VACCINE PASSPORT PRESSURE
Quebec first province to use system
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Thursday his government is considering making vaccination mandatory for all federal public servants as well as employees in federally regulated industries as experts warn of a fourth COVID-19 wave in the fall.
During the same news conference, Quebec Premier François Legault announced his province will be the first to create a vaccine passport that will allow fully vaccinated Quebecers to live a “nearly normal” life.
“I have asked the clerk (of the Privy Council), who is responsible for all federal public servants, to look into how we could make vaccination mandatory. We're also looking into how we could encourage vaccination for federally regulated industries, or even make vaccination mandatory” for them, Trudeau told reporters.
“We have a responsibility to ensure that people are getting vaccinated, because otherwise we will not make it through this pandemic,” he added.
Trudeau and his office had little more detail to offer Thursday about the request submitted to interim clerk Janice Charette, but he did mention two federally regulated sectors in particular that work closely with the public: “planes and trains.”
This is the first time Trudeau has overtly declared that his government is considering any form of mandatory vaccination. He has previously expressed concern with the idea, as well as with the notion of vaccination passports for domestic use. (The federal government is currently working on a specific vaccine passport for international travel.)
In an interview, Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada vice-president Stéphane Aubry said his union expected some federal employees who work closely with the public or in higher-risk situations — such as medical staff in rural and northern communities or correctional services employees — to face mandatory vaccination requirements, but that it does not support a sweeping obligation for all public servants.
“It (Trudeau) really is going into that direction, it's a concern for us, because we can see that some public servants that are working have no direct contact with Canadians and very limited contact with other coworkers,” Aubry said. “That doesn't make sense in our mind, though we do encourage our members to get vaccinated.”
In a statement, Public Service Alliance of Canada national president Chris Aylward urged the Trudeau government to provide a “clear position” on mandatory vaccination for federal public services and to ensure that any new proposal respects workers' rights and privacy.
In January, Trudeau told Reuters he was hesitant to introduce vaccine passports.
“There are a broad range of reasons why someone might not get vaccinated and I'm worried about creating knock-on, undesirable effects in our community,” he said.
But he struck a different tone during his joint announcement with Legault, saying that he supports Quebec's new passport initiative “completely.”
“We are currently working with all provinces and territories who want it to make sure that what Quebec and others do will also be useful when their residents travel abroad,” Trudeau said.
Circumstances are quite different now than they were in January, particularly due to the arrival of the Delta variant, which is much more contagious and leads to more hospitalizations.
The variant is fuelling a new rise in COVID-19 cases across the country and has public health officials warning that a fourth wave may be at the country's doorstep.
As of Thursday, 80 per cent of eligible Canadians have received a first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and nearly 70 per cent are fully vaccinated. But it's the non-vaccinated population that is fuelling the new uptick in cases that could lead to a wave of new hospitalizations and deaths come the fall, Trudeau said.
His warning was echoed by Canada's chief public health officer, Dr. Theresa Tam, during a COVID-19 briefing Thursday. She said the main concern is a “serious resurgence that could exceed health care capacity this fall and winter.”
Asked about rumours of a federal election campaign that could be launched as early as next week, Tam said it would be safe to vote in-person thanks to safety measures that will be put in place by Elections Canada.
Trudeau and Legault were in Montreal to announce an agreement between Ottawa and Quebec that would send $6 billion to Quebec “no strings attached” as part of the Liberals' promise to bring $10-per-day childcare to all willing provinces. Quebec has had such a system in place for decades.
During their news conference, both leaders took aim at unvaccinated individuals, saying that fully vaccinated Canadians had done their part and deserved to return to a more “regular” life.
“There are no more excuses,” Trudeau said. “Particularly with the real concerns around the Delta variant that we are facing that is striking hardest under-vaccinated and non-vaccinated people.”
Legault says his province's decision to launch a vaccination passport is tied to recent rising COVID cases. Quebec reported more than 300 new cases Thursday for the first time since the end of May.