Ford: mea culpa

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, in a news conference on Thursday morning, April 22, acknowledged his government had erred the previous week in giving police additional powers to randomly stop motorists and pedestrians to see if they’re obeying a COVID-19 “stay-at-home” order.

The powers were announced late Friday afternoon, April 16, in response to dire predictions about the spread of new COVID-19 variants, “but we moved too fast, and some measures, especially about enforcement, went too far. They left a lot of people angry and upset.

“I know we got it wrong. I know we made a mistake. For that, I sincerely apologize. As premier the buck stops with me.”

The increased powers, immediately rejected by many municipal police services, were cancelled the following day, as was an order to close all public playground equipment.

However, other outdoor recreation facilities, including basketball courts and tennis courts, remain closed.