The Prime Minister is standing by the decision to implement a vaccine mandate for Canadian truckers.
Justin Trudeau says the government has been clear since November, that the exemption for non vaccinated truckers was coming to an end.
“We have been clear since back in November that the exemption for truckers to not to be vaccinated would be ending in January. We have been consistent on that. There was a miscommunication from an official last week, that contradicted that, which was quickly corrected. Trucking companies have known since November that this was coming. On top of that, the US is moving forward in the coming days, with an identical mandate to ensure that truckers are vaccinated on international travel as well, so we are aligned with them. We know how important it is to ensure the free flow of goods and services and essential produce across the the border. This is something we have been concerned with and attentive with since the beginning of the pandemic,” Trudeau says.
The Vaccine mandate went into effect on January 15th. The United States will implement their mandate on January 22nd.
He adds the free flow of goods is a priority, “We shut down the Canada/US border for the first time in history. We were able to keep the essential flow of goods, medical supplies, and of food flowing back and forth across the border. We did that for well over a year. We will continue to make sure that we are getting what we need in Canada while as always putting the safety and health of Canadians our top priority.”
The Executive Director for the Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association Jean Marc Picard recently spoke out about the vaccine mandate, over concerns he has heard from truckers about the vaccine mandate.
“If we lose any kind of drivers because of this, it is going to have a major impact on the supply chain. Depending on what you are moving, what is being traded, some things are going to be delayed and we’ll probably have to focus on what’s important,” Picard says.
He adds, “There is a truck across the border every five seconds. Biggest trading partners, lots of goods coming and going to and from the US. Whether it is food or medical supplies or lumber, there’s huge volumes that are impacted by this. It’s a $650 billion that is going to be disrupted by this mandate. We can’t afford that, and we can’t afford to lose any drivers. We can’t afford to shake up the supply chain because it is very fragile right now.”
