Trudeau Just Announced That The Canada-US Border Is Expected To Reopen For Some Next Month
Non-essential travel is on the horizon, but not for everyone!
Justin Trudeau has made the biggest indication yet that the Canada-U.S. border is finally opening up in the near future.
In a Thursday night press release, the prime minister revealed that "we could expect to start allowing" fully-vaccinated American citizens and permanent residents to travel to Canada for non-essential reasons by mid-August.
I spoke with @DLeBlancNB and the premiers this evening. We focused on COVID-19 and how we can keep people safe as we adjust border measures. We also touched on other topics - including reconciliation, child care, and wildfires. More on our 33rd call:https://pm.gc.ca/en/news/readouts/2021/07/15/prime-minister-justin-trudeau-holds-33rd-call-premiers-covid-19-response\u00a0\u2026— Justin Trudeau (@Justin Trudeau) 1626400624
Currently, the land border is closed to non-essential travellers until July 21, but Trudeau said more information about the plans to drop the restrictions will be shared early next week.
According to the press release, Canada's premiers and first ministers were supportive of the plans to allow non-essential travel between the two countries. Plenty of Americans will no doubt be excited as well, considering the constant calls to reopen the border and allow tourists and other travellers into Canada.
Trudeau also revealed in the press release that non-essential international travellers "from all countries" could be welcomed back into the country by mid-September, as long as vaccination rates keep going up and COVID-19 case rates keep going down.
Who wants the Canada-U.S. border to reopen?
The border reopening has been a point of contention for months, now, and some officials and citizens on both sides of the border are keen to see it reopen.
When Canada delayed restrictions again in June 2021, New York Congressman Brian Higgins called the decision "bullsh*t" and put out a statement criticizing the government's inability to open things up.
Another group of U.S. politicians recently formally called on the U.S. and Canadian governments to agree on an opening plan, but it's not just Americans who want to see restrictions eased.
A Nanos Research poll indicated that citizens in the Prairies were most eager to see the border reopened, with almost a third of residents interested in getting rid of restrictions "immediately."
But Trudeau has, for the most part, held firm. At a press conference on July 14, he said Canada will take a "cautious and responsible" approach to reopening the border.