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The governments “acknowledge the importance of restarting the economy through a gradual and phased approach,” according to the agreeement.

But “until there is a vaccine or effective treatment for COVID-19, strong measures must be in place for this new normal phase of living with COVID-19 to contain future waves or outbreaks and protect Canadians and economies across the country.”

While there will be “regional differences during (the reopening) process, all governments intend to continue their present collaboration in the interest of all Canadians. Governments will make decisions suited to their jurisdictions, geography, and disease activity…

“A shared key objective is to minimize the risk of another wave of COVID-19 that forces governments to re-impose severe restrictions, further damaging the social and economic fabric of communities.”