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Month: August 2021

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The pandemic exposed huge gaps in EI — turns out the parental leave system has many of the same problems

Aug 20, 2021 , , , , by shlf

The year 2020 is proof the best laid plans can go wrong. Just ask Shantae Cunningham.

The self-employed, Toronto-based owner of an accounting firm had everything laid out: she was going to voluntarily pay into the Employment Insurance program throughout 2020 so she could access parental benefits come 2021, when she started a family.

Then COVID-19 happened.

“I had a whole plan … and then that was sort of cut right at the knees in March,” said Cunningham.

When the pandemic hit, Cunningham lost about 90 per cent of her client base. Around the same time, she discovered she was pregnant.

Instead of getting parental leave, Cunningham had to dip into her savings before the baby was born at the same time she refocused her business.

“My entire pregnancy I stressed about money,” she said.

Now, with her baby boy just weeks old, Cunningham is giving herself as much leave as she can; she’s taking a few months off of some clients, while continuing to work with others. She even worked the day after her child was born.

If she were eligible for parental benefits, Cunningham would have taken a full leave. But that’s not an option.

“It’s scary for me, especially as a freelancer. I just want to see some residual money coming in.”

Cunningham worked at an accounting firm before starting her own business, but the years she spent paying into the EI program don’t count toward her parental leave because she’s been self-employed for two years.

She says the EI program needs to change to accommodate the growing number of freelancers, gig workers, entrepreneurs, and self-employed.

“Essentially, we’ve been left out,” she said.

After COVID-19 made it clear the EI system needed to change, the federal government hinted it would work toward bringing the program up to speed. The program is currently being bolstered by temporary changes meant to include more people affected by the pandemic, reducing the number of hours needed to qualify and boosting the wage replacement rate.

In the long run, experts say parental benefits need to be easier to access, offer higher rates, and incentivize both parents to take leave.

Dana Wray, a PhD student at the University of Toronto studying social, work and family policies, said COVID-19 has exposed existing inequalities in the federal parental benefit system, deployed under EI.

Just like EI itself, it’s contingent on employment — a specific kind of employment, meaning people with precarious, low-income, or contract jobs often don’t qualify.

“It ends up just furthering some of the inequalities based on gender, social class or race, or intersections of those,” she said.

In the longer term, this will make it even harder for women, especially women of colour, to re-enter the job market, Wray said.

Canada Research Chair in gender, work and care Andrea Doucet said before the pandemic, around 35 per cent of women in Canada outside Quebec were unable to access parental leave (she noted this data excludes the territories and First Nations, a gap she said needs to be addressed).

“A lot of people pay into it … and then don’t benefit from it,” she said.

Sophie Mathieu, a post-doctoral fellow at the Université TÉLUQ who researches the Quebec parental leave system, said there are three aspects that need to change: accessibility, rate and the structure of paternity leave. These are all aspects where Quebec, which is known for its subsidized child-care program and parental benefits, is leading, she said.

Access to parental leave in Quebec requires the parent to make just $2,000 during the qualifying period, the equivalent of 153 minimum-wage hours, Mathieu said — and contract, gig and self-employed workers are eligible. Secondly, parents in Quebec receive between 55 per cent and 75 per cent of their income, up to a maximum insurable earnings of $78,500. By comparison, the federal EI system offers up to 55 per cent of a maximum insurable earnings of $52,400.

With the economic recovery in mind, Brock University associate professor of sociology and associate dean of social sciences Kate Bezanson said it’s time to act quickly so that women aren’t left behind.

“I think that the easiest fix is to take the Quebec model … and adopt that for the rest of Canada,” she said.

In addition to eligibility and rate, Mathieu said Quebec’s approach to leave for the father, or second parent, makes those parents much more likely to take parental leave. Every parental leave plan includes a “use it or lose it” additional leave for the father or second parent of three to five weeks, which is not dependent on the eligibility of the other parent. The federal program’s additional five-to-eight-week Parental Sharing Benefit, however, is dependent on both parents’ EI eligibility. That’s why while Quebec sees a high rate of fathers using this leave, the federal benefit has a much lower uptake, she said.

As well, Wray said the low wage replacement rate of federal parental benefits makes fathers or second parents less likely to apply, preferring instead to keep working.

