By David Hains and Sneh Duggal
Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk says that the work of her office marches on despite the coronavirus pandemic that has ravaged countries around the world and shuttered many Ontario workplaces.
The auditor general told QP Briefing by phone today that her team continues to work on its tasks remotely, with the immediate focus being annual audits of organizations like TVOntario and the Ontario Securities Commission. "We're proceeding on all our audits," she said.
Her team is also keeping its eye on the annual value-for-money audits, which typically get revealed in early December. Those can be a bit more tricky, because some of them rely on in-person visits which are made more difficult by social distancing measures necessitated by COVID-19. Lysyk allowed that one planned audit may not be released according to its previously planned schedule because workers are involved in the effort to stop the coronavirus. "Right now we're staying out of everyone's way," she said.
She added that future value-for-money audits may touch on best practices learned from the pandemic, as so many parts of the government have focused on their response to the crisis.
Ontarians support physical distancing: poll
Ontarians overwhelmingly favour keeping physical distancing measures in place for the time being and give high marks to the provincial government for its handling of the crisis, according to a new Angus Reid Institute poll.
Eighty-four per cent of Ontarians polled — with a sample size of 597 — feel that it's too soon to lift public health measures aimed at limiting the spread of the coronavirus. That's the second-highest total in the country after the Atlantic provinces at 86 per cent, although those provinces had a sample size of just 130. The poll was conducted April 15–17.
Public opinion lines up with Premier Doug Ford's approach to the issue so far. He has warned against lifting restrictions prematurely for fear that the province could lose its progress a second wave could strike with a vengeance. Nationwide that opinion is most commonly shared by Liberal and NDP voters, with conservatives significantly less likely, at 64 per cent, to believe it's time to start lifting restrictions.
As a whole, 77 per cent of Canadians felt that it was too soon to begin lifting public health restrictions. That's higher than in the U.S., where two-thirds of those polled feel that way, and there have been a number of crowded protests in defiance of measures instituted on the recommendation of public health experts.
But the timing on lifting the restrictions remains up in the air. Fifty-six per cent of Ontarians would like to see the restrictions lifted sometime by May or June; public health officials and politicians have maintained that it's too soon to offer a timeline on the decision.
Ontarians have also appreciated the COVID-19 response from the provincial government, with the latest poll measuring a whopping 87 per cent approval specific to the pandemic. That's up from 46 per cent in a COVID-19-specific approval poll conducted March 5–6.
Ontario COVID-19 numbers
On the day Ontario released new modelling information suggesting Ontario might have already reached the peak in community cases, the province reported an increase of 606 new cases — a 5.7-per-cent increase from the previous report.
There were 31 new deaths, with a total of 584 fatalities due to the novel coronavirus.
The province is reporting 1,965 cases in long-term care homes, with the bulk of those — 1,317 — in residents, and 250 deaths in these facilities. The numbers include both confirmed and non-laboratory-confirmed cases.
Better to be safe: Ford
While the premier and other politicians have faced a flurry of questions about when public health restrictions might be eased, the premier said he'd prefer to "wait and be safe rather than just opening it up."
Asked whether rural areas that haven't been hit as hard as cities like Toronto could see a reopening of businesses before urban centres, Ford said he's heard stories and questions about this from several MPPs representing rural ridings.
"All it takes is one person, just one person to go visit them that has COVID-19 and then it just starts spreading again," he said, adding that the government also needs to consider the province's supply chains, which has people moving across Ontario.
"I know people get anxious and rambunctious, but what over waiting a few more weeks?" Ford said.
Tragedy amid COVID-19 pandemic
Premier Ford also offered his condolences to Nova Scotians and those affected by the mass shooting that, according to the RCMP, left "in excess of 19" people dead across the east coast province this weekend.
"In the midst of this pandemic, to face this unimaginable tragedy, to have the unthinkable act of evil rip into their community and into their province, nothing could be worse," said Ford during a press conference on Monday afternoon following the release of new modelling information by heath officials.
"On a day like today, everything is put into perspective; while my mind is here in Ontario, my heart keeps drifting back to the people of Nova Scotia," said Ford.
The shooting spree began on Saturday night and continued into Sunday, spanning across several communities and ending when police killed the gunman.
"The people of Ontario and the entire country are grieving with our friends in of Nova Scotia right now," said Ford, giving a special mention to RCMP Const. Heidi Stevenson, who was killed during the rampage.
"We salute Constable Heidi Stevenson, a veteran of 23 years and a mother of two, who fell in the line of duty," said Ford.
The premier went on to say that he knows the "resolve" of Nova Scotians.
"They are strong, they are proud, they will mourn they will grieve. They will share tears and share sadness in the days to come, but they will band together, they will support one another and they will love one another, and every step of the way they will have the support of Ontario, they will have every Canadian standing with them."
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