QUEEN’S PARK — Mike Schreiner released the following statement after the Government announced a framework for responding to COVID-19:
“For too long, this Premier has made decisions haphazardly without consistency or clear communication, putting both public health and small businesses at risk.
I welcome this transparency so that we can reduce confusion for families, municipalities, public health units and businesses and hold the Premier accountable on his decisions.
My biggest concern with this framework is that these benchmarks are too high and allow for widespread community transmission without increased public health restrictions.
I am curious if these numbers were drawn up by health experts or the Premier because a 10% positivity rate looks like a very high bar for moving into the Control zone.
On a day of record case numbers and stalled testing, I am concerned the Premier is forcing public health to take a backseat to the economy, which will hurt businesses if the virus gets out of control.
I would have more confidence in our ability to safely ease restrictions if the Government wasn’t failing so miserably on testing and contact tracing.
Some hospitals and health units are teetering on the edge, and we cannot push them to the brink before taking action to curb the spread.
The bottom line is that good health is good for business.”