Justin Trudeau Just Promised To Crack Down On 'Mobs' Protesting In Health Care Settings
If elected, he says the Liberals would move to criminalize blocking health care buildings.
With anti-vaccine protests taking place all over the country on September 13, the federal leaders have finally weighed in and Justin Trudeau is not holding back.
"The Liberal Party of Canada, if reelected to form government, will make it a criminal offence to block access to buildings that provide health care," said Trudeau while in Vancouver on September 13. "Whether that's hospitals, clinics, abortion clinics, pharmacies, testing centres, it is not OK that across the country, hospitals are having to put up barricades today to manage the mobs coming their way."
The rise in the anti-vaccine protests has seen an uptick lately with several taking place across the country, including a protest in Toronto on September 1 when the province announced its plan for vaccine certificates.
"It's not OK any day to know that a nurse going into a late shift, crossing a parking lot, might be afraid that there could be someone there to spit on her or shout obscenities at her," Trudeau said during the press conference. "That's not OK, and Canadians want to stand up for our health care practitioners."
"And further, we're going to make it a criminal offence for anyone to threaten or intimidate any health care practitioner on their way into work," he added, "or a patient on their way to get medical services. It's unfortunate, really, that we have to get to this point."
The NDP and Conservative leaders have also weighed in on the situation and condemn those interfering with staff and patients.
"If you're in any way threatening health care workers, impeding their ability to go to work, if you're impeding patients' access to care, if cancer patients aren't being able to get into the hospital, that is just not on, that's not allowed," said Jagmeet Singh while campaigning at Sioux Lookout, Ontario on September 13.
Erin O'Toole also Tweeted about the situation, saying that law enforcement should be used if hospitals are obstructed.
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.