Alberta calls for an end to 'pointless' federal COVID-19 travel restrictions

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney says a motion will be presented in the legislature to call on Ottawa to end "pointless" COVID-19 travel measures.

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney says a motion will be presented in the legislature to call on Ottawa to end "pointless" COVID-19 travel measures.

In a six-minute video posted to Twitter Sunday afternoon, Kenney said pre-departure COVID-19 testing requirements and vaccine mandates had served their purpose.

As jurisdictions learn to live with the disease, Kenney added that the measures now hurt the economy and add little to no measurable public health benefit.

"It's time for Justin Trudeau to stop the pointless federal COVID travel restrictions," the premier said. "We can't allow the division, the obstacles and the barriers of constantly changing health policy to hold our society back indefinitely."

Federal regulations mandate travellers 12 years or older to be vaccinated to board flights and VIA Rail trains.

Kenney quoted several public health experts from across Canada and the world who say that vaccine passports are no longer effective as a tool when they consider fully vaccinated as receiving two doses instead of three due to the Omicron variant.

"Alberta has already dropped almost all of our public health restrictions, and we've done so safely," he said.