Prime minister Justin Trudeau announced on Saturday $62.5 million in funding to support the seafood processing industry, which officials hope will also filter through to the entire fishing sector.
Trudeau said officials believe the new funds, which will allow fish processing workers to either work safely or stay home, can then impact the entire fisheries industry during the COVID-19 outbreak. The funds can be used to purchase equipment like freezers to keep stock viable longer to deal with changing market conditions, he noted.
"With this announcement, we are giving fish and seafood processors more resources to adapt to the many challenges brought on by the pandemic and - above all - keep workers safe," Trudeau said. "Our fish sector's interconnected, so this announcement will also benefit fish harvesters."
Meanwhile, Trudeau also confirmed that he spoke with provincial premiers late Friday to set up guidelines and principles for a gradual reopening of the economy. He again said that the approach will differ from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and the plan will be based on "science, data, and expert advice."
When asked about the World Health Organization's recent report that COVID-19 may be able to re-infect people who have previously recovered from the virus, Trudeau said Ottawa's plan will take every precaution until the exact nature of the novel coronavirus is clearly delineated.
The response comes after some countries said they are pondering issuing "immunity passports" for residents who have recovered from the virus, but no such plan is being pursued in Canada, Trudeau said.
"I don’t think any of the plans [we've discussed] hinge on people being immune," he said. "There's still an awful lot of science being done… that will be examining these issues. It is something we need to get clear answers to, and before we get those answers, we need to air on the side of caution."
A WHO brief issued Friday (in response to some ideas that antibodies developed inside people after fighting off COVID-19 could provide immunity) said that there is "not enough evidence about the effectiveness of antibody-mediated immunity to guarantee the accuracy of an 'immunity passport' or 'risk-free certificate.'"
"The use of such certificates may therefore increase the risks of continued transmission," the WHO statement concluded.
