Speaking at a press conference Monday morning Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the feds are taking “increasingly aggressive steps” to keep Canadian families safe amid the Coronavirus pandemic.
Those steps are –
1) Denying border entry to people who are not Canadian citizens or permanent residents (except Americans who will still be allowed in). **Immediate families of permanent residents will still be allowed to cross.**
2) All airlines will be mandated to complete a basic “health assessment” on all passengers before letting them board flights en route to Canada. Any one who shows any COVID-19 symptoms will not be allowed to come to Canada.
3) Starting Wednesday (March 18th) only four Canadian airports will be undergoing international flights – Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and Calgary.
Last week the feds announced they’ve put forward $1 billion dollars in the pandemic fight, with Trudeau saying they’ve now added another $1 billion to that pot to help Canadian businesses left struggling with plummeting profits and customers.
“We’re confident it is going to work. The economic impact is shifting hourly, we recognize the stress and anxiety it is causing. We are prepared to see Canadians through this,” said Trudeau.
No details were mentioned on how exactly they plan on helping businesses stay in the black.
On Tuesday the Feds are expected to announce a separate plan aimed at helping the elderly.
347 cases of COVID-19 had been reported in Canada as of Monday morning.
103 cases have been reported in BC, 6 acute care, 4 dead, 5 fully recovered
Listen to the full press conference here: