MPs defeat Conservative motion calling for federal plan to end vaccine mandates, restrictions
MPs defeat Conservative motion calling for federal plan to end vaccine mandates, restrictions
The Conservative push to have the Liberal government present a plan to end federal vaccine mandates and restrictions by the end of the month was struck down on Monday.
The motion was defeated 185 to 151, with the Liberals, NDP, and Greens, for the most part, voting against the move and the Conservatives and Bloc Quebecois voting in favour of it.
Unsurprisingly, Liberal MP Joel Lightbound also supported the motion. The Louis-Hébert, Que. MP publically spoke out against the government’s approach to the pandemic last week.
Federally-imposed vaccine mandates and restrictions have been a source of contention in recent weeks as the Freedom Convoy continues protests and blockades across Canada in pursuit of getting those policies dropped.
Ottawa announced in October that public servants would be required to attest they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by the end of that month. It also required that air and rail employees – and their passengers – be fully vaccinated by the same time period.
A month later, the government announced that starting Jan. 15, unvaccinated truck drivers entering Canada would have to comply with pre-entry, arrival, and day eight testing requirements, as well as quarantine rules.
However, the majority of vaccine mandates and public health restrictions are imposed at the provincial and territorial level.
When introducing the motion last week, interim Conservative Leader Candice Bergen said that while it’s time for the trucker convoy’s “barricades and disruptive action” to end, it’s also time for the government to present a plan out of the pandemic by Feb. 28.
The text of the motion points to recent comments by Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam calling for some public health measures to be re-examined and the need for a more “sustainable” approach in managing the pandemic.
It also alludes to steps being taking by provincial and territorial governments to lift mandates and restrictions.
During Question Period on Monday, Bergen said this should be a time of “optimism and joy” not “division and fear.”
“Two years into this pandemic Mr. Speaker, Canadians deserve in this moment some optimism and hope for their future and they deserve leadership from their government. They need to know when the federal mandates and restrictions will be lifted, that is not an unreasonable ask,” she said.
The government reiterated that science will dictate any change in policy.
“The opposition would like someone – perhaps the health minister – to declare that COVID-19 will end on a particular date. Unfortunately, that is not how the virus operates and that is not what science tells us. What science has told us is that we need to be prudent and responsible,” said Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos in response.
U.S. President Joe Biden heads north next week for his first visit to Canada as president. Ahead of the visit, both countries are laying out a wide range of potential topics spanning from migration policy to continuing support for Ukraine.
More than 130,000 people have signed an e-petition calling on Canada to give transgender and non-binary people fleeing harmful laws in their home countries the right to claim asylum, but that's already possible in this country. Advocates say the popularity of the proposal shows politicians that Canadians want the government to affirm its welcoming position.
The Public Order Emergency Commission has concluded that the federal government met the threshold for invoking the Emergencies Act to bring an end to the 'Freedom Convoy' protests and blockades.
The federal government is pledging to increase health funding to Canada's provinces and territories by $196.1 billion over the next 10 years, in a long-awaited deal aimed at addressing Canada's crumbling health-care systems with $46.2 billion in new funding.
Governor of the Bank of Canada Tiff Macklem says he thinks Canada is 'turning the corner' on inflation, but he isn't ruling out that the country could enter a 'mild recession.' In an English-language broadcast exclusive interview with CTV National News Ottawa Bureau Chief Joyce Napier, Macklem encouraged Canadians to prepare a 'buffer' to withstand 'tougher times.'
Joe Biden comes for a sleepover next week to make Canada the 18th country he has visited since being sworn in as U.S. president, quite the protocol slippage from that fading, if not forgotten, tradition of Canada being the first foreign presidential pitstop, writes Don Martin in a column for CTVNews.ca.
After weeks of refusing to look further into foreign election interference, Justin Trudeau surrendered to intense pressure and appointed a 'special rapporteur' to review China's actions. In his exclusive column for CTVNews.ca, Don Martin writes this 'startling change of heart' suggests the PMO is in panic mode and reflects badly on the prime minister's decision making.
The Trudeau tipping point is within sight. The moment when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau knows he has to quit for the good of the party or the Liberals realize they can't survive re-election with him at the helm is almost upon us, Don Martin writes in an exclusive column for CTVNews.ca.
Bombshell revelations that suggest Chinese agents actively, fraudulently and successfully manipulated Canada's electoral integrity in the last two federal elections cannot be dismissed with the standard Justin Trudeau nothing-to-see-here shrug, Don Martin writes in his exclusive opinion column for CTVNews.ca.
The chances Trudeau's health-care summit with the premiers will end with the blueprint to realistic long-term improvements are only marginally better than believing China’s balloon was simply collecting atmospheric temperatures, Don Martin writes in an exclusive column for CTVNews.ca, 'But it’s clearly time the 50-year-old dream of medicare as a Canadian birthright stopped being such a nightmare for so many patients.'
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) arrested an 18-year-old man from the Saint-Laurent borough of Montreal on Thursday morning in connection with allegations of terrorism.
The largest recorded earthquake in Alberta's history was not a natural event, but most likely caused by disposal of oilsands wastewater, new research has concluded.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he feels it is his role to see the Safe Third Country Agreement upgraded, in order to make sure Canadians can continue to have confidence in Canada's immigration system.
The Manhattan district attorney investigating Donald Trump rebuffed U.S. House Republicans' request Thursday for documents and testimony about the case, dismissing it as an "unprecedented inquiry" with no legitimate basis.
Embattled South Carolina Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom will resign next month after a US$3.5 billion accounting error in the year-end financial report he oversaw.
