The Public Health Agency of Canada struggled to keep track of whether travellers ordered to stay in quarantine hotels actually did so, according to a new report from the auditor general.
Auditor General Karen Hogan tabled four reports this afternoon in the House of Commons looking at COVID-19 measures. One of the reports examines enforcement of quarantine hotel stays and testing requirements from July 1, 2020 to the end of June 2021.
At the start of the year — in addition to the already required 14-day quarantine period — the government introduced new rules for incoming travellers meant to limit the spread of COVID-19 and its variants.
Travellers crossing by both land and air were required to show a negative COVID-19 test no more than 72 hours before their scheduled flights to Canada.
Air and land travellers were also required to undergo both on-arrival and post-arrival COVID-19 tests. In addition, incoming air travellers were required to pre-book and pre-pay for a three-day stay at a government-authorized hotel, where they were to remain in quarantine while waiting for their on-arrival test results.
Hogan’s audit found that the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) didn’t have an automated system to track whether travellers ordered to quarantine at authorized hotels actually did so.
It discovered PHAC only had records to verify hotel stays for about a quarter of air travellers for the February to June 2021 period.
“Because the agency did not have records of stay for 75 per cent of travellers who flew into Canada, it did not know whether those who were required to quarantine at government authorized hotels had complied,” said Hogan.
“In addition, the agency did not reliably track whether air travellers who had been notified of positive COVID-19 tests had stayed at a government-authorized hotel as required.”
WATCH | AG says Public Health Agency of Canada failed to keep tabs on most quarantine hotel stays:
Public health agency didn’t track most quarantine hotel stays, auditor general says
2 hours ago
Duration 2:00
A new auditor general’s report says the Public Health Agency of Canada failed to keep track of most travellers assigned to quarantine hotels earlier this year. It also found one-third of COVID-19 test results were missing or not matched to a returning traveller. 2:00
Although they’re not required to do so, some hotels told PHAC by email that 326 people who had booked quarantine stays never checked in. About 74 per cent of these travellers were then referred to law enforcement as a priority for follow-up action — but no tickets had been issued at the time the audit was tabled.
PHAC agreed with the audit’s recommendation that it improve its tracking and said in response that it initiated an assessment of its information technology systems and data requirements for border measures in November.
New omicron measures criticized
The government dropped the hotel quarantine requirement this summer but has reinstated some measures as part of its attempt to contain the emerging omicron variant.
Foreign travellers from 10 nations — all of them in Africa — are barred from entering Canada, while Canadian citizens and permanent residents returning from affected countries must quarantine. Air travellers from all countries except the United States are also required to take COVID-19 tests when arriving in Canada.
Auditor General Karen Hogan tabled four reports today. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)
These policy measures have attracted criticism — both over the quality of the hotel stays and over the way these measures single out African countries when the omicron variant has been detected in other countries as well.
“That is not only discriminatory, it is ridiculous,” said Dr. Christian Happi, a professor of molecular biology and genomics, during a briefing with the World Health Organization’s regional office in Africa Thursday morning.
Missing test results
Hogan’s audit also found that about 30 per cent of COVID-19 test results were either missing or could not be matched to incoming travellers. In total, 262,244 test were mislaid and 137,686 could not be matched to travellers between February to June 2021.
“We also found that, although the Public Health Agency of Canada successfully contacted most travellers with positive COVID-19 tests, it had not contacted 14 per cent of the travellers who tested positive for COVID-19 to assess their isolation plans,” says the audit.
An earlier audit from Hogan’s office found that public health officers struggled to keep tabs on returning travellers in the early days of the pandemic. That March 2021 audit found PHAC was not sure if two thirds of the people who were supposed to be under home quarantine were actually following the rule.
‘This is not a success story’
Thursday’s report concluded that while the agency eventually improved its verification of traveller compliance, significant gaps remained — and from January to June 2021 it still couldn’t verify quarantine compliance for 37 per cent of travellers.
The auditor attributed the improvement in PHAC’s verification efforts to a shift from paperwork to collecting contact information electronically.
“Though the Public Health Agency of Canada improved its results, this is not a success story,” said Hogan.
“The agency’s inability to confirm whether more than a third travellers complied with quarantine orders remains a significant problem.”
