As Chrystia said, we have come a long way in our fight against COVID-19.
With millions of people fully vaccinated, Canada is a world leader in vaccination.
But our fight is not over. Since August, we have been working to implement
vaccination measures to help keep you and your family safe.
These measures will also help you get back to doing your favourite activities.
Today, we are fulfilling two of our key commitments: mandatory vaccination for federal employees
and mandatory vaccination for travel. Chrystia has outlined what the mandatory vaccination
that’s in place immediately for federal employees will look like.
The bottom line? Proof of vaccination will be required by no
later than the end of this month for all federal employees.
And by mid-November, enforcement measures in place will make sure that everyone is vaccinated.
This is about keeping people safe on the job and in their communities.
The same goes for the second commitment we made: mandatory vaccination on travel.
By the end of October, everyone 12 or older on a plane or train within Canada should be
fully vaccinated. There will be a short period where people
who are in the process of getting vaccinated can show a negative COVID-19 test.
But by the end of November, if you’re 12 or older and want to fly or take the train,
you’ll have to be fully vaccinated, as will staff.
Testing will no longer be an option before boarding.
By the end of October, everyone 12 or older on a plane or train within Canada should be
fully vaccinated. There will be a short period where people
who are in the process of getting vaccinated can show a negative COVID-19 test.
But by the end of November, you will need to be fully vaccinated, as will staff.
And testing will no longer be an option. If you’ve done the right thing and gotten
vaccinated, you deserve the freedom to be safe from COVID-19.
To have your kids safe from COVID. To get back to the things you love.
And if you haven’t gotten your shots yet but want to travel this winter, let’s be clear.
There will only be a few extremely narrow
exceptions, like a valid medical condition. For the vast, vast majority of people, the
rules are very simple – to travel, you’ve got to be vaccinated.
These travel measures, along with mandatory vaccination for federal employees, are some
of the strongest in the world. Because when it comes to keeping you and your
family safe, when it comes to avoiding lockdowns for everyone – this is no time for half
measures. Already, we’re delivering on the first of
our vaccine commitments. And in the weeks to come, we’ll get the
job done on a vaccine passport for international travel.
We’ll be there to foot the bill for provinces and territories that roll out proof of vaccination
programs. And we’ll introduce legislation to make
it a criminal offence to threaten or harass health care workers.
Canadians have put our government back to work to end this pandemic and move on to better
days. We will get the job done on vaccinations.
We will make life more affordable for the middle class.
We will take ambitious action on the climate, while creating good, green jobs.
And we will move forward on the path toward reconciliation.
We have a lot of work ahead of us. That’s why, later this month, we will be
swearing in a new Cabinet to implement our progressive plan.
I’m very excited about all the things we can achieve together.
Before I take questions from the media, I want to address the issue of last week.
Travelling on September 30th was a mistake, and I regret it.
The first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation was a time for Indigenous people and non-Indigenous
people alike to reflect and connect, think about the past but also, focus on the future.
I want to thank Chief Casimir of the Tk’emlúps for the conversation we had over the weekend
in which I apologized for not being there with her and her community for this important
day. And I committed to going to visit the Tk’emlúps
te Secwe̓pemc community in the coming weeks. There’s a lot of work for us all to do and
I am committed to doing it.