Canada PM defends COVID restrictions amid truck blockades

The truckers have been protesting the rule, that took effect from Jan. 15, requiring truckers entering Canada to be fully vaccinated

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stood firm against an easing of the country's COVID-19 restrictions Wednesday in the face of mounting pressure from protesters using trucks to blockade the capital and U.S. border crossings, including the economically vital bridge to Detroit.

A growing number of Canadian provinces have moved to lift some of their precautions as the Omicron surge levels off, but Mr Trudeau defended the measures the federal government is responsible for, including the one that has angered many truck drivers: a rule that took effect Jan. 15 requiring truckers entering Canada to be fully vaccinated.

“The reality is that vaccine mandates, and the fact that Canadians stepped up to get vaccinated to almost 90%, ensured that this pandemic didn't hit as hard here in Canada as elsewhere in the world,” Mr Trudeau said in Parliament in Ottawa.