Prime minister said ‘we’re going to have to remain vigilant’ until vaccine is found as infections climb across the country

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Justin Trudeau has warned that Canada’s economic shutdown is likely to remain in place for weeks, as coronavirus infections continue to climb across the country.

“I know people are interested in when things will go back to normal. The reality is, it’s going to be weeks still,” the prime minister said on Tuesday. “It is going to be important to get our economy going – but we’re going to have to remain vigilant until such a time as a vaccine is found.”

• Prime minister delivers address from self-imposed quarantine
• Parliament shuttered and curbs on international travel

Canada has unveiled aggressive new measures to contain the coronavirus outbreak, shutting down parliament and advising against foreign travel, even as Justin Trudeau urged citizens to remain calm in a national address delivered from self-imposed quarantine.

“We have an outstanding, we have outstanding public health authorities who are doing an outstanding job. We will get through this together,” said the prime minister, who has been in self-isolation after his wife, Sophie Grégoire Trudeau tested positive for Covid-19 on Thursday.