“I worry if more women are forced out of the labour force or forced into lower income or precarious work, that that financial logic will be even harder to get around,” she said. “Fathers will be less willing or less able to take time to spend with their children in their first year through parental leave if they feel they can’t afford it.”

Experts also say that parental benefits should be considered a care policy, not just an employment policy, more tightly integrating them with other policies such as child care (the federal government has promised a national child-care strategy).

Doucet said if parental leave is always tied to employment, it will always leave out some people.

“If we’re going to have an inclusive system, that would mean actually thinking a little bit wider outside of the employment relationship,” she said.

Bezanson said it’s about having more coordination between different areas of policy so that child care and parental leave are thought of as complementary family policies. During the pandemic she’s seen more coordination between different policy jurisdictions than before.

“I think that’s a good moment for us to harness that energy and make the kind of bold policy decisions that need to get made,” she said.

This is part two of an ongoing series looking at the pandemic’s devastating effect on women in the workforce.

Rosa Saba is a Calgary-based business reporter for the Star. Follow her on Twitter:

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WARNING: Certain Kawartha Dairy ice cream flavours recalled due to possible metal pieces

Aug 20, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Before you add a scoop of ice cream to your favourite treat, make sure to check the label first.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency for certain Kawartha Dairy ice cream flavours sold in Ontario because there may be metal pieces in them.

Kawartha Dairy is recalling the items.

There have been no reported cases of anyone getting sick or being injured by eating the ice cream.

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Kawartha Dairy cookie dough ice cream is among the flavours being recalled. | Canadian Food Inspection Agency photo

However, customers should not eat the products and retailers, restaurants, and institutions should not sell or use the following recalled items:

• The 1.5-litre size of Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream with the UPC code 0 62229 08950 1

• The 11.4-litre size of Choc. Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream with the UPC code 0 62229 08150 5

• The 1.5-litre size of Mint Chip Ice Cream with the UPC code 0 62229 08917 4

• The 11.4-litre size of Mint Chip Ice Cream with the UPC code 0 62229 08117 8.

Check to see if you have the recalled products in your home or business.

Recalled products should be thrown out or returned to the location where they were purchased.

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‘Substantial danger’: Class action claim alleges negligence after salmonella outbreak leaves hundreds of Canadians sick and dozens hospitalized

Aug 19, 2021 , , , , by shlf

The producers of onions that triggered multiple food recalls and public health warnings and are believed to have caused a over the summer were negligent and failed to properly test their products, ultimately putting the public’s safety at risk, according to allegations in a class action claim filed in Ontario Superior court.

None of the allegations against California-based Thomson International, which produced most of the onions in question, have been proven in court and efforts to contact the management team of the large crop producer have been unsuccessful.

A message left with Nancy Thomson, the company’s accounting executive, on Saturday hasn’t been returned.

The statement of claim, launched by law firm Siskinds LLP who represent Saskatchewan resident Amber Furniss and London, Ont. resident Noreen Raja — both of whom became sick from eating onions — asks the court to certify the legal action as a class proceeding.

The claim alleges Thomson was “negligent in the manufacturing, testing, packaging, promoting, marketing, distributing, supplying, labelling, and/or selling of the contaminated onions,” among other accusations.

It is seeking an unknown amount of damage costs for Furniss, Raja and other Canadians who may have been impacted by the outbreak.

“The claim seeks damages for physical injury and financial losses associated with the recall, which are likely very significant,” Siskinds LLP lawyer James Boyd said in an email to Inside Halton.

The legal action arises from a believed to have been caused by contaminated onions from Thomson International, the claim, launched Sept. 30, alleges.

In total, there were linked to this outbreak in the following provinces: British Columbia (121), Alberta (293), Saskatchewan (35), Manitoba (26), Ontario (14), Quebec (25) and Prince Edward Island (1), according to the Public Health Agency of Canada.

Individuals became sick between mid-June and late-August 2020.

Seventy-nine individuals were hospitalized, the Agency said, and three people died, but salmonella did not contribute to the cause of these deaths.

On or after July 1, Furniss said, she bought some of the recalled onion products.

On or about July 24, 2020, she consumed some of the onion product and became ill, according to the claim.

“Amber’s symptoms included abdominal pain, nausea, and dizziness,” the action alleges.

