The Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC) says it’s “heartened” by news that Canada will drop its COVID-19 vaccine border requirements by the end of September, make the ArriveCan application optional, and end the outstanding random COVID-19 testing for travellers. A southern Ontario MP went much further, saying delays in changing the rules badly damaged Canada’s tourism economy.
Published reports say Prime Minister Justin Trudeau yesterday signed off on the concept. Ottawa brought in the rules under an order-in-council earlier this year, but that order expires on September 30. Which would mean Canadians and other travellers will have a new set of rules – or rather lack of rules – in a week.
What isn’t entirely clear yet is whether Canada’s requirement that passengers on planes and trains must wear a mask. It’s also not clear what the U.S. government will do. Currently, the U.S. requires proof of vaccination for travellers who are non U.S. residents.
TIAC said the rule changes are long overdue.
“For many months, we have been unequivocal in calling on the federal government to lift all remaining COVID-19 restrictions on travel and ensure Canada’s global competitiveness in tourism by:
– Ceasing the practice of mandatory random testing for COVID-19 and replacing this practice with wastewater testing for tracking future variants;
– Permanently lifting the masking requirement on flights, as other countries (including the U.S., U.K., and the European Union, etc.) have already done so months ago;
– Permanently lifting the vaccine requirement for travel for both domestic and international travellers in addition to workers in the sector; and
– Eliminating the ArriveCan application (or changing the application to be used solely as a pre-entry declaration system).”
“After two long, difficult years, TIAC is now focused on rebuilding tourism back to the $105 billion economic powerhouse it was pre-pandemic,” officials said. “But we are deeply concerned about the impact the ongoing restrictions have already had on tour operators and other businesses during our peak summer season.
“Our industry faces significant challenges; a severe labour shortage, supply chain disruptions, and rising inflation among them, all made worse by these ongoing pandemic restrictions. As the industry first hit, hardest hit, and last to recover; the time to fully reopen is now.”
A southern Ontario MP said the federal government badly damaged Canada’s tourism industry by waiting too long to make changes.
“It’s a shame the government waited until the end of the summer tourism season to remove the ArriveCan app; it’s unclear what science has changed that now is the time to remove the app,” said Peterborough-Kawartha MP Michelle Ferreri, who acts as the shadow tourism minister for the opposition Conservative Party. “This should have been done months ago to restore travel confidence and support the tourism sector’s recovery.”
Tourism and travel account for roughly one-in-ten jobs in Canada. Many of those jobs, particularly in the hotel and hospitality industries, are held by women, visible minorities, students, and recent immigrants to Canada.
