Canadian mayors call land border COVID-19 testing "absurd" in letter to PM

Mayors from across the country have signed an open letter addressed to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, urging him to drop land border COVID-19 testing requirements for fully vaccinated travellers at the Canada/US land border.

The 15 mayors who signed the letter represent nearly all provinces across Canada, including BC, Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec.

The letter suggests that border communities have paid a “heavy price” due to borders being closed to everyone except those taking part in essential travel while suggesting that the strict guidelines still in place continue to impact these communities.

You might also like:
• Half of Canadians fear COVID-19 will never really be over: Report
• Canadian travellers won't need PCR tests to re-enter country by Monday
• Bank of Canada hikes interest rate for the first time in four years

According to the open letter, Canada will not be reviewing border requirements until the end of March 2022. The letter mentions the fact that many NHL games across Canada will be seeing full capacity with upwards of 20,000 fans, with no form of testing required.

“Fully vaccinated American tourists will not be able to cross over the border in their own family car without an unnecessary, expensive test administered by a health professional,” reads the letter.

It goes on to say, “this absurdity will undermine Canadians’ confidence in all levels of government.”

“Respectfully, border communities have suffered greatly during this pandemic. Your government acted quickly to put these measures in place, and your government must act quickly to remove them in these early days of March.”

You can find a full list of the current land border testing requirements through the Government of Canada website here.

The letter was signed by the following Canadian mayors:

• Arthur Slipp (Woodstock, New Brunswick)
• Lucie Dagenais (Frelighsburg, Quebec)
• Glen Grant (Cornwall, Ontario)
• June Caul (Fort Frances, Ontario)
• Jim Diodati (Niagara Falls, Ontario)
• Betty Disero (Niagara on the Lakes, Ontario)
• Mike Bradley (Sarnia, Ontario)
• Drew Dilkens (Windsor, Ontario)
• Judy Swanson (Boissvain, Manitoba)
• Dave Carlson (Emerson-Franklin, Manitoba)
• Roy Ludwig (Estevan, Saskatchewan)
• Marcel Roy (Weyburn, Saskatchewan)
• Jim Willett (Coutts, Alberta)
• Ron Toyota (Creston, BC)
• Sue McKortoff (Osoyoos, BC)