On or about July 31, 2020, Furniss consumed more of the recalled onion product and again became ill with similar symptoms before throwing the onions away in early August after learning of the outbreak and recalls.

“The defendant had a duty or care to compensate the plaintiffs and class members for pure economic losses suffered as a result of the supply of products that present a real and substantial danger to the public,” the claim charges. “The contaminated onions posed a real and substantial danger to the public, including, but not limited to, a danger to the health and safety of the public through the risk of exposure to salmonella.”

If you or someone you know has consumed or purchased recalled onion products in 2020, or disposed of “unidentifiable” onion products as a result of learning about the recalls, the law firm is asking you to

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‘We have to work together to shop local’: Survey says Collingwood businesses optimistic about next six months

Aug 19, 2021 , , , , by shlf

A large majority of Collingwood business owners say they should survive through the next six months — but there is concern as a second wave of positive COVID-19 cases washes across Ontario.

That’s the assessment of a survey conducted late June and early July of more than 130 businesses, which found local business owners “cautiously optimistic.”

The town’s director of marketing and business development, Martin Rydlo, presented the numbers in his most recent update to Collingwood town council.

According to the survey, business owners in the downtown were more likely to be concerned about the future of their enterprises within the next six months than owners of businesses outside of the downtown. However, the overall number of business owners looking ahead six months with an optimistic outlook was 87 per cent.

Looking further out, to three years, the picture seemed bleaker. Only 51 per cent of business owners were optimistic about the future, compared to 69 per cent of business owners when the question was asked in 2018.

Rydlo said there is still some good news to be found in that number, “considering the gravity of the situation we’ve gone through over the last six months … (it is) still a significant number of businesses saying, ‘we’re looking to grow’.”

Even so, the survey determined, downtown businesses were more likely to state their rating of Collingwood as a place to invest, live and visit had increased over the past two years.

“We remain an excellent place to live,” Rydlo said.

Regularly disinfecting downtown areas — and making sure that was communicated to the public — was seen as a top priority for downtown businesses. Allowing restaurants in the downtown to extend their patios into parking spaces was also welcome, he said, and in some cases, businesses saw double-digit increases in revenue versus the previous year.

Rydlo said those same establishments are now considering how they will continue to operate once the inclement weather comes.

Mayor Brian Saunderson said the results were positive, but it was clear the town has more work to do.

“We have survived the first wave (of COVID-19) relatively strongly, (and) the town and the BIA, and our other stakeholders have been working together to support our local businesses in any way we can,” he told Simcoe.com. “Those supports have been effective and are helping, but the longer this crisis goes on, the harder it will be for our local businesses. We really have to work together as a community to shop local and support our local businesses every way we can.”

Saunderson said the idea of reconvening the economic recovery task force created at the onset of the pandemic has been discussed.

“There are some ideas that are percolating, and given the second wave is here, they are definitely engaged and have expressed an interest in meeting,” Saunderson said.

Two task force members — Brandon Houston and Kathie Ondercin — have recently been appointed to the Downtown Collingwood board of directors, “so I think they’re making their presence felt, not only as local business people and members of the task force, but also in other ways.”

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Warminster parent concerned ‘a child will be struck’ at intersection

Aug 19, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Vehicles slowed to a halt as a set of flashing lights alerted drivers to the pedestrian crossover at the intersection of Highway 12 and Warminster Sideroad.

Moments later, a car driven by a young man cruised through the crossing, oblivious to the slim, rectangular lights mounted on poles at either side of the road.

For Hillary Handy, a parent with a child attending nearby Warminster Elementary School, the scene was a troubling reminder of what she and others say is a dangerous situation.

“My greatest concern is that a child will be struck in broad daylight because cars are refusing to yield, let alone stop,” she said.

Handy said many motorists are unaware of the pedestrian crossing, with some paying no attention to the flashing lights that are activated by the push of a button.

“If you are going through at the wrong time of day and it’s too sunny, you can’t actually see them,” she added.

Handy noted the highway physically divides this growing community that is home to new development and increased truck traffic. Commuters also pass through the area, she said.

“It is also the only designated crosswalk in the community across Highway 12 providing access to the post office, a convenience store, gas station, LCBO, a park, soccer fields and people’s homes.”

