Quarantine Rules Need to Change And Airlines Need Help, Alberta Business Group Says
March 27, 2021 ctn_admin
On March 15, our province hit the one-year anniversary since we first locked down to get control of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The reasoning for this shutdown was simple. With very little knowledge on how the virus spread, and seeing catastrophic outbreaks in China and Italy, the government asked everyone to stay at home until public health experts had a chance to gain an understanding of the virus.
Everyone was to chip in for this effort and Albertans responded well, as they always have when going through an emergency. There is a lot we can be proud of as Albertans and Canadians. And from our health care heroes to our first responders, there is no shortage of Albertans and Canadians we are proud of.
While there have been many groups that have stepped up in the midst of this crisis, one that has made a major contribution and is often forgotten is Canadians who work in our aviation sector. When the entire world went into lockdown, Canada’s major airlines worked with the federal government and our airports to bring home thousands of Canadians stranded abroad. They helped to ship millions of dollars’ worth of necessary medical supplies and personal protective equipment.
As most governments re-opened most businesses over the course of summer 2020, we learned more about the virus, including where it transmitted most quickly. We learned quite early on that airline travel, previously seen as a major vector of transmission, was actually quite safe as innovations in air filtration reduced the spread within planes. Minister Marc Garneau and Chief Medical Officer of Health Theresa Tam stated that they found no evidence of any transmission happening on board aircraft. International health agencies such as America’s Centre for Disease Control and the World Health Organization verified that these were low-risk activities.
Yet when the world plunged into a second wave, many of the lessons we learned over the first six months of the pandemic were forgotten. Some jurisdictions brought in nonsensical business policies allowing big-box stores to remain open while shutting down the smaller businesses that sold many of the same things. Others tried to parse what kind of goods were considered essential and should be allowed to be sold.
Other groups chose to assign blame. Much of this blame was placed at the feet of Canadian airlines and travellers, despite a lack of evidence that airlines were contributing significantly to spread. An industry that employed 154,000 across Canada.
At this point, airlines have spent over a year operating at a loss while taking extraordinary steps to protect customers with a federal government that has offered no support. They have taken real actions to harm the industry, ranging from draconian “quarantine hotels” to shutting down of provincial programs aimed to keep travel safe without being impossible. Neither of these decisions were evidence-based.
What we need now is an evidence-based policy from governments that allows for some form of domestic and international travel to be done responsibly. This has been done largely around the world and it is time for Canada to catch up.
Canada currently has restrictions for flying within our country. Similar restrictions exist no where else in the world. Canada also hasn’t moved towards testing and limited quarantines for international travel while policies similar to that are being adopted throughout the world.
Major companies and employers are at risk. A year ago, WestJet employed 14,000 people. Today, it’s about 5600. Tourism generally makes up ten percent of Canadian jobs, and the industry took almost twice the hit faced by other industries. As Albertans we may take for granted the privilege that comes with having a global airline based out of our province.
We are now a year into the pandemic. The vaccination effort is well under way. Global Covid cases are falling quickly, and we understand a lot more about Covid-19. Vaccines are getting to Canada, in large part thanks to our aviation sector.
We know that airline travel can be safe, even outside our borders. It is being done internationally, and the international pilot program run through Calgary International Airport proved that it can be done here.
The aviation sector doesn’t need a bailout. What they need is for governments to create policy that allows for safe air travel domestically and abroad with rigorous testing and precautions to keep it safe. It is now time for governments to give the aviation sector that certainty.
John Liston is President of Alberta Enterprise Group
PROSPERITY IN ALBERTA IS OUR POLICY
Fusing business acumen with a pragmatic approach to public issues, AEG seeks to influence and aid in the development of public policy. AEG focuses on the “big picture” issues that have the largest impact on the province’s social and economic bottom line. Through the use of proactive media relations, strategic events, campaigns, and original research, AEG effectively engages policy that affects Alberta entrepreneurs and their ability to create!
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