Trucks and other vehicles began parking on the highway near Coutts on Jan. 29 in solidarity with similar protests in Ottawa and across the country over vaccine mandates for cross-border truck drivers and broader public health measures.
RCMP found the frozen bodies of the migrants in the snow on Jan. 19 just metres from the Canada-U.S. border near Emerson, Man. Police believe the four were part of a larger human-smuggling operation. A man on the U.S. side has been charged with human smuggling.
The bridge linking Windsor, Ont., and Detroit remained closed to vehicles headed into Canada due to the protest that continued on the Canadian side of the border.
Joël Lightbound told reporters in Ottawa today that federal COVID-19 measures, such as vaccination mandates for travellers and civil servants, need to be re-evaluated and the public needs a clear road map for when restrictions will be fully lifted.
The premier announced last week that such a plan was coming and that the first step would be ending Alberta's vaccine passports to access non-essential businesses such as restaurants and bars.
The throne speech comes two weeks ahead of the government's budget, which is expected to include a financial accounting of last fall's floods and mudslides that devastated communities, farms and highways throughout southern B.C.
