WestJet Executive: What Comes After Trudeau Hotel Quarantine Plan?

March 12, 2021 ctn_admin

The Canadian government needs to think about what will replace the mandatory hotel quarantine program, and also needs to come up with a road map for the recovery of the tourism and travel industries, a top WestJet executive says.

Speaking by phone with Canadian Travel News today, Andrew Gibbons, WestJet’s Director, Government Relations and Regulatory Affairs, said airlines and others in the industry understand that the hotel program won’t be around forever.

“If we accept it as a temporary policy, then we need to begin to think about what’s next. We continually highlight the Calgary model,” he said, alluding to the Calgary COVID-19 testing program that required incoming passengers to have a test taken at the airport but then allowed returning Canadians to spend the first part of their quarantine safe at home and not be forced into a hotel.

Gibbons said the Calgary pilot program, which was eliminated when the Trudeau government brought in the hotel quarantine requirement last month, was put in place by the Public Health Agency of Canada and Alberta’s health services department and had the support of both levels of government.

Gibbons said that could potentially be a program that would work in other cities and allow Canada to “move on” from the controversial hotel program.

“It’s part of our overall hope of shifting to travel policies that are a deterrent to travel to policies that signal a safe restart,” he said from Ottawa, where he addressed the House of Commons Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology on Thursday.

Gibbons told the committee that WestJet believes there should be funding for airport arrivals testing in the upcoming federal budget.

Gibbons also said the airline industry and others in the travel and tourism business need to get some idea of when they might be able to start moving again. The UK government has just such a plan in place, and Canada could follow suit.

“The argument we made to the government (of Canada) is that the government of the UK doesn’t care less about COVID just because they put dates in a window. Of course, if there’s a third wave or the variants become a big problem, public health comes first.

“But 20 million Canadians will be vaccinated by quarter two of this year, so let’s plan now.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told CTV News today that the border won’t reopen until COVID-19 levels and vaccination rates reach levels that would make it safe to do so.

“We will see what vaccinations look like, we will see what case counts look like,” Trudeau said. “We will listen to experts on when we can start easing restrictions, but the safety of Canadians needs to come first.”

“Even as Americans are getting lots of vaccines, we’re still seeing around 50,000 new cases a day in the United States,” he said. “Everyone looks forward to starting the travel again and we’re certainly going to keep working closely with the United States as we have since the beginning of the pandemic. But the safety of Canadians is our single most and top priority.”

Gibbons said airlines need a plan so they can crank their businesses back up again.

“Fleets need to be planned. Hotels need to determine if they’ll bring in workers for the summer. The entire infrastructure of companies that support aviation need lead time.”

“Given global uncertainty, Canada must prioritize domestic travel and negotiate a transparent and clear policy with provincial governments,” Gibbons told the House of Commons group. “This could be based on COVID levels or based on the percentage of the population that’s been vaccinated. We believe this should be a priority item for the Minister of Intergovernmental affairs and the Minister of Tourism.

“Canadians should see their country this summer. Safely,” he said.

Talks between Canadian airlines and the federal government began on November 5, but there’s still not been a package announced to help Canada’s aviation sector.

“Our competitor countries have already developed plans to protect their aerospace and aviation industries and jobs, we need the same commitment in Canada,” he told the House of Commons committee.

“We are not seeking policy that strictly supports our bottom line,“ he said. “We are seeking a recovery framework that will lower the travel cost for Canadian families, introduce green credits for fuel efficient aircraft and ensure Canada has a competitive global airline based in Western Canada.”

Transat president and CEO Jean Marc Eustache this week expressed impatience with the lack of help from Ottawa. But Gibbons told Canadian Travel News he’s encouraged by the positive comments made by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on January 29, when he announced that Canadian airlines would cease flying to the Caribbean and Mexico through April 30.

Trudeau at the time said Canadian airlines have been “great partners,” and Gibbons said he’s taking that to heart.

“Those were encouraging comments; they were significant. So, let’s continue to move forward as best we can and get as many WestJetters back to work as possible.”

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