Toronto Pearson Airport scraps decision to separate arrivals by vaccination status
Toronto Pearson Airport has reversed a decision made last week to separate arriving international passengers based on vaccination status.
On Saturday, Senior Advisor of Communications at Toronto Pearson Beverly MacDonald told CTV News Toronto that the airport was separating arrivals into vaccinated and unvaccinated queues prior to going through customs.
The airport said the decision was made to help streamline border clearance, as there are different entry requirements for vaccinated and non- or partially-vaccinated travellers.
That decision has been reversed now, the airport said in a statement.
“Toronto Pearson, in collaboration with the government and other partners, has determined that separation of vaccinated and partially/non vaccinated travellers in customs lines results in minimal operational efficiencies,” a statement from the airport read.
“As such, the practice will be ceased as of July 26, 2021, with entry requirements based on vaccination status being enforced once a passenger reaches CSBA.”
When asked about the reversal, Canadian Minister of Health Patty Hajdu told reporters Tuesday that she can not speak to the decisions made by international airports and that she was not consulted in the matter.
“I will just say this though, as you know, we have been adjusting measures at the border reflecting vaccination status and I assume that the many operators that are responsible for orderly transition through the variety of arrival halls are making decisions based on efficiency and on health principles,” Hajdu added.
Vancouver International Airport has also announced it will stop the practice.
“[Effective] immediately, passengers entering Canada from the U.S. or another international destination will no longer be separated based on vaccination status prior to reaching Customs,” Melanie Belanger-Finn of the Vancouver Airport Authority said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.