Ford's Holiday Letdown

The holiday season is here, and it should be a time of happiness and celebration for our community. The sights and sounds of this time of year always bring me joy. That's why it is so disappointing to see it being disrupted once again. The government has announced new public health measures in response to the threat of the Omicron variant. Families are feeling fearful for their loved ones. Frustration is building as people that were promised access to rapid tests are encountering long lines and often returning empty-handed. Once again, small business owners and workers in affected industries are dealing with the anxiety of not knowing what the future holds for them. I understand these concerns and frustrations and share your disappointment at how all of this is unfolding.

The approach of this government has been consistently underwhelming. As the saying goes, they always seem to be a day late and a dollar short. Cutting corners on pandemic response measures has been a recurring theme, and we've seen the impacts of this approach recently with the delayed expansion booster availability and scarce rapid antigen tests. They have also damaged their credibility with confused, mixed messaging. Just days after insisting capacity limits weren't needed, they brought in stricter measures. At the same time, they continue to allow thousands to gather in stadiums and other large venues. As we pushed for expanded vaccine availability and rapid testing, they resisted, and have put our healthcare system at risk once again.

As we have for weeks, will continue to echo what we have heard from community members and public health experts alike. We will insist that they provide support for workers and small businesses that seem poised to encounter further financial challenges. We will demand millions of rapid test kits be made available and expanded to places such as libraries, grocery stores, community centres, child cares centres and seniors' centres. A long-overdue hiring blitz of healthcare workers must happen immediately, and we need to support these heroes by insisting on the repeal of Bill 124. These measures, combined with an orderly booster plan and genuine paid sick day plan will allow us to get a handle on this pandemic once again. We've all come too far and sacrificed too much and are entitled to expect more from Premier Ford and his government.

Ford's rapid test distribution falling far short of need: NDP MPP

YORK SOUTH—WESTON — York South—Weston NDP MPP Faisal Hassan released the following statement on the shortage of free rapid tests distributed by the Ford government as Omicron cases climb rapidly:

"My riding of York South—Weston has long been a COVID-19 hot spot, home to many frontline workers, many of them from racialized communities. Yet with Omicron spreading wildly, the Ford government has left Ontarians unprepared.

The government's rapid test distribution is falling far short of what's needed; two million tests for a population of 15 million people simply isn't cutting it.

My community members are scared, and they’re frustrated after waiting for hours in lines — many of them didn’t even get a test kit after that long wait. They’re trying to do the right thing by getting tested. They deserve so much better.

The Ford government must provide more tests in more locations, far beyond LCBOs. We need tests in libraries, grocery stores, handed out to families with kids in child cares and to child care staff, to residents and visitors in seniors' centres, and so much more."