Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is promising that efforts are underway to reunite family members who have been separated because of the Canada-U.S. border closure.
During his daily address on Monday morning, Trudeau revealed that the federal government is introducing a limited exemption to allow immediate family members of Canadian citizens or permanent residents to enter Canada. According to Trudeau, the exemption will mainly be geared towards parents of minor children, as well as children and spouses.
Trudeau said quarantine measures will still be in place for individuals who take advantage of the exemption. He added that anyone who doesn't abide by these rules could face harsh penalties.
"I want to be absolutely clear, any person entering Canada will have to self-isolate for 14 days," he said.
The Canada-U.S. border has been closed to all non-essential travel since March over COVID-19 concerns. Trudeau said additional details on the exemption for family members are expected to come later in the day on Monday from the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.
"Obviously, we want families to be together but our priority remains the safety of all Canadians," Trudeau said.
During his address, the prime minister also touted the federal government's efforts in reopening the Canadian economy.
On Friday, Trudeau announced that the federal government would contribute $14 billion towards a Safe Restart Agreement with provinces and territories to help the country get back up and running.
On Monday, he said discussions are still underway on details of the agreement.
"Right now we're working with the premiers on what this restart could look like in the coming months," said Trudeau. "As we do that we're staying focused on people's new realities."
According to Trudeau, the funding would go towards a variety of efforts to help provinces and territories slowly reopen including providing more personal protective equipment for hospital workers, increasing transit and childcare funding to assist residents as they return to work as well as providing additional support for seniors.
