TORONTO —
Transport Canada says it is further easing travel restrictions in the country and will allow more airports to accept international passenger flights at the end of the month.
The department noted that the next step in easing travel restrictions is to expand the number of Canadian airports that can accept international passengers.
As of Nov. 30, international flights carrying passengers will be allowed to land at these Canadian airports:
St. John’s International
John C. Munro Hamilton International
Region of Waterloo International
Regina International
Saskatoon John G. Diefenbaker International
Kelowna International
Abbotsford International
Victoria International
“These airports, in cooperation with the Public Health Agency of Canada, the Canada Border Services Agency and Transport Canada, are working to implement the measures necessary to start safely welcoming international passengers as of November 30,” Transport Canada said in a statement.
These airports are in addition to the 10 Canadian airports currently accepting international flights in Halifax, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver.
Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra said during a press briefing on Tuesday announcing the news that Canada’s increased vaccination levels have allowed Ottawa to “safely reopen” these airports.
“The global pandemic has significantly impacted our daily lives. It has limited our ability to travel for business, and kept us from travelling to visit our family and friends. But we know that vaccination is one of the most effective ways to prevent the further spread of COVID-19. Vaccinations are helping to keep us safe while we cautiously return to doing the things we love,” Alghabra said.
Speaking at the Waterloo International Airport in Breslau, Ont., Alghabra said these airports were selected after considering passenger demand, geography and the preparedness of each airport to resume receiving international flights under current public health conditions.
“Opening these airports to international travel is another step forward in rebuilding and reopening our travel system,” he said. “This move will help ensure travellers are able to access more regional airports for their international travels this winter, while continuing to support our government’s measured approach to reopening our borders.”
Alghabra added that further increasing Canada’s vaccination levels will be “crucial” in preventing a return to previous travel restrictions.
“We don’t want to ever go back to those days,” he said.
Airlines are applauding the decision, calling it long overdue and a crucial step to reconnecting communities, as well as rehiring workers in an industry crippled by COVID-19.
“It’s very difficult to publish a schedule month-by-month,” Andy Gibbons, vice-president of government relations for WestJet, told CTV News.
“Airlines need certainty, and today’s certainty is going to help with that for sure.”
The move comes as Canada records nearly another 1,900 new infections and 53 deaths, according to CTVNews.ca’s daily COVID-19 tracker.
With the holidays fast approaching, experts are advising travellers to book early due to there being fewer flights, look into travel insurance, check if a COVID-19 test is required at their destination and book a PCR test within 72 hours of returning back to Canada.
The federal government first reduced the number of airports permitted to accept international passenger flights in February as part of a move to discourage non-essential trips, slow the spread of COVID-19 variants, and concentrate the locations of quarantine hotels.
Transport Canada noted that additional airports will be considered “as conditions dictate, based on demand, operational capacity, the epidemiological situation in Canada, and recommendations from the Public Health Agency of Canada.”
The department warned that border restrictions and public health measures remain subject to change depending on the COVID-19 situation in Canada.
“The Government of Canada continues to work closely with airports and aviation operators to ensure appropriate procedures are put in place to protect travellers and workers,” Transport Canada said in the statement.
Canadian travellers need vaccine documentation for almost every mode of transportation. As of Oct. 30, employees and passengers in the federally regulated air, rail and marine transportation sectors have to be fully vaccinated. There is a short grace period in which proof of a negative COVID-19 test will be acceptable to board, though by Nov. 30 that option will no longer be available.
The federal government announced Oct. 21 that it was lifting the global advisory asking Canadians to avoid non-essential travel outside the country, but is continuing to advise against travel on cruise ships.
The government is now urging Canadians to be fully vaccinated before a trip, to pay attention to COVID-19 activity at their destination, to follow local public health measures and wear a face mask while travelling.
Canada opened its borders last month to non-essential international travellers who have received both doses of a Health Canada-approved COVID-19 vaccine. Fully vaccinated travellers from the United States were allowed to cross the border into Canada in August.
The U.S. government recently announced that its land borders will reopen to non-essential Canadian travellers on Nov. 8.
With files from CTVNews.ca’s Sonja Puzic, Rachel Aiello and Michael Lee
Correction:
This story has been updated to correct the number of Canadian airports currently accepting international flights.
