Trudeau government begins work on reopening US-Canada Border

PM Justin Trudeau’s government has begun preliminary internal discussions about reopening the border with the US, even as Canada remains well behind its neighbor in vaccinations. Senior officials have begun to formally talk about options for how to proceed, three people familiar with the matter said, speaking on the condition they not be identified. One question under consideration is whether to employ a two-track system in which quarantine and testing requirements would be relaxed for vaccinated travelers. A separate official speaking on condition they not be named disputed there were any new developments or discussions on the border, saying there has been no discernible change in policy. “We brought forward significant restrictions at our borders over a year ago to limit the spread of Covid-19 in Canada,” said James Cudmore, director of communications for Public Safety Minister Bill Blair. “Every month, the federal government consults with public health officials to understand which modifications are required to the existing measures at our borders to keep our communities safe from Covid-19... Minister Blair is in regular contact with his American counterparts about issues relating to our shared border. Until the conditions on both sides of the border change very substantively, the measures at our borders will remain intact.” Any reopening of the border would be gradual and contingent on declining cases in both countries, the officials said.<br/>