OTTAWA—The federal government is urging all Canadians to stay within the country’s borders, an extraordinary appeal on the eve of March Break that caps a turbulent week in which the prime minister was quarantined and COVID-19 declared a global pandemic.

With Prime Minister Justin Trudeau cloistered away at his residence near Rideau Hall, a contingent of his top ministers laid out new measures to contain the virus that has killed more than 5,000 people in other countries and triggered the biggest stock market collapse on Bay Street since the Second World War.

The government will ban all cruise ships with more than 500 people on board from docking in Canada until at least July 1, and is preparing to divert all incoming flights from other countries to select airports to streamline coronavirus screening and concentrate resources.

At the same time, Health Minister Patty Hajdu warned that any international travel is now considered “high risk,” even to the neighbouring United States, and called on the public to heed the advice of leading health experts.

That advice, delivered moments later by Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam, is for Canadians to cancel large gatherings, refrain from attending events like concerts, avoid shopping and public transit during peak hours and “increase social distancing” by staying two arms’ length from other people whenever possible.

And one day after Alberta and British Columbia called on residents to avoid international travel, Tam said all Canadians should now cancel “non-essential” trips outside the country.

“It is also important to remember that if you travel abroad, you could be subject to the measures of other countries,” Tam said. “Your one-week trip may become much longer. You may also have reduced access to quality health care.”

Hajdu said the government knows these new advisories will disrupt people’s lives, but called on Canadians to help limit the virus by regularly washing their hands, avoiding handshakes and staying home from work if they feel sick. Not only will this help stop the virus from spreading, it will protect the most vulnerable people — seniors and those with previous health conditions — from falling seriously ill, Hajdu said.

“The actions you take today will save lives,” she said. “Canadians are strong and we are resilient and our government will have your back every step of the way.”

Moments later, Trudeau stood alone at a lectern outside his residence at Rideau Cottage, and echoed the measures he was unable to announce alongside his chief ministers. Late Thursday night, the Prime Minister’s Office confirmed Trudeau’s wife contracted COVID-19 after returning from a speaking engagement in the United Kingdom with “flu-like symptoms.” The prime minister said he feels healthy, but that his doctor told him to self-isolate at home for the next two weeks, along with his wife and children.

He said he won’t be tested for the virus unless he starts to show symptoms, which include fever, cough and difficulty breathing.

Trudeau’s quarantine came as MPs from all parties in the House of Commons agreed to suspend Parliament until April 20. Liberal, NDP and Bloc Québécois members have been gone into isolation at home in recent days, including NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, International Trade Minister Mary Ng and Natural Resources Minister Seamus O’Reagan.

Elsewhere across Canada, universities in Ontario cancelled classes, while the City of Toronto followed Montreal by shuttering libraries and announced additional measures that included suspension of city council meetings, city-run March Break camps and licensed daycare centres. In Quebec, the provincial government announced all schools — from the elementary to post-secondary levels — will be closed for the next two weeks, and Premier François Legault called on Ottawa to follow other countries such as the U.S. by restricting foreign travel to Canada during the crisis.

So far, the federal government has insisted it will follow the advice of public health experts on stricter border controls, but Trudeau said Friday that he is willing to do whatever evidence suggests is necessary to protect Canadians from the virus.

“We’re not closing the door to any further steps, but we will make those decisions based on what science tells us,” he said.

“We don’t want to panic, but we don’t want to take this too lightly either.”

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Earlier this week, the federal government laid out a $1-billion “response fund” aimed at buttressing health-care systems across Canada as they deal with a potential spike in patients infected by the virus. Hajdu has said there is evidence suggesting millions of Canadians could contract COVID-19 before the pandemic is over, and the government is trying to slow the rate of infection to prevent health facilities from being overwhelmed with patients.

The fund included $500 million for provincial and territorial health care, $275 million for medical research, and $50 million to buy more personal protective equipment for health care workers, including masks, face shields and gowns.

Labour leaders from six unions representing almost a million health-care workers put out a joint statement Friday that warned the health-care system “is already running over capacity.” They called for governments to ensure access to necessary protective equipment and workplace training to face the pandemic safely.

“We simply cannot afford to erode staffing levels any further if health-care workers become sick and self-quarantine,” the statement said. “It is therefore imperative that we protect health-care workers so that they can continue to provide safe and effective care.”

With files from Tonda MacCharles

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