Brampton mayor worried Ontario is putting vaccine certificate enforcement costs on municipalities
Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown says that he is concerned that costs related to enforcing Ontario’s new vaccine certificate system when disputes arise will inevitably be “put on the backs of municipalities.”
Businesses have already spoken out about the fact that the new system will put the onus on their employees to check documentation and verify vaccination status but during a briefing on Wednesday Brown said that he is worried that there will also be a “huge new workload” for police and bylaw enforcement officers.
“When I look at our bylaw volume, 50 to 60 per cent of our bylaw work right now is COVID-related and that is only going to rise,” he warned. “If the number you call when there is an incident or a disagreement or an enforcement problem is the bylaw department that volume is going to grow. And I'm told when bylaw cannot resolve the matter in a peaceful fashion that's where it gets escalated to the police and once again there'll be costs associated with that. So this is a huge new workload that's being put on the back of municipalities.”
Health Minister Christine Elliott said last week that businesses who felt threatened by a patron during the course of verifying their vaccine status could call 9-1-1 for assistance.
The Toronto Police Service, however, quickly issued a tweet clarifying that 9-1-1 is for “emergencies only.”
Brown said that he does view the vaccine certificate program “as an important policy to get residents vaccinated and create safe spaces but he said that it is “abundantly clear” that municipalities need financial support to help cover some of the costs related to enforcement.
“The province is saying call 9-1-1 or call bylaw and I can tell you there are no resources allocated for this when it comes to the police or bylaw and at some point the province is going to need to reconcile that and make sure that we have the resources to support this provincial policy,” Brown said on Wednesday.
The federal Liberal government has previously promised $1 billion in funding to provinces to help implement vaccine certificate systems, though it is not clear whether any of that money will be redirected to municipalities.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'I have the will to live': N.B. woman needs double lung transplant
A New Brunswick woman suffering from sarcoidosis, a disease that limits your lung capacity, is in need of a double lung transplant.
Suter scores late goal, clinches series for Canucks
Pius Suter scored with 1:39 left and the Vancouver Canucks advanced to the second round of the NHL playoffs with a 1-0 victory over the Nashville Predators on Friday night in Game 6.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
Police officer hit by driver of fleeing vehicle in Toronto
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.
The kids from 'Mrs. Doubtfire are all SUPER grown up now, and we're not OK
The adorable trio of child actors from the 1993 classic comedy 'Mrs. Doubtfire,' which starred the late and great Robin Williams, are all grown up and looking back on their seminal time together.
Video shows suspect setting Toronto-area barbershop on fire
Video of a suspect lighting a Richmond Hill barbershop on fire earlier this week has been released by police.
Hulk Hogan, hurricanes and a blockbuster recording: A week in review of the Trump hush money trial
Crucial witnesses took the stand in the second week of testimony in Donald Trump's hush money trial, including a California lawyer who negotiated deals at the center of the case and a longtime adviser to the former president.
Britney Spears 'home and safe' after paramedics responded to an incident at the Chateau Marmont, source tells CNN
A source close to singer Britney Spears tells CNN that the pop star is 'home and safe' after she had a 'major fight' with her boyfriend on Wednesday night at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.
Quebec man who threatened Trudeau, Legault online sentenced to 20 months in jail
A Quebec man who pleaded guilty to threatening Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier François Legault has been sentenced to 20 months in jail.