THUNDER BAY – A model for regional reopening in Ontario could be put forward as early as the coming week, says cabinet minister Greg Rickford.
The Kenora-Rainy River MPP sounded a cautious note while expressing his hope that regional reopening could go ahead.
“I’m hopeful that as early as next week, we’ll be looking at a regional model that will permit northwestern Ontario to move to the next step, open more businesses and create more activity,” he said in an interview with TBT News.
“That said, there’s still a lot of cautious people out there. Our polling suggests folks aren’t necessarily ready to go to a restaurant or a theatre, even if they were open.”
Premier Doug Ford and his PC government initially ruled out the possibility of allowing regions of the province less hard-hit by the COVID-19 pandemic to reopen sooner. But Ford abruptly reversed course last week, saying the province would examine the idea.
Rickford, who serves as Minister of Energy, Mines, Northern Development and Indigenous Affairs, cautioned that periodic flareups of COVID-19 are not unlikely under any reopening plan. However, he expressed optimism those could be handled by health authorities.
“If we move to a regional model, we may get an outbreak,” he said. “I think we can’t be nervous about that – we’ve got great health units out here who can do the contact tracing. It’s up to the individual to be compliant and help us get on the road to recovery and a bit more of a sense of normal life.”
The MPP said his region, heavily dependent on tourism, is feeling the pinch from months of closures.
“For three to four months of the year, tourism is far and away the largest economic activity here in the region,” he said. “And that’s up against some heavyweights like forestry and mining, notwithstanding the service sector that supports a lot of tourist activity.”
Rickford hoped the recent reopening of fly-in camps and resorts would provide some help, but acknowledged the closure of the Canada-U.S. border (a decision of federal jurisdiction) was an enormous blow to the industry. Americans make up 90 per cent of some camps’ business, he said.
Despite that economic pain, Rickford said he sees strong support for keeping the international border closed. The MPP said he meets weekly with numerous municipal and Indigenous leaders, and they’re unanimous on the issue.
“All of them, as painful as it is, have said no, the border shouldn’t be open,” he said. “And we’re talking about mayors in municipalities where 50 per cent or more of the tax base is American.”
The minister said he won't be surprised if the federal government extends the closure beyond June 21.
