Ontario restaurant owners warn Ford government 'civil disobedience' is coming without capacity changes
Ontario restaurateurs are expressing their frustration with the provincial government after a cabinet minister failed to attend a meeting to discuss capacity limits in the hospitality industry, and staff asked attendees not to raise their concerns in the media.
Restaurant owners launched a concerted campaign over the Thanksgiving long weekend to lift COVID-19 restrictions on their businesses to bring them in line with large sports venues and concert halls, which can now operate free of capacity and physical distancing measures as long as vaccination requirements are enforced.
Currently, while restaurants are not subject to capacity limits they must maintain two meters of distance between tables which, the industry says, effectively limits the number of diners.
Meanwhile, The Scotiabank Arena – which will host the Toronto Maple Leafs home opener on Oct. 13 – can welcome nearly 20,000 fans without the need to sit several seats apart or maintain any form of distancing.
According to industry insiders, the Ford government quickly sought to quell the visceral anger over the weekend by convening a virtual meeting with Tourism and Culture minister Lisa MacLeod on Tuesday – a meeting which derailed almost immediately after MacLeod failed to attend without explanation.
"We were invited by the minister to attend this call and then we were told it was a scheduling conflict," said Paul Bognar, the CEO of Sir Corp which owns Jack Astor's Bar and Grill and Scaddabush Italian Kitchen and Bar.
"There's 450,000 people employed in the restaurant businesses in Ontario," Bognar told CP24. "We've been the hardest hit sector, you would think that would be a priority."
John Sinopoli, the founder of Save Hospitality CA, said while the group hoped to meet with both MacLeod and Health Minister Christine Elliott, they were faced with political staff instead who, they say, provided little insight into what the restaurant industry could expect.
"They literally have no plan for us, that was the answer," Sinopoli told CTV News Toronto. "Twice, we got crickets from their entire staff."
"From the call this morning, we realized they haven't even given us a second thought."
Instead, Sinopoli says, attendees were told not to discuss the contents of the conversation with the media until the province finalized a plan for the sector – a request that was ignored.
The restaurant industry has been trying to gauge, among other things, a timeframe for when restrictions would be eased, the benchmarks that would be used to lift restrictions and what information has been driving the government's decision making.
"We're trying to get to the bottom of either the logic, the scientific data, the historical data, any data for the decision that was made that nobody can understand," Bognar said.
Without a plan, Sinopoli warned the government that it could soon be faced with "civil disobedience."
"Many people in our industry are talking about civil disobedience with respect to these regulations and restrictions of indoor dining," Sinopoli said.
"If you're not going to give us a reason behind the policy and you're not going to tell us that there even is a plan, then we can just assume negligent in terms of our industry."
"They've literally left us no option."
Multiple calls to Minister Macleod's office by CTV News Toronto went unanswered.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.