Whatever their efficacy in fighting off COVID-19, it’s clear that Canada’s current border controls are on a scale unprecedented in modern times. Since March 25, 2020, all travelers entering Canada have been required to undergo 14 days of mandatory self-isolation, subject to fines or even arrest in the case of non-compliance. And now, incoming air travelers face mandatory confinement to a hotel paired with mandatory testing.
These policies would be inviting a cascade of Charter challenges under normal circumstances, but for now it’s all kosher due to them being a function of the Quarantine Act. Rewritten after the 2003 SARS pandemic, the act extends near-dictatorial powers to government during times of public health crisis. But the question is how long the Act can guide federal policy before inviting pushback.
The Quarantine Act extends very broad powers to public health authorities to indefinitely detain anyone who doesn’t follow their orders, and even to authorize “arrest without warrant.”
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