Business groups optimistic despite China's pushback on air-travel test requirements
The Chinese government is unhappy that Canada and other countries are creating new COVID-19 restrictions for people flying in from China, but business groups say the policy won't affect trade.
"If you've been living in China, you've been having PCR tests on an almost daily basis for many, many months," said Sarah Kutulakos, head of the Canada China Business Council.
Under its COVID-Zero policy, China has had some of the strictest pandemic rules on the planet, including mandatory isolation for anyone coming from abroad and almost daily testing for citizens.
Beijing lifted many of these policies last month following widespread protests. A wave of COVID-19 infections has followed that American officials worry could lead to a more severe variant.
Starting Thursday, Canada will require air travellers from China to have a recent negative test, similar to policies brought in by the U.S. and some European countries.
At a Tuesday press conference in Beijing, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said some rules are based on politics instead of science, but she did not reference Canada specifically.
"Some of these measures are disproportionate and simply unacceptable," reads an official English transcript of Mao's remarks.
"We firmly reject using COVID measures for political purposes and will take corresponding measures in response."
China already requires a negative COVID-19 test for all travellers. Canada's policy only applies to people arriving on flights originating from mainland China, Hong Kong or Macau.
Infectious disease specialists have argued that the tests are not helpful for preventing COVID-19 spread when the coronavirus is already widely circulating and provinces have suspended virtually all restrictions.
"COVID response measures need to be science-based and proportionate. They should not be used for political manipulation, there should not be discriminatory measures against certain countries," Mao said, adding that variants can emerge anywhere.
Canada is also testing wastewater from select aircraft arriving in Vancouver to screen for variants through a pilot project.
Kutulakos, whose group includes larger corporations, argued that Canada's new requirements aren't onerous. She said the main news in Canada-China travel is Beijing lifting its mandatory quarantine for arriving travellers.
Before the change, one member of the business council had tested positive for COVID-19 six weeks after an infection, she said, with some people shedding inactive remnants of the virus long after recovery.
And one of Kutulakos's staff tested negative on some tests and positive on others, leading to an all-clear to fly to China but a mandatory hospital stay once he arrived.
"It puts you in, essentially, purgatory. That's why there has been very little travel back and forth," she said.
Most flights between China and Canada were suspended during the pandemic, but Kutulakos said Beijing's loosening of the rules has people wanting to cross the Pacific again.
"There has all of a sudden been a huge uptick in people wanting to travel. And so tickets are very expensive, maybe five (times) what they were pre-pandemic."
The China Canada Business Association, which represents many small- and medium-sized enterprises, has noticed the same trends.
"We hope that the latest measure will not hamper ... trade and goodwill between our nations," said Ron Horton, the group's vice-president, adding that it's relatively easy to get a COVID-19 test before leaving China.
Many in corporate Canada are now reapplying for multi-entry visas that either expired or that Beijing cancelled during the pandemic, Kutulakos said, and some plan to visit once the current COVID-19 wave abates in China -- though until then, "it's going to be a pretty rough couple of months."
The changes come amid significant strain in the relationship between the two countries.
The Canadian federal government has deemed China a threat to the international rules-based order and is seeking deeper ties with other Asian nations. Beijing says that rhetoric is causing tension in the region.
Still, the representatives of both groups say they are buoyed by the progress toward more-normal travel.
"There may be some political frictions, but quite often business can break through that, or transcend the political aspect," Horton said.
Kutulakos added: "There's no way relations can get better if people don't meet face to face."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 3, 2023.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.
Local Spotlight
DonAir force takes over at Oilers playoff games
As if a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers lead in Game 1 of their playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings wasn't good enough, what was announced at Rogers Place during the next TV timeout nearly blew the roof off the downtown arena.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fergus, Ont. man feels nickel-and-dimed for $0.05 property tax bill
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
Twins from Toronto were Canada's top two female finishers at this year's Boston Marathon
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
Mystery surrounds giant custom Canucks jerseys worn by Lions Gate Bridge statues
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
'I'm committed': Oilers fan won't cut hair until Stanley Cup comes to Edmonton
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
'It's not my father's body!' Wrong man sent home after death on family vacation in Cuba
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
'Once is too many times': Education assistants facing rising violence in classrooms
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
What is capital gains tax? How is it going to affect the economy and the younger generations?
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”