Tourism and business groups are calling on the federal government to remove the pre-departure COVID-19 testing requirement for fully vaccinated international travellers, arguing that the measure is no longer necessary at this point in the pandemic.
Representatives from several organizations held a press conference in Toronto Thursday morning, saying that removing the restriction is necessary to allow the tourism and business sectors to fully recover.
“Businesses are becoming more confident that we are past the need to rely on restrictive measures like lockdowns to manage the virus,” said Lindsay Broadhead, the senior vice-president of communications and public affairs at the Toronto Region Board of Trade.
“To realize the full opportunity, we must, where it is safe to do so, remove restrictions that are no longer needed. That’s why today, I join my friends from the Global Business Travel Association, American Express Global Business Travel, and Destination Toronto, to call on the federal government to help revise its travel policies so that Toronto’s tourism sector can get back on its feet.”
The groups want to see the federal government remove the pre-departure testing requirement for fully vaccinated travellers no later than April 1, which is when the regulations are set to be updated.
Currently, international travellers are required to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test before their arrival to Canada. It can be a molecular test completed within 72 hours of a flight’s departure time or the traveller’s arrival to Canada by land or sea.
Travellers were also recently given the option of providing proof of a negative antigen test completed no more than one day before arrival to Canada.
If a person has tested positive for COVID-19 on a molecular test, proof of that test can also be used to enter the country no less than 10 days or more than 180 days before entering Canada.
“Travel and tourism are massive economic drivers in our province and many businesses in Toronto and across the country depend on international travellers, particularly business travellers,” Broadhead said.
“Many countries have recognized the time to remove COVID-19 restrictions for fully vaccinated travellers. To set the stage for a complete recovery, Canada needs to join jurisdictions like the United Kingdom and Switzerland in removing restrictions that are no longer needed.”
Broadhead noted that Canada is one of “the most vaccinated places in the world” and said that Canadians have supported “common-sense government measures” throughout the pandemic.
“The time has now come to reward those who have made many sacrifices to get where we are today,” she said.
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Patrick Doyle, the vice-president and general manager at American Express Global Business Travel, said the recent move by the federal government to allow rapid tests as an option for travellers was “progress,” but not enough.
“The switch to antigen testing has not had an impact on business travel bookings. In 2022, there is no scientific reason that justifies travel being singled out as the only activity requiring testing,” he said.
The Canadian Travel and Tourism Roundtable said business travel in Canada in 2019 contributed $40 billion annually to the country’s economy and supported more than 600,000 jobs.
The organization said business travel today is at around 30 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
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“The current travel measures in place are a barrier to travel. These measures simply do not permit flexibility or schedule changes,” said Nancy Tudorache from the Global Business Travel Association.
“They add tremendous uncertainty, they hurt corporate productivity, create financial burdens for businesses looking to send their employees into Canada or returning back to Canada.”
Government will ‘continue to consider’ easing of restrictions
A spokesperson for Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada responded to the calls for the removal of the testing requirement in a statement sent to Global News Thursday afternoon.
“Like every other element of the Government of Canada’s COVID-19 response, border measures are informed by available data, operational considerations, scientific evidence and monitoring of the epidemiological situation both in Canada and internationally,” Tammy Jarbeau said.
She noted that on Feb. 28, the government allowed the option of rapid antigen testing “to lessen travel impediments.”
“As vaccination levels and healthcare system capacity improve, the Government of Canada will continue to consider further easing of measures at the borders—and when to lift or adjust those measures—to keep people in Canada safe,” Jarbeau said.
EDMONTON – RCMP say a second suspect has been arrested in the killing of an Alberta county worker.
Mounties say 28-year-old Elijah Strawberry was taken into custody Friday at a house on O’Chiese First Nation.
Colin Hough, a worker with Rocky View County, was shot and killed while on the job on a rural road east of Calgary on Aug. 6.
Another man who worked for Fortis Alberta was shot and wounded, and RCMP said the suspects fled in a Rocky View County work truck.
Police later arrested Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, and charged him with first-degree murder and attempted murder, and a warrant was issued for Strawberry’s arrest.
RCMP also said there was a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Strawberry, describing him as armed and dangerous.
Chief Supt. Roberta McKale, told a news conference in Edmonton that officers had received tips and information over the last few weeks.
“I don’t know of many members that when were stopped, fuelling up our vehicles, we weren’t keeping an eye out, looking for him,” she said.
But officers had been investigating other cases when they found Strawberry.
“Our investigators were in O’Chiese First Nation at a residence on another matter and the major crimes unit was there working another file and ended up locating him hiding in the residence,” McKale said.
While an investigation is still underway, RCMP say they’re confident both suspects in the case are in police custody.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
RICHMOND, B.C. – The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the 26-year-old son of a man found dead on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast has been charged with his murder.
Police say 58-year-old Henry Doyle was found badly injured on a forest service road in Egmont last September and died of his injuries.
The homicide team took over when the BC Coroners Service said the man’s death was suspicious.
It says in a statement that the BC Prosecution Service has approved one count of first-degree murder against the man’s son, Jackson Doyle.
Police say the accused will remain in custody until at least his next court appearance.
The homicide team says investigators remained committed to solving the case with the help of the community of Egmont, the RCMP on the Sunshine Coast and in Richmond, and the Vancouver Police Department.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, have broken off without an agreement following 15 hours of talks.
Joe McCann, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they stayed at the bargaining table with help from a mediator until 2 a.m. Friday and made “some progress.”
However, he says the union negotiators didn’t get an offer that they could recommend to the membership.
McCann says that in some ways they are close to an agreement, but in other areas they are “miles apart.”
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people who can’t navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last week, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
McCann asks HandyDART users to be “patient,” since they are trying to get not only a fair contract for workers but also a better service for customers.
He says it’s unclear when the talks will resume, but he hopes next week at the latest.
The employer, Transdev, didn’t reply to an interview request before publication.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
