What a spring it has been. Just over two months ago the Ontario Government proclaimed the COVID-19 pandemic an emergency and shut down most businesses and asked us all to stay home to help flatten the curve.
It was an extraordinary move in an unprecedented situation. The last time the world faced something like this was the Spanish Flu in 1918. And the world has changed a lot since then so we really didn’t have a road map to show us the way.
With your support and your sacrifices, we have flattened the curve. We have avoided overwhelming our hospitals and we have finally started to see the number of new cases come down. First of all I want to say thank you to all of you who have stayed home, closed your businesses, become home-school teachers, and supported friends and family through this difficult time.
Thank you to our healthcare workers—doctors, nurses, personal support workers and all staff in hospitals and long-term care centres. Thank you to Dr. Gardner and his team at the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit for their work in coordinating testing, tracing the contacts of every person confirmed to have COVID-19 and for communicating clearly how we can all do our part to slow the spread of this virus.
Thank you to all the other frontline workers from emergency responders to everyone working in grocery stores and pharmacies and other essential workplaces that remained open throughout this situation. Thank you to the truck drivers who keep these stores stocked and to our farmers and everyone else producing those essentials.
I also want to thank our business community and service clubs for everything they are doing to support us all. Right here in Parry Sound-Muskoka we have businesses making hand sanitizer, masks and face shields and other personal protective equipment. We have service clubs donating to our hospitals and food banks and helping our seniors and other vulnerable individuals. I know I can’t possibly list everyone who has stepped up without leaving someone off the list so I won’t try, but I want to make special mention of the Muskoka Builders’ Association which has raised more than $100,000 for our local hospitals and food banks.
Over the past weeks I have been speaking with many business owners and with our local Chambers of Commerce. Our businesses want to protect their staff and their customers from COVID-19 and they want to ensure their businesses are still here when this is over. They are nervous about what this summer season will look like. As a former owner of a seasonal tourism business, I can completely understand how they feel.
Unfortunately I am not able to tell them what they can expect, and neither can the Premier or anyone else. The government is making all decisions regarding reopening based on the medical data and the advice of Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health. In late April Ontario released the Framework for Reopening the Province. There are three stages. And just yesterday we entered the first stage after seeing the case numbers consistently decrease over two weeks.
Stage one allows for some outdoor activities to resume, stores with street entrances to reopen, some services including veterinary and dog grooming services and housekeeping to start up, and most importantly, in-person counselling to resume and hospitals to start rescheduling postponed surgeries. We will have to see how loosening these restrictions changes the case numbers. If the case numbers continue to go down for at least the next two weeks, then more will open. If they go up we may have to take a step back.
Many of our local businesses were closed for two months and some still are. In order to ensure these businesses survive and continue to employ our friends and neighbours, we need to come together to support those businesses just as we have come together to support our frontline workers.
I encourage everyone to think twice before ordering from Amazon or other multinational companies. Spend that money in our communities. Shop in local stores and try to buy local products. Support our local farmers and food processors, buy from our local artists and artisans, and pick up take-out from your favourite local restaurant. And if you can, when our tourism businesses open up, please plan to use your vacation to support our local tourism operators.
In the meantime, please continue to stay home as much as possible, maintain physical distance when you do have to go out, consider wearing a face covering like a fabric mask anywhere physical distancing is difficult, wash your hands regularly, and please be kind and respectful to everyone you meet.
Photo of MPP Norm Miller is courtesy of his office. Queen’s Park photo “June 2012 Ontario Legislature Toronto” by Priscilla Jordão, via Wikimedia Commons, is licensed under CC BY 2.0 / Cropped from original.
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Anna-Lise Kear says
Well stated, Mr. Miller, thank you.
Gord Danks says
With all due respect Mr. Miller l would like to know what sacrifice you have made during this pandemic? Have you been laid off, have you had your salary reduced, has your livelihood been put on hold with little support? Have you been on the frontlines with our doctors and nurses caring for those infected? With the first responders, the grocery workers, the truck drivers and delivery people and all the others who have kept our society functioning at great risk to themselves?It rubs me when our so called leaders insert themselves in situations and events they they have had no impact on.The people of Muskoka know how to support our local economy. How have you suffered?Please let us know. Be careful that you are not declaring victory prematurely. It’s not over yet.
Gord Danks
Jim Logagianes says
Mr Miller witnessed firsthand the neglect in health care and long term care while the Liberals were running Ontario into the ground. Mr Miller was well aware of the problems in the Muskoka Parry Sound region. His Government saw fit to make further cuts to healthcare after they were elected.(Inspections on nursing homes tops the list) Ignoring all the warnings to the contrary. (Sound judgement, You be the judge).
Mediocrity is alive and well on the political spectrum in Canada. And innocent people
dying needlessly is the result. I would not want the blood of innocent Canadians on my hands. There are no excuses when people die needlessly. Just ask anyone who has lost a loved one recently. This situation In Canada can be summed up in two words, Criminal Negligence. How many elected officials ignored the problems facing health care and long term care? All of them.
Anna-Lise Kear says
Mr. Logagianes; Mr. Miller was also part of the Mike Harris government’s changes in LTC, Home Care, and education which are returning to haunt this current period of Con governance. MH undid the positive staffing allocations to LTC that the provincial NDP government had put in place. MH opened the door for more for-profit investment in building facilities in the province (notice how well some for-profits LTC facilities have performed regarding COVID19 infections). Money was to be made in LTC and retirement homes with the boomers on the scene, and so MH followed the US. I will be first to admit that the LTC issues were and are complex. However, a look to other countries could have provided models for the provision of LTC and Home Care should have been seriously considered and followed (e.g. Denmark).
However, I read Mr. Miller’s comments as an important “thank you” to many. In that, he is not in error. Had he spoken of personal or political grievances, I would question his ability to understand or have empathy for his constituents.
Mr. Danks, rest assured, Mr. Miller in his role as MPP must face the music of accountability. One time that resonates is at re-election. He, as all of our members of provincial and federal legislature, have been given the privilege of governing. To those who have much or been given much (power, money, talent), much is required.
Thank you for listening.
Martha Watson says
Mr. Danks, I think you missed the colon(:) between “Sacrifices” and “MPP” in the headline. Mr. Miller wrote the article, and is thanking all the people who are making sacrifices. Maybe we don’t agree with his political agenda, but he has more sense than to declare that he is the one suffering.
Gord Danks says
Ms. Watson. I assure you l have not missed anything. l see the pandering of a MPP who is a member of a political party that currently and in the past formed the government of this province that has systematically eroded the very services, institutions and programs that we so desperately need now to deal with this pandemic.l know Mr. Miller’s intent was honourable and is appreciated,but to talk of sacrifices of others is disingenuous when you look at his political record.
Thank you
Martha Watson says
Thank you for the clarification, Mr. Danks!
Ralph Cliffe says
Doug Ford=Mike Harris. Is there really any difference?
Let’s hope so!