VANCOUVER – Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia’s ports since Monday.
The BC Maritime Employers Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 are scheduled to meet for the next three days in mediated talks to try to break a deadlock in negotiations.
The union, which represents more than 700 longshore supervisors at ports, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Nanaimo, has been without a contract since March last year.
The latest talks come after employers locked out workers in response to what it said was “strike activity” by union members.
The start of the lockout was then followed by several days of no engagement between the two parties, prompting federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to speak with leaders on both sides, asking them to restart talks.
MacKinnon had said that the talks were “progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved” — a sentiment echoed by several business groups across Canada.
In a joint letter, more than 100 organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada and associations representing industries from automotive and fertilizer to retail and mining, urged the government to do whatever it takes to end the work stoppage.
“While we acknowledge efforts to continue with mediation, parties have not been able to come to a negotiated agreement,” the letter says. “So, the federal government must take decisive action, using every tool at its disposal to resolve this dispute and limit the damage caused by this disruption.
“We simply cannot afford to once again put Canadian businesses at risk, which in turn puts Canadian livelihoods at risk.”
In the meantime, the union says it has filed a complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board against the employers, alleging the association threatened to pull existing conditions out of the last contract in direct contact with its members.
“The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically elected leadership and bargaining committee — despite the fact that the BCMEA knows full well we received a 96 per cent mandate to take job action if needed,” union president Frank Morena said in a statement.
The employers have responded by calling the complaint “another meritless claim,” adding the final offer to the union that includes a 19.2 per cent wage increase over a four-year term remains on the table.
“The final offer has been on the table for over a week and represents a fair and balanced proposal for employees, and if accepted would end this dispute,” the employers’ statement says. “The offer does not require any concessions from the union.”
The union says the offer does not address the key issue of staffing requirement at the terminals as the port introduces more automation to cargo loading and unloading, which could potentially require fewer workers to operate than older systems.
The Port of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and has seen a number of labour disruptions, including two instances involving the rail and grain storage sectors earlier this year.
A 13-day strike by another group of workers at the port last year resulted in the disruption of a significant amount of shipping and trade.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
The Royal Canadian Legion says a new partnership with e-commerce giant Amazon is helping boost its veterans’ fund, and will hopefully expand its donor base in the digital world.
Since the Oct. 25 launch of its Amazon.ca storefront, the legion says it has received nearly 10,000 orders for poppies.
Online shoppers can order lapel poppies on Amazon in exchange for donations or buy items such as “We Remember” lawn signs, Remembrance Day pins and other accessories, with all proceeds going to the legion’s Poppy Trust Fund for Canadian veterans and their families.
Nujma Bond, the legion’s national spokesperson, said the organization sees this move as keeping up with modern purchasing habits.
“As the world around us evolves we have been looking at different ways to distribute poppies and to make it easier for people to access them,” she said in an interview.
“This is definitely a way to reach a wider number of Canadians of all ages. And certainly younger Canadians are much more active on the web, on social media in general, so we’re also engaging in that way.”
Al Plume, a member of a legion branch in Trenton, Ont., said the online store can also help with outreach to veterans who are far from home.
“For veterans that are overseas and are away, (or) can’t get to a store they can order them online, it’s Amazon.” Plume said.
Plume spent 35 years in the military with the Royal Engineers, and retired eight years ago. He said making sure veterans are looked after is his passion.
“I’ve seen the struggles that our veterans have had with Veterans Affairs … and that’s why I got involved, with making sure that the people get to them and help the veterans with their paperwork.”
But the message about the Amazon storefront didn’t appear to reach all of the legion’s locations, with volunteers at Branch 179 on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive saying they hadn’t heard about the online push.
Holly Paddon, the branch’s poppy campaign co-ordinator and bartender, said the Amazon partnership never came up in meetings with other legion volunteers and officials.
“I work at the legion, I work with the Vancouver poppy office and I go to the meetings for the Vancouver poppy campaign — which includes all the legions in Vancouver — and not once has this been mentioned,” she said.
Paddon said the initiative is a great idea, but she would like to have known more about it.
The legion also sells a larger collection of items at poppystore.ca.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
