Ontario Liberal Party leader Steven Del Duca. Photo courtesy Ontario Legislature.Ontario Liberal Party leader Steven Del Duca. Photo courtesy Ontario Legislature.
Sarnia

Provincial Liberal leader expresses concerns over second wave preparedness

Provincial Liberal Leader Steven Del Duca says he believes in the early days of the pandemic the federal, provincial and municipal governments were scrambling a little and people understood that because it was an unprecedented experience.

"We're now about seven months in and I do have grave concerns about Doug Ford's preparedness for what is now a second wave, in particular in certain areas of the Province and I know it's not hit every aspect or every region in the province equally. But we know in certain parts of the province, the positive cases are climbing."

During a recent visit to Huron County, Del Duca also referred to Ford's back to school plan as underwhelming.

"I think that when you look at the back to school plan that they presented, I think that was really underwhelming and parents and students and educators, frankly, deserve better. Really concerned about the challenges around how much testing we're doing here in Ontario and, again, in certain parts of the province there's virtually no longer any contact tracing."

Del Duca said he doesn't want to see another total lockdown, but he does believe the situation calls for a targeted approach for the three hot spots of Toronto, Peel, and Ottawa.

"So, indoor dining at restaurants, bars, gyms, I think, for 28 days should close. And while that takes place, I think the small business entrepreneurs that run those businesses should receive direct and tangible financial support from Doug Ford and from the provincial government."

Del Duca said he believes that might be enough to avoid a complete lockdown in the future.

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