Ford needs to explore alternatives to lockdowns
Lilley hits all the right points offering a direct comparison with BC. No escaping the facts.
Note: According to Stats Can over 800 people in Canada die each and every day for various reasons including influenza.
This is steadily increasing due to population growth.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/...ths-in-canada/
"The old saying goes, when the only tool you have is a hammer, then everything looks like a nail. When it comes to dealing with COVID-19, it all too often appears the only tool the Ford government has is a lockdown."
"Sure, they agreed to minor changes, like allowing restaurants to serve on patios, but that’s hardly ending the restrictions that make Toronto the most locked down major city in North America. Every gym, barbershop, hair and nail salon, and many other businesses remain closed or severely restricted."
"This week I proposed to both Ford and Dr. David Williams, the chief medical officer, that we look at British Columbia and what they’ve been doing. B.C. never imposed the strict lockdowns that Ontario has and yet they have better COVID-19 results."
"Retail stores, restaurants, gyms, youth recreational sports have all remained open – with restrictions – while at times Ontario has imposed full shutdowns. How do you explain that despite this, B.C. has just 1,749 cases per 100,000 of population compared to 2,196 in Ontario and 28 deaths per 100,000 in B.C. compared to 49 in Ontario?"
"Both Ford and Williams tried to claim the same thing, we have a denser population."
“We’re kind of comparing apples and oranges,” Ford told me Friday during his news conference. “We have a much denser population here.”
"The Vancouver area has a much higher population density than the Toronto area and still, they’re doing better than the perpetually locked down GTA. The answers from Ford and Williams tell me they haven’t looked at what is happening in B.C. and don’t want to — they’re wedded to the lockdowns."
"According to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, just 55% of small businesses across Ontario are fully open. In lockdown weary Toronto and Peel it’s just 36% that are open."
"Yes, some people are worried about variants and the 1,745 new cases announced Friday, but that’s still less than half of what we were dealing with in mid-January and deaths are down from a high of 100 a day to 10. In long-term care there were no deaths reported Friday."
"Ford has to stop acting like we are in the same situation we were months ago; his cabinet needs to stop being silent and push back on these never-ending lockdowns."
https://ottawasun.com/opinion/columnists/lilley-ford-needs-to-explore-alternatives-to-lockdowns/wcm/6c15dc49-c129-462b-9f1e-ff6a66332b16
