Ontario Demands Temporary Flight Ban For Countries With New COVID-19 Virus Variants

Premier Doug Ford is calling on the federal government for assistance in securing the province's borders by imposing a temporarily flight ban in Ontario.

In a press release put out Tuesday afternoon, Ford says he is "calling on the federal government to impose a temporary ban on direct flights from countries where new variants are detected, including Brazil and Portugal."

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Until vaccines are widely available, we all need to do our part to stop the spread of this virus and that means tighter controls at our border. Premier Doug Ford

"Banning flights with multiple stops in countries with a known variant should also be considered," added the release.

"This ban would be consistent with the prudent measures announced by the United Kingdom and several other countries, and the restrictions would remain in place until more is known about these new variants."

The province also urges Ottawa to implement mandatory COVID-19 testing for all passengers arriving from other countries.

To date, over 6,800 international travellers have taken a voluntary COVID-19 test at Pearson International Airport, as part of the government's pilot program.

Ford has maintained the need to secure Pearson Airport as a point of entry to Ontario in order to curb the transmission of COVID-19.

It seems that Trudeau has echoed those sentiments, saying on Tuesday that more travel restrictions could be implemented this week. 

"We will not hesitate to take even tougher measures if and when they’re needed and we’ll be making an announcement in the coming days," said the prime minister.