Horwath says Ford is suspending Queen’s Park without delivering the help people need

QUEEN’S PARK — NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said it’s wrong that Doug Ford is calling it quits for Queen’s Park for the summer while people still need help to make it safely through the pandemic.

“Families and educators are burned out and frustrated with at-home learning. They need a solid safe-schools plan — not a premier that cuts and runs.

“Local businesses and the people who work there are desperate for financial help to make it to the end of the lockdown, and incentives to spark economic recovery — not a government that takes the summer off.

“People need a plan for faster second doses, not Doug Ford’s plan to just let the scavenger hunt continue.

“And people who are waiting for a delayed surgery, in pain and terrified, need urgent investment and a plan to get through those procedures, now. They need a government working tirelessly to fight for them, not a premier that’s in hiding to try to save his plummeting polling numbers,” said Horwath.

Doug Ford began this sitting of the legislature by ignoring the experts and marching Ontario into a disastrous third wave. He’s ending it in hiding, avoiding Horwath and the legislature, the public, and media scrutiny.

“Over the course of this session, Mr. Ford ignored experts and relaxed public health measures too fast – causing the third wave. He fought tooth and nail against giving working folks paid sick days. He tried to close parks and bring a police state in. He claimed schools were safe right up until the day he shut them all down for months, while cutting education by $800 million,” said Horwath. “And then the Ford government adopted what they call the ‘protect the king’ strategy —sending him into hiding so he doesn’t have to answer for his bad choices.”

Horwath said the legislature should continue to sit until:

• There is a safe school reopening plan in place
• There is action and investment in place to urgently address the backlog of surgeries, procedures and cancer screenings
• There is a local business and jobs support plan in place to help businesses and workers make it to their reopening day — and stay open
• Families get answers and action on long-term care deaths, especially those the Armed Forces reported were caused by starvation and dehydration
• Workers are given 14 paid sick days, which will help make sure the third wave is the final wave of COVID-19 in Ontario

The government has not scheduled the legislature to return until Sept. 13.