:22 p.m.
Ottawa also intends to end random testing for COVID-19 at international airports and border crossings, also starting September 30, according to the daily. The Globe and Mail. However, the obligation to wear a mask on planes and trains will remain in force.
Finally, it plans to make the use of the ArriveCAN application optional for travelers arriving in the country by plane, by land or by boat.
A government source confirmed to The Press that these options are under consideration on Tuesday afternoon. But she insisted that no final decision had yet been made.
The Conservative Party has been calling for months to eliminate the requirement to wear a mask, such as the requirement to complete the ArriveCAN form before entering Canada and random COVID testing -19.
People boarding federally regulated planes and trains must wear a mask throughout their journey. The mask is also required at checkpoints in airports, boarding, and in the customs control area.
Recently, the National Airlines Council of Canada urged the Trudeau government to allow travelers to drop the mask, as several countries have already done.
Some of the strictest countries in terms of health measures against COVID-19, such as Australia and New Zealand, have determined that it will no longer be necessary to wear a mask on board domestic and international flights.
Germany, which was going it alone within the European Union, must soon take the same turn. In Canada, if we suspended the vaccination obligation last June to board a plane or a train, we decided to maintain the obligation to cover your face during these trips.
The disparity in lockers is a headache for travelers, but more importantly, a burden for airlines and their employees, laments Jeff Morrison, president and CEO of the National Airlines Council of Canada, which represents Air Canada, Air Transat, Jazz Aviation LP and WestJet.
“We don’t really talk about it, but the crews who have to enforce the rule are increasingly being harassed by passengers. Yes, it was happening at the start of the pandemic, but it’s been even worse for some time, ”he said in an interview.
And since more and more Canadians are vaccinated or caught COVID-19, and that ventilation on board aircraft is safe, the masks must fall, he pleads, inviting federal ministers to take the pulse of airlines and their employees.
But in Minister Alghabra’s office, it was argued that maintaining this obligation follows “public health recommendations”.
“The mask is a non-restrictive sanitary measure that allows people to be protected in a place with limited space such as an airplane. On the other hand, as with any measure, we are constantly evaluating and adapting them.
With Melanie Marquis, The Press