ArriveCAN: Tories Question Delay of US Power Crew Coming to Aid Nova Scotia in Wake of Fiona

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre rises during question period on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Sept. 26, 2022. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)

In the House of Commons on Sept. 26, the Conservatives raised the issue of a report from Nova Scotia Power (NSP) that said the government’s ArriveCAN requirement impeded a U.S. power crew from entering Canada to assist in the recovery from post-tropical storm Fiona.

In a statement to Global News, NSP said there was “an issue related to ArriveCAN,” which raised concerns among the U.S. crew that they “may not be able to cross the border” to provide help after the powerful storm left devastation in its wake in Atlantic Canada.

“When we heard from our crews that there were issues at the border, we reached out to provincial officials to see if there was any help that could be provided,” Jacqueline Foster, senior communication adviser for NSP, said in the statement, adding that the issue was resolved hours later.

“We understood there would be outreach to appropriate federal officials that might be able to help. Within a few hours the crews were on the road to support Nova Scotians.”

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre noted the report in the House of Commons, pointing to the contradictory remarks made by cabinet ministers on whether the federal mobile app caused delays for the U.S. crew.

“Nova Scotia Power reported that the ArriveCAN app blocked American crews that were trying to rush into the province to help with the recovery response and wasted valuable time,” Poilievre said.

“Originally, the public safety minister denied that that had happened but only to be contradicted by the emergency preparedness minister, who said in fact, there was an issue at the border.”

In response, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said repeatedly that “there were no delays.”

“Everyone’s focus was on getting support to affected areas as quickly as possible,” Trudeau said. “I can confirm ... that there were no delays at any border because of ArriveCAN or otherwise.”

Cabinet ministers announced on Sept. 26 that an order enforcing the use of the ArriveCAN app for travellers entering Canada would be allowed to expire at the end of the month. The app, initially introduced to ensure travellers report their COVID-19 vaccination status, has been mandatory at Canada’s borders since February 2021.

A person holds a smartphone set to the opening screen of the ArriveCan app, which requires people to declare their vaccination status to be able to enter Canada. (Giordano Ciampini/The Canadian Press)

Trudeau repeated his claim that there was “no delay” caused by the mobile app after Conservative MP Pierre Paul-Hus asked to push the expiry date ahead and suspend the use of the ArriveCAN app immediately.

Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino later endorsed Trudeau’s remarks, saying the prime minister “was absolutely correct when he said that there were no delays caused by ArriveCAN.”

Contradictions

The province of Nova Scotia and the U.S. state of Maine have a memorandum of understanding that allows them to provide mutual assistance in managing an emergency or natural disaster.

On Sept. 25, Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston’s office told Global News that the arrival of the U.S. power crews was delayed due to the ArriveCAN app.

“I do know that there was a situation where some crews from Maine were having an issue at the border,” Houston also told reporters at a morning press conference.

“We became aware of that, we alerted the federal government. My understanding is that that was dealt with pretty quickly. But … there was an issue to begin with.”

However, a spokesperson for Mendicino said the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) had “no record of such a situation occurring at any Port of Entry into Canada,” Global News reported.

“This erroneous story likely stems from a misunderstanding,” Alex Cohen said, adding that CBSA officers at both a regional level and at each border crossing were instructed to accelerate the process for U.S. power crews to cross the border to lend assistance.

Meanwhile, when asked about ArriveCAN causing delays for the U.S. crew, Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair said he was “advised that there was a concern about it,” adding that “before any steps could be taken, the matter was resolved.”

“I know everybody—our officers at CBSA and public safety, every federal department—were working to get this done. Everybody understands the urgency of getting those resources quickly into community,” Blair said at a Sept. 25 press conference.

When further asked if there were “absolutely no delays,” Blair said he was not at the border and declined to comment on the specific details.

Fiona made landfall in Nova Scotia early on Sept. 24. The strong wind and heavy rain brought by the storm left hundreds of thousands without power across eastern Canada.

There are roughly 7,700 active outages, with nearly 166,000 customers of Nova Scotia Power still affected as of 5:30 p.m. EDT on Sept. 26.