A Radio-Canada report says the Trudeau government could eliminate mandatory on-arrival testing within days.
Their report says the Liberal government in Ottawa “plans to backtrack and return, quickly, to the establishment of random tests” for air passengers arriving in Canada.
“The final decision has not yet been made, but, according to a federal source very close to the file, it is a matter of weeks, even days,” said Radio-Canada.
Several tourism groups and a group that represents Canadian travel agents have recently called for an end to the government’s mandatory on-arrival testing, which was introduced late last year for passengers coming from all destinations other than the United States.
Ottawa said the rule was brought in to help battle what was then an emerging Omicron variant. But critics say the variant is now so widespread that border testing is useless.
The Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC), the Canadian Travel and Tourism Roundtable and the Association of Canadian Travel Agencies have said the on-arrival testing also is taking needed PCR tests from communities that need them. The chief medical officers for WestJet, Air Canada and Toronto Pearson Airport have made similar comments.
“Now that we are seeing other countries lift their testing requirements (such as Australia on Friday), it is time to Canada to do the same,” Beth Potter, president and CEO of TIAC, said in an email. “The confusion and delays that pre-departure and on-arrival testing are causing is having an impact on Canada’s travel and tourism industry.
“After 22 months of shut downs, restrictions, and a narrative that told people to stay home, it is time for change. It’s time to travel again,” she said.
Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, said on January 14 that the testing program will be looked at “over time.”
“It is a capacity drain on the system as a whole,” she said, acknowledging the concerns raised by the Canadian Travel and Tourism Roundtable group.
According to Radio-Canada, Trudeau’s chief science adviser, Mona Nemer, said earlier this week that a change is needed.
“The measures in force at the border must be adapted to the reality on the ground,” she said.
Critics also have said Canada should ditch its requirement for expensive pre-arrival PCR-style COVID tests and allow visitors and returning Canadians to show a negative result from cheaper, more readily available rapid antigen tests.