Handy has launched a petition on calling on Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation to install traffic lights to “provide safety for pedestrians of all ages, but specifically school-aged children who walk to school unsupervised.”

Oro-Medonte Ward 2 Coun. Tammy DeSousa supports the effort, describing the crossing as “absurd.”

“It’s ludicrous,” she said. “We have an elementary school on one corner.”

That Warminster is split by the highway makes a solution all the more necessary, said DeSousa.

“There (are) development plans on all four corners there, either planned or in the process,” she said. “Traffic and the presence of pedestrians and children has increased substantially over the last few years.”

The ministry said the pedestrian crossover was constructed in 2017 to replace an existing school crossing.

The controlled crossover is available whenever required, unlike a school crossing that is in effect only when a crossing guard is present, said spokesperson Astrid Poei.

“Penalties for failing to yield at pedestrian crosswalks, school crossings and crossovers can result in a fine of up to $1,000 and four demerit points upon conviction,” she said.

Poei said the ministry undertook public education efforts when the crossover was installed, including electronic message boards upstream of the area.

A Sept. 21 review of the intersection by ministry staff determined “the crossing is being used correctly and the majority of vehicles are complying and stopping for the pedestrians,” Poei added. “However, some instances of non-compliance have been observed.”

Before installation of traffic signals can be considered, a range of requirements must be met, she said. Considerations include traffic volumes and delays to sideroad traffic.

Based on a 2019 study of the intersection, “traffic signals are not currently warranted,” Poei added.

Ministry staff will request the OPP consider enhancing enforcement in the area.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Simcoe.com decided to pursue this story after hearing first-hand from a concerned parent about drivers who are unaware of the pedestrian crossover at this intersection. A reporter also witnessed a driver pass through the lights that signal vehicles to stop.

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‘We’re finding lunchrooms can be a problem’: Simcoe-Muskoka workers letting COVID-19 guard down during breaks

Aug 19, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Admit it. You may be getting a bit too close to your work colleagues on lunch break.

Well, those lunchroom interactions may be putting you at higher risk of contracting COVID-19. Whether it’s letting your guard down for a chat, or employers providing inadequate personal protective equipment and hand-washing stations, workplaces throughout the Simcoe-Muskoka region are becoming a major source of transmission.

Right now, there are 12 active outbreaks in the region — at long-term-care and educational facilities (three each), retirement homes and workplaces (two each), and congregate and community sites (one each). Businesses currently affected by outbreaks include two manufacturing plants, a hair salon and a child-care centre, all located in Barrie. 

“Our cases have been driven by work environments, household clusters and social contacts,” Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit medical officer of health Dr. Charles Gardner told reporters during a teleconference Nov. 10. “We’re finding lunchrooms can be a problem. People are distancing appropriately on the job, but then they can let down their guard when they go to the lunchroom. It’s really key employers and employees think through their work environment. (This is) based on our experience with outbreaks — the school exposures, the workplace manufacturing locations (and) the congregate settings.”

Many companies can do a better job of allowing employees to work remotely. If staff need to come into the office, physical distancing, staggered lunch breaks, symptom screening and one-way hallways and aisles should be enforced. There must also be easy access to hand sanitizer or washing stations, he said.   

If sharing a vehicle for work-related travel, keep a window partially open and wear a mask, Gardner said.

But there’s also evidence people are going to work and school while showing clear symptoms of the virus, he said.

“Those exposures have a big impact on people who end up having to go into isolation,” Gardner said.

On Tuesday, the health unit reported 17 new cases of the virus.

Of these, nine are in Barrie. Bradford (three) and Clearview, Essa, Innisfil, New Tecumseth and Orillia (one each) also have cases.

Eight people are 17 years of age or under — four in Barrie, three in Bradford and one in Essa. Everyone else is between 18 and 64 years old.

One case, involving a 35- to 44-year-old Barrie woman, is linked to a workplace outbreak. The source of infection in 11 incidents is still under investigation. The other cases were transmitted through “close contact” and community acquisition, Gardner said.

Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 1,560 local cases, though 1,360 people have successfully recovered. At the current rate of transmission, the region would hit 3,000 cases by early January, he said.

There are 143 known active incidents, including eight hospitalizations.

Fifty residents with COVID-19 have died, 34 of whom were living in long-term-care and retirement facilities.

