A woman who says she was denied the right to travel to Newfoundland and Labrador for her mother’s funeral is challenging the province’s COVID-19 travel ban.
Kim Taylor and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association filed a claim in Newfoundland and Labrador’s Supreme Court on Wednesday, claiming the restrictions violate the charter and fall outside provincial jurisdiction.
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Newfoundland and Labrador has passed legislation banning anyone but permanent residents and asymptomatic workers in key sectors from entering the province.
The Canadian Civil Liberties Association says that while it’s concerned with travel bans across the country, Newfoundland and Labrador’s is particularly problematic.
The association notes the Newfoundland ban grants police powers to search, detain and remove people believed to have violated a public health order.
Taylor, who lives in Halifax, says she was denied her request for an exemption to be allowed to visit her home province following her mother’s death, despite including a plan to self-isolate for 14 days upon arrival.