December 17, 2021
OTTAWA – Today Ottawa Liberal MPPs, John Fraser, Lucille Collard, Stephen Blais and Amanda Simard, released the following statement:
“The Ford government’s free rapid test rollout is a disaster and is another example of the government not being ready to respond to the fifth wave of COVID-19. These tests should have been free and widely available to families months ago, as public health experts have been calling for.
Our city is the second largest in Ontario, with a population of 1 million and the Ford government is scrambling to get tests to people in advance of the holidays, when case counts are dramatically rising.
Today, Conservative MPP Dave Smith compared the lineups for free rapid tests at LCBOs to the Tickle-Me Elmo craze on the Rob Snow Show (22 minutes. 50 seconds). People in Ottawa aren’t laughing.
Too many parents of school-aged children still do not have the tests promised to them. The city’s pop up testing sites are not opening until Dec. 21st and the LCBOs supposed to have received rapid tests, don’t have them. This is not a plan and will not help blunt the spread of omicron.
Understandably, people are stressed, frustrated and disappointed. It didn’t have to be like this. The Premier was not ready to respond and it’s clear that the two Ottawa cabinet Ministers are not standing up for the people in our city.”
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Contact:
Grace Johnsongjohnson@liberal.ola.org