“I’m deeply sorry for anyone who was inappropriately subjected to discrimination as a result of their vaccine status,” she said at the United Conservative Party’s general meeting on Saturday. “I am deeply sorry for any government employee that was fired from their job because of their vaccine status, and I welcome them back if they want to come back.”
Some of the people she was thinking about include pastors who were penalized for breaking lockdown rules.
“It was a political decision to throw out the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to put those fines in place in the first place, and I think it can be a political decision to make amends and apologize for it and eliminate them,” Smith said.
“These are not things that are normal to get fines and get prosecuted for,” she added. “So, I am going to look into the range of outstanding fines that there still are and to get some legal advice on which ones we are able to cancel and provide amnesty for.”