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Gatineau Mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin supports his provincial government’s decision to set up checkpoints along the border with Ottawa in an attempt to reduce needless travel during the novel coronavirus pandemic, but his counterpart across the river is skeptical of the move.

In the Ottawa area, the random checks will involve the Sûreté du Québec, Gatineau municipal police and the police of MRC des Collines-de-l’Outaouais. The new measures, which started Wednesday, are part of a larger set of controls to limit movement in a number of regions within Quebec.

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According to the Quebec government, the measures will not affect health care and services, and services essential for the continuity of commerce.

Local MNA and minister responsible for the Outaouais, Mathieu Lacombe, tweeted that the measures were “difficult, but necessary.”

Pedneaud-Jobin said the time was right for Quebec to make a tough decision about the border.