Canada-U.S. land border remains closed but new compassionate rules offered

    Canada column for Sunday, Oct. 4/20

    THE CANADIAN REPORT

   By Jim Fox

    More compassionate rules will allow extended family members to cross the land border into Canada from the United States.

   This move was announced as the seven-month border lockdown was extended to Oct. 21for Americans and until Oct. 31 for travelers from other countries due to the pandemic.

   Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino said family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents will now be eligible to enter the country.

   “The pandemic is an ongoing threat and we need to continue to be cautious and restrictive about who can enter into Canada,” he said.

   “We recognize, however, that these restrictions should not keep loved ones apart,” he added.

   Starting Oct. 8, those eligible for entry include adult children, siblings, grandparents and those who have been in a “committed relationship” for at least a year with a notarized declaration.

   There is also a compassionate-entry program for those wanting to see an ill relative along with an exemption from the current 14-day quarantine requirement.

   For all others, allowing entry into Canada is for commerce and essential travelers only.

   No one should make travel plans until they’ve been authorized under the new program.

   “This disease is not going away any time soon. Countries will be struggling for a very long time,” said Health Minister Patty Hajdu.

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    Canada’s Parliament has enacted a bill authorizing new benefits for workers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

   This replaces the Canada Emergency Response Benefit that has given displaced workers $2,000 a month.

   Recipients of that program are being transitioned to a “more flexible and generous employment insurance” program.

   Called the Canada Recovery Benefit at $500 a week, it also includes those who don’t qualify for Employment Insurance payments and includes sick leave and caregiver benefits.

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    News in brief:

   - Hundreds of Canadians have answered the call to help battle U.S. wildfires. The U.S. requested help battling the blazes in California and other states. Three 20-person crews from Quebec are in Boise, Reno and deployed to the North Complex fire and Plumas National Forest in California. There are also calls for help from Australia as the summer bushfire season starts.

   - Canada’s economic comeback continued in July with the gross domestic product growing by 3 percent compared with 6.5percent in June. All 20 industrial sectors it tracks had increases while agriculture, utilities, finance, insurance and real estate sectors recouped losses since the start of the pandemic. Accommodations and food services jumped by 20.1 percent while manufacturing grew 5.9 percent. Health care and social assistance rose by 3.7 percent.

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    Facts and figures:

   The Canadian dollar is higher at 75.1 cents U.S. while the U.S. dollar returns $1.333 Canadian before exchange fees.

   The Bank of Canada’s key interest rate is unchanged at 0.25 percent while the prime lending rate is 2.45 percent.

   Canadian stock markets are higher with the Toronto index at 16,199 points and the TSX Venture index 708 points.

   The average price for gas in Canada is steady at $1.03 a liter (Canadian) or $3.91 for a U.S. gallon.

   Lotto Max: (Sept. 29) 4, 6, 9, 15, 22, 24 and 28; bonus 44. (Sept. 25) 1, 7, 9, 28, 38, 48 and 50; bonus 13.

   Lotto 6/49: (Sept. 30) 13, 16, 20, 21, 27 and 48; bonus 15. (Sept. 26) 8, 27, 29, 33, 40 and 49; bonus 2.

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    Regional briefs:

   - Atlantic Canada provinces remain in their “bubble” to counter the pandemic. The four provinces have an enviable record at eliminating community transmission of COVID-19 as cases grow elsewhere in Canada. There are just 13 of Canada’s 14,490 daily cases, while Quebec alone reported 933 new daily infections with Ontario at 653 and British Columbia 161. Restrictions on who can visit and limited travel are working, said Chris Goodyear, president of the New Brunswick Medical Society.

   - A prominent landmark containing the word squaw near the summit on Mount Charles Stewart in the Alberta Rockies is being renamed. Stoney Nakoda women elders said the name of the peak near Canmore was “racist and misogynistic” and had to go. The new name is actually its original one: Anu katha Ipa or Bald Eagle Peak.

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 im Fox can be reached at canadareport@hotmail.com