Assuming Canadian regulations in time gravitate towards EU261 regulations, what will typically happen with ULCCs in the case of an IROP is that anyone who has not started their journey will have their itinerary cancelled and the appropriate refund and compensation paid (freeing up capacity in some cases) IROP recovery will then only happen on those who are mid-journey (I.e., not returned home as ULCCs only fly point-to-point with no connecting flights).

Canadians who want low prices just have to get used to the ULCC differences and work within the limitations. Flights scheduled 7 days later due to a cancellation for a tiny fraction of those travelling may just morph into a refund +25% under the new passenger bill of rights for those who have not started their journey, instead