Canadian Trucking Alliance says it 'disapproves' of protest against Trudeau's Covid mandates

The Canadian Trucking Alliance said in a statement released on Saturday that it does not support protests against the Trudeau Liberals' vaccine mandate for cross-border truckers.

The convoy left British Columbia on Sunday and is making its way through Alberta and the rest of the country en-route to Ottawa.

The Trucking Alliance said in its statement that the "vast majority " of truckers are vaccinated, mirroring the vaccination rate of the general public.

"Accordingly, most of our nation’s hard-working truck drivers are continuing to move cross-border and domestic freight to ensure our economy continues to function," the statement reads.

"The Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) does not support and strongly disapproves of any protests on public roadways, highways, and bridges. CTA believes such actions – especially those that interfere with public safety – are not how disagreements with government policies should be expressed. Members of the trucking industry who want to publicly express displeasure over government policies can choose to hold an organized, lawful event on Parliament Hill or contact their local MP. What is not acceptable is disrupting the motoring public on highways and commerce at the border.

"The Government of Canada and the United States have now made being vaccinated a requirement to cross the border. This regulation is not changing so, as an industry, we must adapt and comply with this mandate,” said CTA president Stephen Laskowski. “The only way to cross the border, in a commercial truck or any other vehicle, is to get vaccinated."

The CTA also released a statement last week denouncing any road or border protests, saying that members of the trucking industry who want to publicly express displeasure over government policies "can choose to hold an organized, lawful event on Parliament Hill and not disrupt the travelling public."