Quebec's vaccine passport may soon be a thing of the past, says Legault

READ THE LATEST: Quebec's vaccination passport to be gradually phased out by March 14

Quebec Premier François Legault said Monday that he's trying to heal divisions and that with the more stable COVID-19 numbers, the province's vaccine passport may soon no longer be needed.

He also told Prime Minister Justin Trudeau he doesn't want the federal Emergencies Act invoked in the province, he told reporters in Longueuil, Que.

As the province's COVID-19 hospitalizations continue to decline and restrictions are lifted, the need for proof of vaccination may end, he said.

"We will discuss that tonight, and the plan of [Health Minister] Christian [Dube] is to get rid of the pass as soon as we get the okay from the public health," said Legault.

Quebec eased more restrictions over the weekend and plans to eliminate almost all of them by March 14, and Legault said with the two trends in motion, he is also not concerned that major protests will continue in the province.

"There's less and less reason to protest because we're getting back to a normal life more and more," he said.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford has also said that his province will follow the trend in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba in removing the vaccine passport.

Legault said that nonetheless, Quebec authorities aren't ready to fully commit to the idea and will be cautious as they keep an eye on the epidemiological trends.

"I can understand that we want to remove most of the measures, but we have to be careful because of the hospital situation," said Legault.

NO NEED FOR EMERGENCIES ACT IN QUEBEC, LEGAULT SAYS

On Monday, Trudeau invoked for the first time in its history the Emergencies Act in order to deal with anti-mandate blockades across the country as well as the ongoing occupation in downtown Ottawa.

Legault also said that Quebec police are able to control COVID-19 protests in their province and that there's no need to invoke the strict, federal Emergencies Act, as they've spoken of doing over the Ottawa protest.

He said that the two-week-long convoy in Ottawa is concerning, describing the impact of the protests on residents and workers as "unacceptable."

“We see what’s happening in Ottawa … some people are being prevented from going to work, it’s having serious impacts on the economy in Ontario so it’s understandable that after two weeks the federal government and the provincial government are looking to end this blockade that’s been called a siege,” Legault said.

“However, we don’t have the same problem here in Quebec. Secondly, we need to be cautious. Now is not the time to let our guard down.”

He said that in Quebec police forces have shown they are able to control protests against COVID-19 measures, including a protest in Montreal on Saturday.

Legault says that invoking the Emergencies Act would put "oil on the fire" at a time when he is trying to unite Quebecers.

However, the measures apply nationally since it's a federal act and the prime minister only needs to consult the provinces before invoking it, according to federal justice minister David Lametti. 

Specific provisions in the act "will only apply where they are needed," Trudeau added during a news conference Monday.

Meanwhile, Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet also said he is opposed to Canada invoking the special measure, calling it “not legitimate” and “useless.”

“So we don't want it and we don't want the extent of the powers that the federal government could give itself to go as far as eventually using the army, obviously not in Quebec, but I believe nowhere. But this is a position which seems to be the decision of the government of Quebec as well as ours,” Blanchet said.

Trudeau said Monday he is not calling in the army to deal with the protests. 

With files from The Canadian Press