The region’s active outbreaks include cohorts at Bradford District High School (three students) and Barrie’s Hillcrest Public School (two students). 

Long-term-care sites operating under outbreak protocols are Beeton’s Simcoe Manor (43 residents, 32 staff), the Baldwin Lane unit at Barrie’s IOOF Odd Fellow and Rebekah Home (one employee), and Collingwood’s Sunset Manor (one worker). Two Barrie retirement homes, Waterford (one resident) and Allandale Station (three residents, two staff), have declared outbreaks in recent days.

Also Tuesday, two Angus schools were linked to COVID-19 cases. Nottawasaga Pines Secondary School and Our Lady of Grace Catholic School each closed a classroom after a single incident was connected to their facilities.

The health unit will not post an updated case count on Nov. 11, due to Remembrance Day.

For more information on the local effect of COVID-19, visit .

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Heather Scoffield: Ingenuity and government aid will help. Politicizing public health guidance won’t

Aug 19, 2021 , , , , by shlf

From its perch along the edge of the Rideau River, is making the most of a bad situation without making it worse.

The restaurant has invested heavily in heat lamps and coverings on its patios, of course, and customers can also rent a private fire pit, order up hot dogs, marshmallows and hot chocolate (with or without Baileys), and have a night out on the town — all within public health guidelines for orange-zone Ottawa. Live music too.

Take that, sub-zero temperatures!

Ingenuity will certainly go a long way in helping businesses on the edge weather the pandemic. Chelsea Skillen, manager at The Bridge Public House, believes it will work for them. But bold ideas won’t go far enough for many firms involved in food services, accommodation and tourism, now that the second wave shows signs of spiralling.

Premiers are getting an earful about the closures at hand, often from the very entrepreneurs who helped elect them. And they’re bending, adding dollops of politics to the public health recommendations that were supposed to rule the day. We’re seeing it in Ontario and Manitoba this week, and we’ve seen it in Quebec too — premiers who steer away from stringency only to have to walk back their lenient guidelines because they just aren’t strict enough to keep the virus at bay.

It’s short-sighted and disruptive, and it doesn’t have to be this way.

Fragile companies that are the lifeblood of our communities need more than ingenuity to get through to the other side of this crisis, but they certainly don’t need a counterproductive watering-down of public-health rules for the sake of politics.

There are many, many supports in place to sop up the hurt.

Hundreds of billions of dollars in government funding have been earmarked for individuals and businesses alike, structured so that they can scale back their economic activity to a safer level if need be.

on Friday that 54 per cent of businesses were drawing down on the Canada Emergency Business Account, and a third were using the federal wage subsidy to pay their employees. Those numbers were from August, when COVID-19 was in remission. Since then, the programs have been extended and enriched, meant to help the firms that have not been able to move online or crack the code of operating safely in the second wave.

The commercial rent subsidy has been completely overhauled, and there are now top-ups coming into place targeted specifically at areas heading toward lockdown.

On top of all that, the federal government has issued about $20 billion to the provinces so they can gear up for the second wave.

The point of it all was specifically so that premiers would not have to give in to pressure from companies to stay open and could focus instead on controlling the virus — which would in turn allow companies to reopen sooner rather than later.

But some of the provinces have been slow to spend the federal money. The rapid testing and contact tracing that was supposed to help businesses stay open are not in full swing, tied up in red tape and inadequate investment. And there are holes in some of the government funding that mean some companies are slipping through the cracks.

So it’s no surprise there is pressure on governments to be more lenient. But the responsible answer is to spend the money and fill the holes, not to waffle on public health restrictions as Premier Doug Ford has done this week.

At the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, chief economist Trevin Stratton says additional federal support targeted very narrowly at the hospitality sector would be affordable and smart. He also points to franchisees who can’t qualify for rent subsidies because they are part of a chain, despite operating like a small business.

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business sees new companies without a track record left behind, as well as tiny firms often involving just one or a few people.

And struggling firms can’t really take on any more debt, having already overloaded on that, the Statistics Canada report suggests — which means more loans are not the best answer.

Those holes can be readily filled by flexible governments willing to lend a hand. Some firms will fail, but most of them should be able to scrape by if they have a clear idea of what to expect from governments and public health authorities, and if government support is sufficient and predictable.

