Snowbird scandal forces Canadian politicians to seek the sun

Photographer: E + / Getty Images

Jumping on a plane to take a break from winter is a Canadian ritual. But suddenly it has become a mistake that turns politicians’ careers upside down.

Three provincial ministers, including Ontario’s finance chief was forced to resign from cabinet last week after being sued for flying to sultry destinations during the holidays, in violation of their governments’ guidelines to stay at home because of Covid-19. About a dozen other government officials who have traveled abroad have been charged with ethical violations, with some losing their parliamentary titles, including two members of Justin Trudeau’s government.

‘We have been very clear. No one should be on vacation abroad at this point, ”Trudeau said at a press conference in Ottawa on Tuesday. “One of the things that has been really important to Canadians during this pandemic is the feeling that we are all in this together.” He said people traveling outside the country would not be eligible for a government allowance of C $ 1,000 ($ 780) for those who need to isolate themselves.

Canada’s travel regulations are strict by the standards of most Western countries. The borders are closed to the vast majority of foreigners and the 14 day quarantine on arrival has been delayed air traffic. Canadian authorities have discouraged non-essential travel abroad, although it is not prohibited.

Faced with a wave of infections threatening to overwhelm hospitals as the December holiday approached, several counties sent their economies back to tighter lockdowns and asking people to sacrifice family celebrations for the greater good.

“I am the man who steals Christmas to protect you,” Manitoba’s Prime Minister Brian Pallister said at an emotional press conference, summing up the mood across the country.

Most Canadians squatted over the holidays. Then came the evidence that some were doing just the opposite.

The The Journal de Montreal newspaper sent a reporter to an all-inclusive resort in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, who found that Quebec tourists hung out without masks and shared drinks and cigarettes.

That article and similar reports panicked the French-speaking province. They raised fears travelers might bring back the virus, in a rerun of the ill-timed March school break that officials blame for the Quebec death toll – 8,379 deaths, most in Canada.

Next door in Ontario, travel turned into a political scandal when it became known that Treasury Secretary Rod Phillips was vacationing in luxury Saint Barthelemy after his government imposed widespread business shutdowns. To make matters worse, Phillips had released pre-recorded messages on Twitter that give the impression that he was still in the country. He resigned on December 31.

In Saskatchewan, a minister who had traveled to California resigned from the cabinet on Monday.