People wear face masks as they browse in tore in Montreal on July 11, 2020.Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press
Premier Francois Legault has announced mask-wearing will be mandatory in all indoor public places across Quebec starting Saturday — just in time for the province’s annual construction holiday.
Businesses will be expected to enforce the new rules and are subject to fines of between $400 and $6,000 if their customers are caught violating the health directive, Legault told reporters Monday in Montreal.
He said the government is considering imposing fines on individuals at a later date. People who for medical reasons cannot wear masks are exempt from the new rule, Legault added.
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The premier said his government held off making mask-wearing indoors mandatory until now because it wanted to impose restrictions on Quebecers gradually. The new rules enter into effect July 18, at the beginning of the two-week construction holiday, during which Quebecers are expected to travel around the province with their families.
“It’s easier to wear a mask than to return to being confined,” Legault said, adding the province has seen a slight increase in the number of daily new COVID-19 cases.
“I know it’s summer,” he said. “It’s holidays. It’s not fun to wear a mask, but its essential to avoid going backwards.”
Quebec reported 100 new cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, as well as one additional death. That brings the province’s total deaths to 5,628, while infections reached 56,621. Hospitalizations declined by one to 305, with 21 people in intensive care.
Legault said the new rule applies in all indoor settings across the province, including restaurants — but only when patrons are moving around.
“When we are sitting down, when we are at a table, we can take it off,” he said. “But when we get up to use the bathroom or to leave, we put it back on.”
On Monday, mask-wearing became mandatory inside public transit across the province.
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