Tourism industry wants answers about Quebec's vaccine passport rollout

Montreal -

Quebec’s new vaccine passport was tested in real life Wednesday at the La Cage Brasserie sportive in Quebec City ahead of the official roll-out next month, but questions remain unanswered about how it will actually work.

The testing was part of a series of pilot projects that are underway to see if the new mobile app that will be used by restaurants and bars works smoothly to screen clientele for their vaccination status. 

Health minister Christian Dubé said Wednesday the testing is necessary "so that in two weeks from now, when we will launch officially the process, we will have the result  of how practical, how fluid we can be."

While some business owners wonder if the vaccine passport will be a success or not, they accept that this might be the price they have to pay to return to normal, even if it comes with a few extra headaches.

“It will be tough. We're still in a labour shortage to validate the vaccine passport so it will be tough and there are still questions we'll need to ask,” said Martin Vezina, a spokesperson for Quebec’s restaurant association, the ARQ.

Retail stores, just like restaurants, say they're grateful they don't have to force their staff to be vaccinated. The government says it's because work is a basic human right and forcing them to get the shot would violate labour laws.

Struggling businesses say they can't afford to lose potential employees.

“We don't have many employees, or spare employees that we have if we can't keep an unvaccinated one or who just received one dose,” Vezina said. "For many establishments, that will lead them to closure."

Retail stores will not be required to enforce the vaccine passport and say they believe they’re exempt because they're a safer environment.

“Inside a place of retail you don't spend a lot of time like [you do] in a restaurant or gyms or something like that, so for us it makes sense,” said Jean-Guy Côté, director general of Quebec’s retail council, the CQCD.

When it comes to concert venues and festivals, organizers say they're forced to require the vaccine passport while maintaining strict distancing measures for large crowds.

“We don't have enough lead time. It was announced on August 10, more details will come on August 23 and it will be necessary on September 1st. We do have festivals that start on September 2,” said Martin Roy, executive director of Festivals and Major Events (FAME).

The government hasn't given an answer yet on how visitors from outside of Quebec will get access to the passport, including Vancouver resident Kirk Jong, who plans to visit Montreal in early September with his family. 

“I'm not against the passport system, I just need the certainty ahead of time so I can decide whether to go or not,” he told CTV News.

It's a question many in the tourism industry would like an answer to soon.