TORONTO – The Quebec government’s decision to impose a tax on no vax continues to cause controversy. For now, no other province seems oriented to follow the same path as the executive led by Francois Legault. Too many problems of a legal nature – there are those who hypothesize the evident unconstitutionality of the measure – or of simple political gain: it is a highly divisive measure and no other prime minister has decided to risk. Yet, the debate over the appropriateness and feasibility of the measure goes on. 

Yesterday it was the Federal Minister for Intergovernmental Affairs Dominic LeBlanc who spoke about it, who reiterated what has been the line of the Trudeau government from the beginning: Ottawa – this is the minister’s reasoning – will respect the decisions of the individual provincial jurisdictions and will not intervene; at the same time, however, the federal executive has a very specific idea of the need to achieve a crackdown to drastically lower the percentage of unvaccinated throughout Canada.

“We support the need to use all available mechanisms and tools to encourage Canadians to get vaccinated, so they do the right thing. Where our jurisdiction comes, as in the industrial sectors regulated by the federal government, in banks, in telecommunications companies, in airlines, we have imposed the vaccination obligation”.

At the same time, however, the minister reiterated Ottawa’s commitment to respect whatever the decision of the individual provinces on the thorny issue. “The provinces – added Leblanc – will have to decide, they will take care of their jurisdiction and the best way to encourage the vaccination campaign”.

At the same time, the possibility that the federal government itself decides to oppose the line dictated by Legault on the hypothesis of imposing a health tax on all adults who decide not to get vaccinated and who are not in possession of a valid medical exemption seems to be definitively waning.

“I don’t think the federal government will get in the way,” former Quebec Prime Minister Jean Charest said today.

According to some critics of the measure, Ottawa should intervene in the event that the non-adherence of the new measure wanted by Legault to the principles of the Canada Health Act emerges, the federal framework law on health that must be respected by all provinces, despite the fact that the health competence in our country belongs to the individual provinces and not to the federal government.

“I held the position of premier – added Charest – and on some occasions certain measures we took could be considered outside the Canada Health Act. The federal government will not move on this and let it pass, because it would be faced with a dilemma: Does the federal government want to be seen on the side of the no vax and intervene on Quebec’s health care system?” Finally, opposition leader Erin O’Toole also intervened in the debate, declaring herself totally opposed to the imposition of a health tax for no vax.