Lisa Gretzky MPP, for Windsor West

WINDSOR-ESSEX – NDP MPPs Lisa Gretzky (Windsor West), Percy Hatfield (Windsor—Tecumseh) and Taras Natyshak (Essex) are echoing the call from Official Opposition NDP Leader Andrea Horwath for Doug Ford to recall the legislature immediately:

“Our region is in full blown crisis with staggering outbreaks in LTC, and rapidly escalating cases, hospitalizations and fatalities. On top of this, we have a lagging vaccination plan with our most vulnerable community members left waiting for the shots that will save their lives. The Ford government has still failed to provide sick days for workers who need to isolate, and our small businesses are struggling without the support they need. There is no time for vacations. We need the Legislature to get back to work,” said Natyshak.
 
“Since Doug Ford shut the legislature down in December, I have heard from hundreds of frontline workers and families with loved ones in long-term care homes pleading for the government to step up and take action. We have record COVID-19 numbers in Windsor-Essex and Windsorites are losing their lives to this pandemic at alarming rates. Ford is sitting on billions of unspent funding that could go directly into supporting and protecting long-term care home residents and workers, as well as hospitals. Earlier today our healthcare leadership outlined the stark reality of the situation in Windsor-Essex. We are in desperate need of help from the government before our system collapses. We cannot just sit back and wait for vaccines to roll out,” said Gretzky.
 
"My office has been flooded with questions from my constituents since this pandemic started and now ten months in, we’re still asking the government for answers. We knew the second wave was coming, so why didn’t this government plan for it? Ford refuses to spend the billions in allocated COVID-19 funds to help our long-term care homes and hospitals, as thousands are getting sick and dying. Now we need the government to send in the military for support. It didn’t have to be this way. We must recall the Legislature now so we can get back to work and get the necessary resources and support to the people of Windsor-Essex," said Hatfield.