Incoming air travellers from all countries except the United States are required to take COVID-19 tests when arriving in Canada. (Marta Lavandier/The Associated Press)
Conservative health critic Luc Berthold said the report shows that the government didn’t learn from Hogan’s first report
“The findings in the Auditor General’s report reveal a pattern of incompetence, with severe gaps in the application of policies,” he said in a written statement.
“The abhorrent standards in government-run quarantine facilities are no surprise – this is now the second Auditor General report documenting the governments’ total incompetency in operating these facilities.”
Don Davies and Taylor Bachrach, respectively the federal NDP’s critics for health and transport, spoke to reporters Thursday afternoon. Davies called some of the report’s findings “extremely disturbing.”
“The report that has come out from the auditor general now shows a shocking gross negligence by the Public Health Agency and, by extension, this government in failing to enforce those border control measures,” Davies said.
Hogan did say that, since the last audit, PHAC had increased the number of referrals to law enforcement related to suspected cases of non-compliance. The agency did not know the outcome of 59 per cent of those priority referrals, the audit said.
“Ticketing of travellers for non-compliance was dependent on the enforcement regime in each province and territory, and in some jurisdictions, no tickets were issued,” said the report.
Federal Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos spoke in front of reporters Thursday afternoon. He sat next to Employment Minister Carla Qualtrough, Trade Minister Mary Ng and MP Francis Drouin, parliamentary secretary to the minister of agriculture and agri-food — all of whom spoke in response to the four reports released by the auditor general.
“The government’s response has been far from perfect. We acknowledge this and we are making no excuses for it. We can and we must do better,” Duclos said.
Since the implementation of border measures, Duclos said, seven million compliance-verification calls were made, as well as 500,000 visits to returning travellers to confirm they were quarantining at home.
More than 15,000 individuals stayed at designated-quarantine facilities managed by the federal government, 7,000 enforcement actions were taken and 2.8 million tests were administered post-arrival to limit the importation and spread of COVID-19 and its variants of concern, he said.
While Horgan’s report only covered the pandemic period up to June 2021, Duclos said PHAC has taken steps to address the shortcomings it identified.
WATCH | Health minister responds to questions about auditor general’s findings on quarantine hotels:
Auditor general’s report finds Public Health Agency failed to keep tabs on most quarantine hotel stays
10 hours ago
Duration 0:51
Auditor General Karen Hogan says her research on quarantine hotel stays found that the agency had not able to confirm whether ’75 per cent of the individuals actually arrived at the hotel and stayed for those three days.’ 0:51
Still, while the report criticized PHAC’s inability to contact 14 per cent of the travellers who tested positive, Duclos wouldn’t promise that all such travellers would be contacted in the future.
“Whether we will reach 100 per cent … no. We will never reach 100 per cent of people being contacted for any particular reason because such a system doesn’t exist,” he said.
“But a good, improving system is better than no system at all.”
Hogan said that the government also needs to improve how it delivers on its pandemic policies as concerns about omicron mount.
Hogan said that the government needs to improve how it delivers on its pandemic policies as concerns about omicron mount.
“With travel increasing and new variants continuing to emerge, the agency needs to improve the way it manages and enforces border control measures that are meant to limit the introduction of the COVID-19 virus and its variants into Canada,” she said.
The other audits Hogan’s office released today concluded that:
Inspections conducted by Employment and Social Development Canada provided little assurance that the health of temporary foreign workers in Canada’s agricultural sector was being protected during the pandemic.
Although the Regional Relief and Recovery Fund delivered last-resort assistance to thousands of businesses and organizations affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, several weaknesses in program management lessened its efficiency, fairness and transparency.
Emergency programs that were meant to reduce food insecurity and support resilience in Canada’s food processing sector during the COVID-19 pandemic helped mitigate some of the effects of the pandemic on elements of Canada’s food system.
WINNIPEG – Some 250 coloured tacks pepper a large-scale world map among bookshelves at Whodunit Mystery Bookstore.
Estonia, Finland, Japan and even Fenwick, Ont., have pins representing places outside Winnipeg where someone has ordered a page-turner from the independent bookstore that specializes in mystery and crime fiction novels.
For 30 years, the store has been offering fans of Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot or Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes a place to get lost in whodunits both old and new.
Jack and Wendy Bumsted bought the shop in the Crescentwood neighbourhood in 2007 from another pair of mystery lovers.