Winter will be grim, says Stratton, and companies on the edge will need all the help they can get — plus a recognition that their own ingenuity and dedication to respecting public health guidelines can make customers safer.

Luck helps too, says Skillen at The Bridge Public House. They’re on four acres of land in the heart of the city and have a dedicated customer base that’s all in for eating outdoors, even in the cold.

“We’re going day by day, rolling with the punches.”

Heather Scoffield is the Star’s Ottawa bureau chief and an economics columnist. Follow her on Twitter:

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Can algorithms be biased or harmful? Yes, here’s how

Aug 19, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Algorithms have changed modern society for the better in a number of ways, through advances in technology, optimized experiences online and so much more.

But what happens when the algorithm that gets built ends up doing more harm than good? At what point can an algorithm fail?

READ MORE: 

We asked experts to weigh in on algorithm bias and just how much control a data scientist actually has over their own creation. 

How can algorithms be biased or harmful?

When comparing two effective algorithms that are producing results for big tech companies, there’s really no such thing as a good or bad algorithm.

It’s more complicated than that.

The algorithm itself is an objective tool to get from a problem to a solution. It’s typically built by computer or data scientists to learn from certain data sets and then work to solve a specific problem.

The quality of the data set affects the outcome. This means that if the data is biased, so is the algorithm, even if the algorithm itself may be producing the intended result, said Stephen Chen, associate professor of information technology at York University.

A few years back, he noted, that was filtering out women by learning from a data set of resumes that reflected a male-dominated industry. Based on the input, the algorithm had “learned” that male candidates were best suited for the job. 

“If you have skewed data on the input, you will basically reinforce your bias,” he said. 

Chen said the same can be said for discrimination in racialized communities, using U.S. health care predictions as an example. 

“If racialized people have less access to health care, then all the AI algorithms will predict less access to health care,” he continued. “It codifies past discrimination.”

In addition to perpetuating biases and discrimination, algorithms also have the power to predict certain behaviours or circumstances that can also hurt specific groups of people, said Salma Karray, a marketing professor at Ontario Tech University.

For example, Karray explained, there was a case in the U.S. in 2012 involving Target that sparked privacy concerns after the retailer used an algorithm to  and sent her a maternity pamphlet in the mail, before her father found out.

As well, she said, an algorithm can also potentially encourage addictive behaviours, such as gambling, by targeting users who appear interested in a certain activity online. 

Can algorithms be controlled?

A self-accelerating vehicle speeds up at the wrong time and kills its driver. This is a real-life example of an algorithm gone wrong, Chen said. 

But from a results perspective, this machine’s algorithm technically learned what it was expected to learn: how to automatically drive a vehicle.

“There’s nothing more dangerous than assuming your code works because it gives you the result you were expecting,” Chen said.

He said there’s something in machine intelligence that is different from human intelligence, and that is something that we, as humans, may never understand. 

“If the machines have a different form of intelligence and do things differently, and receive things and understand things differently, then if we give control to the algorithms, to something that we don’t fully understand, do we have control over them still?” he asked.

“Once you train an algorithm to learn outside of the lab, you no longer have any idea what it’s doing because it has learned something that you did not know it was going to learn. Then it can do things that nobody was expecting.” 

What are the ethics behind algorithms?

While there is on algorithms to make them smarter and better at making decisions, Chen said there is a lack of ethics in the process as a whole, which is more of a historical problem in science in general.

“It’s like, let’s build the bomb first and then talk about the ethical implications about nuclear power after, right?” he said.

Chen said that when it comes to regulations, there is some more robust privacy legislation that has emerged recently in certain parts of the world around big tech companies (such as the General Data Protection Regulation in the EU); however, it is difficult to regulate algorithms.

“It’s really hard to say that you are not allowed to be exposed to an algorithm because the algorithms – they track everything,” he said. “Data is the cost of connectivity.” 

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Thinking of coming to Wasaga for a car rally? Not so fast, say mayor, OPP

Aug 18, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Participants in a so-called “pop-up” car rally this weekend can expect a not-so-warm welcome to Wasaga Beach.

Both the town and the OPP say they’re aware of what they’re calling an unsanctioned car rally scheduled to take place Sept. 25-27.

According to the OPP, similar events that have been held are associated with excessive noise, speeding and unsafe driving practices.

