Premier Blaine Higgs. (Video capture from GNB YouTube)
The premiers of Atlantic Canada look to make more collaborative decisions regarding COVID-19.
Following a meeting with Premier Dennis King of Prince Edward Island, Premier Tim Houston of Nova Scotia and Premier Andrew Furey of Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs told reporters about “harmonization” around pandemic policies.
“What we will see now is more of a policy around how we manage COVID… but the idea is that our goals will be more and more harmonized with each other in the Atlantic region,” Higgs said.
The idea said Higgs, is that a consistent set of rules between the provinces will eliminate confusion on mask requirements, proof of vaccination and travel.
The Premier himself disconnected the previous sense of harmonization established in Atlantic Canada. In July, New Brunswick reopened to the entire country before the other Atlantic provinces were prepared, thus bursting plans for a true Atlantic Bubble.
Tuesday’s meeting between the premiers did not involve any discussions “in the sense of additional border measures,” according to Higgs.
Instead, COVID-related conversations focused on the lagging pace of vaccinations. Based on the latest data reported by each province, P.E.I. leads the Atlantic region with 86.2 per cent of its eligible population fully vaccinated, while Nova Scotia sits fourth, having reported just 74.6 per cent.
“We have to find a balance here because we’re all agreeing that there’s a segment of our population that just has decided they’re not going to get vaccinated and that likely ranges between 10 and 15 per cent,” said Higgs.