Han Dong has announced he will be sitting as an independent MP after being the subject of allegations involving interference by China in Canadian affairs.
Investigators with York Regional Police issued Canada-wide warrants for two men who they say are involved in the Richmond Hill attack on Ontario woman Elnaz Hajtamiri weeks before she was allegedly abducted.
The largest recorded earthquake in Alberta's history was not a natural event, but most likely caused by disposal of oilsands wastewater, new research has concluded.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) arrested an 18-year-old man from the Saint-Laurent borough of Montreal on Thursday morning in connection with allegations of terrorism.
Neurodivergent education expert Mary Klovance says there are several approaches educators can take to help students with such conditions as ADHD and autism to flourish in the classroom.
The turmoil of the pandemic contributed to the rise of hate and discriminatory behaviour, reflecting historical surges in antisemitism, says the CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver.
Investigators with York Regional Police issued Canada-wide warrants for two men who they say are involved in the Richmond Hill attack on Ontario woman Elnaz Hajtamiri weeks before she was allegedly abducted.
The Manhattan district attorney investigating Donald Trump rebuffed U.S. House Republicans' request Thursday for documents and testimony about the case, dismissing it as an "unprecedented inquiry" with no legitimate basis.
A top Russian security official warned Thursday about the rising threat of a nuclear war and blasted a German minister for threatening Russian President Vladimir Putin with arrest, saying that such action would amount to a declaration of war and trigger a Russian strike on Germany.
Some thrill seekers describe bungee jumping as a near-death experience, but few come quite as close as one man who managed to survive his cord snapping in Thailand.
Chinese diplomats expressed their strong opposition to an expanded United States military presence in the Philippines in closed-door talks with their Filipino counterparts Thursday in Manila, a Filipino official said, underscoring the intense U.S.-China rivalry in the region.
Embattled South Carolina Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom will resign next month after a US$3.5 billion accounting error in the year-end financial report he oversaw.
The Arizona Supreme Court has declined to hear most of Republican Kari Lake's appeal in a challenge of her defeat in the governor's race but revived a claim that was dismissed by a trial court.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he feels it is his role to see the Safe Third Country Agreement upgraded, in order to make sure Canadians can continue to have confidence in Canada's immigration system.
Han Dong has announced he will be sitting as an independent MP after being the subject of allegations involving interference by China in Canadian affairs.
U.S. President Joe Biden is coming to Canada tonight, kicking off his short but long-awaited overnight official visit to Canada. The official itinerary has just been released; here's everything you need to know about what will be on the agenda, and what key players are saying about the upcoming visit.
Canada's race to procure ventilators for COVID-19 patients in the early days of the pandemic had researchers, scientists, industry and a notable astrophysicist working 'night and day' to design machines that could be quickly manufactured domestically.
Neurodivergent education expert Mary Klovance says there are several approaches educators can take to help students with such conditions as ADHD and autism to flourish in the classroom.
A Winnipeg hospital official says another nurse has resigned from a sexual assault examination program, and other health-care professionals are stepping in to fill the gap.
U.S. lawmakers grilled the CEO of TikTok over data security and harmful content Thursday, responding skeptically during a tense committee hearing to his assurances that the hugely popular video-sharing app prioritizes user safety and should not be banned.
Sky-gazers will be treated to a parade of planets near the end of month when Jupiter, Mercury, Venus, Uranus and Mars will appear together in the night sky.
A rocket made almost entirely of 3D-printed parts made its launch debut Wednesday night, lifting off amid fanfare but failing three minutes into flight -- far short of orbit. There was nothing aboard Relativity Space's test flight except for the company's first metal 3D print made six years ago.
Protests continued Wednesday at a university in the Texas Panhandle after the school's president said a planned campus drag show wouldn't be allowed and expressed the view that such events 'discriminate against womanhood.'
A neuropsychologist who treated the man suing Gwyneth Paltrow over a 2016 ski collision cast aspersions on the testimony of medical experts hired by the celebrity's legal team -- and argued that, as his personal doctor, she was better suited to speak about 76-year-old Terry Sanderson's post-concussion symptoms.
After a years-long hiatus, Zellers has announced the locations of its first 25 store 'experiences.' The stores are set to open within Hudson's Bay locations across Canada in 2023. Here is a list of the locations.
Strength in the technology sector helped lead a broad-based rally as Canada's main stock index gained more than 100 points in late-morning trading, while U.S. stock markets also surged higher.
Neurodivergent education expert Mary Klovance says there are several approaches educators can take to help students with such conditions as ADHD and autism to flourish in the classroom.
Nancy Rose is the creator behind the "The Secret Life of Squirrels" – a series of children’s books and calendars capturing real-life squirrels engaging in human activities.
More than 50 current and former Canadian fencers have joined a growing call for a Canadian judicial inquiry on maltreatment in sport, saying the fear of retribution has kept them silent for nearly 20 years on fencing's toxic culture and abusive practices.
California lawmakers on Thursday will vote on whether to allow penalties on oil companies for price gouging at the pump, a first-in-the-country proposal aimed at stopping the kind of spikes last summer that caused some drivers pay up to US$8 per gallon as the industry reaped super-sized profits.
The Chevrolet Camaro, for decades the dream car of many teenage American males, is going out of production. General Motors, which sells the brawny muscle car, said Wednesday it will stop making the current generation early next year.
U.S. auto safety regulators are investigating complaints from Honda Civic drivers that their steering can stick, causing a momentary increase in effort and increasing the risk of a crash.
