Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will deliver remarks and hold a media availability in Ottawa Friday afternoon where he is expected to address the ongoing trucker protests and blockades set up across the country.
CTVNews.ca will carry the press conference live at 2 p.m. EST.
Trudeau held a series of late-night meetings on Thursday about the situation, including with key cabinet ministers and senior officials, and opposition party leaders, though no new measures were announced.
The so-called “Freedom Convoy” has occupied the downtown Ottawa core for nearly two weeks in pursuit of an end to all vaccine mandates and other public health restrictions.
Truck drivers and supporters in personal vehicles have also choked off traffic at key border crossings in Coutts, Alta., Windsor, Ont. and Emerson, Man., prompting considerable economic and supply chain implications.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford declared a state of emergency in the province on Friday morning as a result of the blockades.
By doing so, he’s invoked new emergency measures to levy stiffer fines and penalties on protesters, including a maximum penalty of $100,000 and up to a year imprisonment for non-compliance.
