In less than two weeks, we enter the year 2022, and that’s an election year in Ontario. In the spring, Premier Doug Ford and the Progressive Conservatives will aim to make a case that they should be re-elected for a second term, but the knives will almost certainly be out for them. But what about the one Green MPP in the legislature? What kind of year will 2022 be for him? Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #303 – Christmas With Mike”
It’s starting to feel a lot like… earlier this year. Less than 48 hours after announcing the expansion of booster COVID-19 vaccine shots, and a 50 per cent cap on capacity limits at venues for more than a thousand people, Premier Doug Ford announced some additional caps to capacity on Friday afternoon. In other words, one day after saying he didn’t need to put more protocols on restaurants, the Premier has but more protocols on restaurants. Continue reading “Government of Ontario Announces Further Capacity Restrictions”
With the resurgence of COVID-19 and the concern around the Omicron variant, Premier Doug Ford and his advisors took to the media studio at Queen’s Park to announce a major shift in direction. Starting Monday, everyone over the age of 18 in Ontario will be eligible for their third shot of a COVID-19 vaccine even if its been just three months after completing their first two shots. There are also some other new developments to note. Continue reading “Boosters For Everyone 18 and Over on Monday, New Capacity Limits on Saturday”
Premier Doug Ford was in Guelph on Wednesday morning to do something that was once considered anathema to his brand, support for the development of electric vehicles. At a Linamar facility in town, Ford and Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade Vic Fedeli announced the second phases of their auto strategy to support domestic production of EVs and EV parts. Continue reading “Ford Supports EVs in Guelph, Schreiner Not Impressed Though”
In an announcement in Caledon on Wednesday, Premier Doug Ford lent his support, and that of the Government of Ontario, to the Highway #413 project. The controversial project needs all the friends it can get, because environmentalists, local municipalities, and all provincial opposition parties have lined up against #413, and one of those opponents, Guelph MPP Mike Schriener, was also in Caledon Wednesday for an announcement of his own. Continue reading “Ford and Schreiner Fight Over Highway #413 in Duelling Announcements”
On Wednesday, the Government of Ontario announced that they are expanding the eligibility of third doses of a COVID-19 vaccine. Starting on November 6, booster shots will be made available to additional groups of high-risk individuals, and that boosters will then be gradually rolled out for all age groups 12 and over. Good news, but it wasn’t the vaccine news that everyone was talking about on Wednesday afternoon. Continue reading “Ontario Government Increases Access to Boosters, But That’s Not the Vaccine News Today”
One of the first acts of the current Ontario government under Premier Doug Ford in 2018 was to cancel a planned increase of the provincial minimum wage to $15 per hour. So it came something of a strange development on Tuesday morning when it was announced that Ford himself would introduce a plan to increase the minimum wage by 65 cent as of January 1, which will finally bring it to $15 per hour. Three years late. Continue reading “Ford Announces Minimum Wage Increase That Still Falls Short of Living Wage”
After a couple of weeks of pressure from restaurateurs and other business owners about the Government of Ontario’s seemingly random removal of capacity limits on cinemas and sports venues, it looks like all limits are coming to an end by the mid-point of next month. In a typical late Friday announcement, Premier Doug Ford said that more limits will be lifted on Monday with an eye to end all COVID-19 precautions by the end of March. Continue reading “Ontario Government Announces No More Capacity Limits on November 15”
Like the soft launch of any one of a hundred different apps, the digital vaccine verification code started appearing on Google Play and the App Store on Friday morning. Yes Virginia, you can now carry your vaccine certification on your phone with a Government of Ontario-approved QR code, and just a few days ahead of the one-month anniversary of the Province’s vaccine certification program. Continue reading “Ontario QR Codes for Vaccine Proof Now Available”
The next session of the Ontario Legislature begins promptly at 9 am on Monday morning with the Speech from the Throne. The Honourable Elizabeth Dowdeswell, the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, will read a missive outlining the Government of Ontario’s priorities for the rest of their mandate, but the opposition leaders have some priorities of the their own, and they recently shared them with the media. Continue reading “Ontario Opposition Parties Have “To Do” Ahead of Throne Speech”
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