Support for Atlantic bubble remains strong even as some question its constitutionality

It's in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Section 6(2): "Everyone has the right to live in and take up residence in any province."

The Atlantic bubble throws a bit of a wrench into that freedom.

Beginning July 3, the Atlantic provinces "bubbled" together following months of regional restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The change in policy meant open borders between Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick and putting strict conditions on anyone crossing the eastern border of Quebec — namely, a mandatory 14-day self isolation period for anyone entering, or re-entering, the Atlantic region.

The questions experts are left pondering are whether that violates the charter and whether the extenuating circumstance of a pandemic is cause for exception.

Support for the bubble

COVID-19 is something many Atlantic Canadians, albeit not constitutional experts, think should be grounds for granting an exception.

"I don't think the Constitution took into perspective that there might be a global pandemic," said Nicolas Pike of Edmundston, N.B.

Like many Atlantic Canadians, Pike and his partner, Danyka Boulay, took time this summer to explore the region in place of heading to Quebec or Ontario.

Boulay said she supports the provinces' approach.

"They're just trying to keep us safe. They're doing a great job," she said.

Boulay's confidence reflects a common East Coast opinion ever since leaders eliminated earlier provincial isolation measures in the region, shifting to a collective approach to protecting themselves from provinces to the west.

A recent poll indicates nearly 80 per cent of Atlantic Canadians support the bubble although there has been constant worry and speculation since its creation that it might burst.

Halifax business owner Don Mills said keeping the bubble comes at an increasing cost, especially to local companies already suffering.

"Our economy is being, you know, really hard hit," Mills said. "And the hard news about the economy is yet to come, because with the federal support of businesses and individuals, when that stops, we're going to see severe consequences. We're going to see lots of bankruptcies."

Mills said the bubble can't be kept in place indefinitely, with the economy suffering:

Even so, the mood among people in Halifax is generally upbeat.

"I feel like it's good," said Moe Ajha. "I think it's the best option for us, to stay closed down for now."

"I feel very safe in the Atlantic bubble," said Kerry Sullivan. "It makes me feel very fortunate that we live where we do."

"I'm not terribly interested in opening up to the rest of the country," said Karen Havert.

The fact is, it is safer in these provinces. As of Sept. 15, Ontario has recorded more than 45,068 cases, with the Atlantic provinces only recording 1,608. Even with the populations accounted for, the numbers are telling.

Other provincial comparisons illustrate the same picture. British Columbia has about double the population of the Atlantic provinces but more than four times the number of confirmed cases. Quebec has recorded nearly 40 times the cases over the course of the pandemic, with only 3.6 times the population of the East Coast.

And perhaps driving home the success, Atlantic Canada is currently coping better than even New Zealand, which has been celebrated internationally for its ability to overcome COVID-19. The island nation, with double the population of Atlantic Canada, has 83 active cases. Atlantic Canada has seven, all of which are considered travel-related.

Worth the wait

Whether fuelled by the facts or by feeling, many people have decided the 14-day quarantine is worth doing, because of the freedom waiting at the end of it.

That includes hundreds of university students from other provinces, putting in time in modest apartments — even residence rooms — in the Atlantic region to prove their will to be in the bubble.

"This is one of the safest areas in North America right now," said Saint Mary's University student Bryn de Chastelain, who had to isolate after a summer in Ontario. For him, it was a clear choice to do the time.

"I'm happy to be able to study and live in a place that is relatively COVID-free."

The law says yes, for now

But back to the idea of whether it's constitutional.

The issue is playing out on the provincial level in Newfoundland and Labrador, where the Canadian Civil Liberties Association has filed a court challenge to the rules restricting who can come into the province. They prohibit anyone living outside of the Atlantic bubble from entering the province without an exemption granted by public health officials.

The CCLA is arguing those restrictions violate the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and fall outside of the province's jurisdiction. The case is being heard in the province's Supreme Court, and is being closely watched as the decision will almost certainly set a precedent.

University of Ottawa law professor Errol Mendes has been writing about the Atlantic bubble's constitutionality. He said Section 6(2) of the Constitution can't be interpreted without the application of Section 1.

"[Section 1] gives governments the ability to limit rights if they are reasonable limits, demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society," he said.

"It is my firm conviction that as long as the governments in the bubble can present cogent public health information and cogent scientific basis, and present the possibility of community spread from travellers from other parts of Canada, they can basically still keep the bubble being within the constitutional framework," Mendes said.

So those 80 per cent of Atlantic Canadians who support the pandemic safety measures can breathe a sigh of relief. For now at least, the only thing that might break the bubble will be decisions made from inside it.

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