Rempel Garner calls for end to 'unCanadian' COVID facilities

Conservative Shadow Minister for Health Michelle Rempel Garner called for the end of the Trudeau Liberals' quarantine facilities, calling the program "bungled and mismanaged."

The program has drawn hefty criticism from opposition parties due to conditions at the hotel, especially after a woman was allegedly sexually assaulted at the Trudeau airport facility in Montreal, Quebec.

"The federal quarantine hotel program is proving ineffective. Over the last week, horrifying reports of sexual assault, unsafe and deplorable conditions at federal quarantine hotel facilities have emerged," said Rempel Garner.

Rempel Garner pointed to the Conservatives record of being the first to call for the Liberals to enact border measures to secure Canada from COVID-19, over a year ago.

"The Liberal government instead said that border measures would make things worse, or not work at all. If they would have acted more quickly at the beginning, Canada would have been better positioned to fight the pandemic," she said.

Several reports from those kept in the facilities paint an image of a dysfunctional and cruel system that takes hours to book, can cost thousands of dollars, and does not have food and water readily available.

"That's in addition to this hotel continuing after reports of sexual assault," she said.

Rempel Garner said that the Trudeau Liberals have been unable to point to any concrete data that shows that the hotel facilities are safer than quarantining at home with an expanded pre and post-departure tests system.

"Government officials were unable to answer the health committee what data shows this hotel requirement was better for public health outcomes, than safely quarantining at home. We are also concerned that the haphazard patchwork of exemptions and the lack of consideration for essential and compassionate travellers has left some people stranded. Now is not the time for leisure travel, but we do know that there are still people who will travel for essential purposes."

Yesterday, it was reported by CTV that a woman returning from travelling to her father's funeral in Portugal with her family was charged close to $4,000 for 15 hours at the Trudeau quarantine facility in Toronto. The woman was lied to about the initial price by airport staff, and was denied a price-cut despite the short stay.

Rempel Garner urged the Liberals "to scrap and replace" the system with "a more effective system of advanced pre and post testing for international travellers, and better and safer enforcement of the at-home quarantine."

"We can protect Canadians from COVID-19 without subjecting them to this type of deplorable and un-Canadian treatment," Rempel Garner concluded.