The married couple had been longtime customers of the store. Wendy Bumsted grew up reading Perry Mason novels while her husband was a historian with vast knowledge of the crime fiction genre.
At the time, Jack Bumsted was retiring from teaching at the University of Manitoba when he was looking for his next venture.
“The bookstore came up and we bought it, I think, within a week,” Wendy Bumsted said in an interview.
“It never didn’t seem like a good idea.”
In the years since the Bumsteds took ownership, the family has witnessed the decline in mail-order books, the introduction of online retailers, a relocation to a new space next to the original, a pandemic and the death of beloved co-owner Jack Bumsted in 2020.
But with all the changes that come with owning a small business, customers continue to trust their next mystery fix will come from one of the shelves at Whodunit.
Many still request to be called about books from specific authors, or want to be notified if a new book follows their favourite format. Some arrive at the shop like clockwork each week hoping to get suggestions from Wendy Bumsted or her son on the next big hit.
“She has really excellent instincts on what we should be getting and what we should be promoting,” Micheal Bumsted said of his mother.
Wendy Bumsted suggested the store stock “Thursday Murder Club,” the debut novel from British television host Richard Osman, before it became a bestseller. They ordered more copies than other bookstores in Canada knowing it had the potential to be a hit, said Michael Bumsted.
The store houses more than 18,000 new and used novels. That’s not including the boxes of books that sit in Wendy Bumsted’s tiny office, or the packages that take up space on some of the only available seating there, waiting to be added to the inventory.
Just as the genre has evolved, so has the Bumsteds’ willingness to welcome other subjects on their shelves — despite some pushback from loyal customers and initially the Bumsted patriarch.
For years, Jack Bumsted refused to sell anything outside the crime fiction genre, including his own published books. Instead, he would send potential buyers to another store, but would offer to sign the books if they came back with them.
Wendy Bumsted said that eventually changed in his later years.
Now, about 15 per cent of the store’s stock is of other genres, such as romance or children’s books.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced them to look at expanding their selection, as some customers turned to buying books through the store’s website, which is set up to allow purchasers to get anything from the publishers the Bumsteds have contracts with.
In 2019, the store sold fewer than 100 books online. That number jumped to more than 3,000 in 2020, as retailers had to deal with pandemic lockdowns.
After years of running a successful mail-order business, the store was able to quickly adapt when it had to temporarily shut its doors, said Michael Bumsted.
“We were not a store…that had to figure out how to get books to people when they weren’t here.”
He added being a community bookstore with a niche has helped the family stay in business when other retailers have struggled. Part of that has included building lasting relationships.
“Some people have put it in their wills that their books will come to us,” said Wendy Bumsted.
Some of those collections have included tips on traveling through Asia in the early 2000s or the history of Australian cricket.
Micheal Bumsted said they’ve had to learn to be patient with selling some of these more obscure titles, but eventually the time comes for them to find a new home.
“One of the great things about physical books is that they can be there for you when you are ready for them.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Sept. 15, 2024.
MONTREAL – Canada’s labour minister is praising both Air Canada and the union representing about 5,200 of its pilots for averting a work stoppage that would have disrupted travel for hundreds of thousands of passengers.
Steven MacKinnon’s comments came in a statement shared to social media shortly after Canada’s largest air carrier announced it had reached a tentative labour deal with the Air Line Pilots Association.
MacKinnon thanked both sides and federal mediators, saying the airline and its pilots approached negotiations with “seriousness and a resolve to get a deal.”
The tentative agreement averts a strike or lockout that could have begun as early as Wednesday for Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, with flight cancellations expected before then.
The airline now says flights will continue as normal while union members vote on the tentative four-year contract.
Air Canada had called on the federal government to intervene in the dispute, but Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday that would only happen if it became clear no negotiated agreement was possible.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 15, 2024.
When it comes to plant-based alternatives, Canadians have never had so many options — and nowhere is that choice more abundantly clear than in the milk section of the dairy aisle.
To meet growing demand, companies are investing in new products and technology to keep up with consumer tastes and differentiate themselves from all the other players on the shelf.
“The product mix has just expanded so fast,” said Liza Amlani, co-founder of the Retail Strategy Group.
She said younger generations in particular are driving growth in the plant-based market as they are consuming less dairy and meat.
Commercial sales of dairy milk have been weakening for years, according to research firm Mintel, likely in part because of the rise of plant-based alternatives — even though many Canadians still drink dairy.
