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Government Announces Plan to Mobilize Industry in COVID-19 Fight
Friday, March 20, 2020
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced today new measures Canada is taking as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Travel
The government is working with national airlines to help Canadians stuck abroad come home. This announcement is in line with plans announced earlier this week to restrict non-essential travel - in particular tourism and recreational travel. Trade and commercial remains open. The first flight home is set to leave Morocco this weekend.
Canada/US Border Crossing
As of today, there is a new mutual agreement between Canada and the United States to send irregular migrants who come to our border seeking asylum back into the US. The Prime Minister called this an “exceptional, temporary measure to protect the Canadian public.” He also assured that for the most part, these are people who are legally in the US and will not be detained by US authorities but released back into the country. The Prime Minister said they are ensuring processes used to reject irregular crossings are in keeping with Canada's values on the treatment of refugees and vulnerable people.
Medical Supply Shortage
A new strategy also launched today will make it easier for Canadian businesses to ramp up production of the essential medical supplies needed to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.The government is releasing new procurement streams that will enable faster production of ventilators, masks and hand sanitizers. Automotive manufacturing companies reached out to the government to see how they can shift from making auto parts to making medical supplies.
The Prime Minster also said that in recent days the government has seen new approvals of different types of tests available and that provinces are currently ramping up the number of tests across the country. “We will have enough tests for everyone” he assured Canadians.