The OPP, and responding police agencies, say they will be focusing on traffic incidents, and towing and impounding vehicles where applicable.

A similar event held in Hamilton recently drew about 1,000 participants, and was heavily criticized by Premier Doug Ford for flouting gathering restrictions in place because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Organizers could potentially face a $10,000 fine, and attendees could be fined up to $750.

Wasaga Beach Mayor Nina Bifolchi also warned of a heavy police presence that would greet anyone taking part in the local event.

“In other communities where it has taken place, the OPP have advised of laws being broken and disrespect shown towards local businesses and residents,” Bifolchi said. “We have consulted with the Ontario Provincial Police about this rally and they are taking the lead to ensure public safety.”

Officers from the Huronia West detachment will be augmented by subject matter experts from the OPP and other municipal forces for this event. There will be a heavy police presence in the vicinity of Wasaga Beach and surrounding communities throughout this weekend, with a robust enforcement strategy of zero-tolerance for all infractions — including the Reopening Ontario Act.

At the request of police, the town has placed temporary speed bumps at the entrances and exits of some municipal parking lots expected to attract rally activity to discourage improper behaviour.

“Drive safe and watch your speed when driving through small communities on your way to Wasaga Beach. Don’t risk the safety of local residents who are not expecting vehicles passing through at excessive speeds,” said OPP detachment commander Insp. Philip Browne.

“I want to thank the OPP for the proactive efforts leading up to this weekend. We are grateful for their commitment to the safety of our community,” Bifolchi said. “Dangerous and exhibition-type driving will not be tolerated in Wasaga Beach.

“Wasaga Beach has a long history of welcoming visitors, but we do expect people to be respectful of our community and obey the law.”

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Doug Ford’s constituency office closed because of COVID-19 outbreak as Ontario reports 896 new cases

Aug 18, 2021 , , , , by shlf

An open-door policy at his Albion Road constituency office led to an outbreak of COVID-19 among staff, Premier Doug Ford says.

As , three workers serving residents of Etobicoke North tested positive for the virus, forcing the closure of the office this week to operate virtually.

As Ontario reported 896 new infections and nine more deaths Friday, Ford told his daily briefing that he bucked a trend by allowing people other than staff into the office.

“A lot of MPPs, and I have no problem with that, kept their doors locked. We took a different approach,” added the premier, who was not in the office in the last two weeks and was not exposed.

“We kept them open. So we had a few visitors come in and that’s where they believe they contracted COVID…they’re doing OK, that’s the most important thing.”

The cases were confirmed by Toronto Public Health and the office shut “as soon as there was concern,” said Ford spokesperson Ivana Yelich.

“To allow for a deep cleaning, the office will be closed for the foreseeable future as services and support continue to be offered virtually. We thank the premier’s constituents for their patience.”

Ford did not mention the closure at any of his daily news conferences this week.

The office is in northwest Toronto where , and the latest statistics show public health officials have been unable to trace the source of 65 per cent of infections citywide.

Previously, a junior staffer in Ford’s offices at Queen’s Park has tested positive for the virus.

The 896 new cases across the province mark the fifth-highest daily level of the pandemic, with all five coming since Oct. 9.

That tally is down from 934 the previous day and remains in the band of 800 to 1,200 forecast daily for the next four weeks in computer models released Thursday.

“Locally, there are 314 new cases in Toronto, 173 in Peel, 115 in York Region and 92 in Ottawa,” Health Minister Christine Elliott said on Twitter of the four hot zones in modified Stage 2 restrictions with indoor dining banned and gyms and theatres closed.

Three of the nine new deaths were in nursing homes, where the number of new infections in residents more than doubled to 64 from 28 the previous day. Another 18 nursing home staff caught the virus, up from 11.

However, the number of outbreaks in Ontario’s 626 nursing homes fell to 78, a decrease of five.

Elsewhere in the GTA, Durham had 32 new cases and Halton 37, both increases from the previous day. Hamilton had 14, down from 28 reported Thursday.

The Greater Toronto-Hamilton Area accounted for 76 per cent of the new cases. Ten of the 34 public health units across Ontario had none.

There were 61 new cases in schools, with 551 of the 4,828 schools in the province reporting infections in students and staff. As has been the case all week, no schools are closed because of outbreaks.

is a Toronto-based reporter covering Ontario politics for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: