Charges related to failing to isolate have been stayed
May 16, 2023
Maxime Bernier has been ordered to pay more than $2,000 in fines after admitting in a Winnipeg court on Tuesday to two violations of public health orders in Manitoba.
The People’s Party of Canada leader was charged in June 2021 for attending rallies with more people than allowed at the time under COVID-19 pandemic restrictions in Manitoba.
Bernier, the PPC leader since the party’s inception in 2018, travelled to Manitoba during the height of the province’s third wave of COVID-19.
In an agreed statement of facts, Bernier’s lawyer and the Crown said the politician planned to attend 10 public events in Manitoba, both to campaign ahead of the 2021 federal election and to speak out against public health restrictions.
On June 11, 2021, Bernier was slated to speak in Niverville, St-Pierre-Jolys, St. Malo, Morden and Winkler. Court was told provincial officials warned Bernier he could face fines if he made those appearances.