The No. 1 reason people opt for plant-based milk is because they see it as healthier than dairy, said Joel Gregoire, Mintel’s associate director for food and drink.
“Plant-based milk, the one thing about it — it’s not new. It’s been around for quite some time. It’s pretty established,” said Gregoire.
Because of that, it serves as an “entry point” for many consumers interested in plant-based alternatives to animal products, he said.
Plant-based milk consumption is expected to continue growing in the coming years, according to Mintel research, with more options available than ever and more consumers opting for a diet that includes both dairy and non-dairy milk.
A 2023 report by Ernst & Young for Protein Industries Canada projected that the plant-based dairy market will reach US$51.3 billion in 2035, at a compound annual growth rate of 9.5 per cent.
Because of this growth opportunity, even well-established dairy or plant-based companies are stepping up their game.
It’s been more than three decades since Saint-Hyacinthe, Que.-based Natura first launched a line of soy beverages. Over the years, the company has rolled out new products to meet rising demand, and earlier this year launched a line of oat beverages that it says are the only ones with a stamp of approval from Celiac Canada.
Competition is tough, said owner and founder Nick Feldman — especially from large American brands, which have the money to ensure their products hit shelves across the country.
Natura has kept growing, though, with a focus on using organic ingredients and localized production from raw materials.
“We’re maybe not appealing to the mass market, but we’re appealing to the natural consumer, to the organic consumer,” Feldman said.
Amlani said brands are increasingly advertising the simplicity of their ingredient lists. She’s also noticing more companies offering different kinds of products, such as coffee creamers.
Companies are also looking to stand out through eye-catching packaging and marketing, added Amlani, and by competing on price.
Besides all the companies competing for shelf space, there are many different kinds of plant-based milk consumers can choose from, such as almond, soy, oat, rice, hazelnut, macadamia, pea, coconut and hemp.
However, one alternative in particular has enjoyed a recent, rapid ascendance in popularity.
“I would say oat is the big up-and-coming product,” said Feldman.
Mintel’s report found the share of Canadians who say they buy oat milk has quadrupled between 2019 and 2023 (though almond is still the most popular).
“There seems to be a very nice marriage of coffee and oat milk,” said Feldman. “The flavour combination is excellent, better than any other non-dairy alternative.”
The beverage’s surge in popularity in cafés is a big part of why it’s ascending so quickly, said Gregoire — its texture and ability to froth makes it a good alternative for lattes and cappuccinos.
It’s also a good example of companies making a strong “use case” for yet another new entrant in a competitive market, he said.
Amid the long-standing brands and new entrants, there’s another — perhaps unexpected — group of players that has been increasingly investing in plant-based milk alternatives: dairy companies.
For example, Danone has owned the Silk and So Delicious brands since an acquisition in 2014, and long-standing U.S. dairy company HP Hood LLC launched Planet Oat in 2018.
Lactalis Canada also recently converted its facility in Sudbury, Ont., to manufacture its new plant-based Enjoy! brand, with beverages made from oats, almonds and hazelnuts.
“As an organization, we obviously follow consumer trends, and have seen the amount of interest in plant-based products, particularly fluid beverages,” said Mark Taylor, president and CEO of Lactalis Canada, whose parent company Lactalis is the largest dairy products company in the world.
The facility was a milk processing plant for six decades, until Lactalis Canada began renovating it in 2022. It now manufactures not only the new brand, but also the company’s existing Sensational Soy brand, and is the company’s first dedicated plant-based facility.
“We’re predominantly a dairy company, and we’ll always predominantly be a dairy company, but we see these products as complementary,” said Taylor.
It makes sense that major dairy companies want to get in on plant-based milk, said Gregoire. The dairy business is large — a “cash cow,” if you will — but not really growing, while plant-based products are seeing a boom.
“If I’m looking for avenues of growth, I don’t want to be left behind,” he said.
Gregoire said there’s a potential for consumers to get confused with so many options, which is why it’s so important for brands to find a way to differentiate themselves, whether it’s with taste, health, or how well the drink froths for a latte.
Competition in a more crowded market is challenging, but Taylor believes it results in better products for consumers.
“It keeps you sharp, and it forces you to be really good at what you’re doing. It drives innovation,” he said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 15, 2024.
