In the new world order heralded by the COVID-19 pandemic, Canada is going to have to rethink just what border security means, experts say. On Tuesday, media reports indicated Ottawa and Washington plan to extend the current shutdown of the Canada-U.S. border for 30 more days beyond the previously announced endpoint of July 21. But there are longer-term implications that the health crisis has made clear, observers say, including the presence of public health guards at our border. “We’re going to see an intensification of surveillance technology as a policy response to the pandemic at the border,” said Sharry Aiken, immigration law professor at Queen’s University. The emergency border plan must include public health officials at border points to inform immigration policy as border agents are no health experts, observers say.

Source: thestar July 14, 2020 22:43 UTC