Emergencies Act might be needed elsewhere, not in P.E.I., says premier

The premier of P.E.I. doesn't feel the province needs the Emergencies Act powers enacted locally, but he respects the decision to help those places that do.

Dennis King was reacting to news that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act on Monday. It's the first time in Canada's history that's happened and it will give the federal government temporary powers to handle ongoing blockades and protests against pandemic restrictions.

"I certainly expressed to the prime minister that, as one of the smaller jurisdictions, and while we recognize there are Islanders who wish to see a more rapid end to the public health protocols, those who have voiced that position in our province have done so democratically and peacefully, and what we are seeing in the rest of the country is not indicative of what we are seeing in P.E.I.," King said Monday night, after a meeting with other premiers and the prime minister.

The Emergencies Act gives police more tools to restore order in places where public assemblies constitute illegal and dangerous activities, such as blockades and occupations, the prime minister said Monday. Trudeau also said the act also will enable the RCMP to enforce municipal bylaws and provincial offences where required. 

Demonstrations held on P.E.I. have been peaceful and only minimally disruptive, said King.

"The way the demonstration took place on Saturday is exactly how democratic displays of such emotions are supposed to take place," said King. "I heard the horns, I heard the voices, I understand their frustrations."

King said that kind of demonstration is "indicative of the Island spirit and the nature of most Islanders."

But, he said he sees that the pandemic has divided people. King said Canadians have always had a diversity of views, but he fears people have stopped listening to each other. 

"It's incumbent upon us as leaders to help reshape that debate and restart the debate where we can listen to one another, and we can disagree and we can be tolerant of those different views, as challenging as those may be," King said. "I worry about the sharpening of political edges and where that will lead us."

Cardigan MP Lawrence MacAulay has been in Ottawa during some of the protests. 

"It's sad, and illegal, and I saw the disruptions," he said, adding that's why he said he understands the need for the Emergencies Act. 

"Of course, it's the last measure you would want to take," he said.

He said it's important to find out more about the funding of these protests, and where it originates. 

"Follow the money, in terms of where it came from, where it came in," MacAulay said.