Saskatoon councillor 'confused' over health minister's comments on COVID-19 jurisdiction
Ward 3 Coun. David Kirton says he's "confused" regarding Health Minister Paul Merriman's claim that cities can set their own COVID-19 restrictions.
"I really don't understand, though, what the health minister is saying when he says we can, you know, go on our own and make our own decisions on that because we know that we have to make that request first, and we tried and the request was denied," Kirton told CTV News.
City council unanimously passed a recommendation on Sept. 29 for Mayor Charlie Clark to write a letter to Premier Scott Moe asking for a limit of 15 people at private gatherings in Saskatoon, including household gatherings.
Administration had also recommended a limit of 150 people at bingo halls, event centres, theatres, casinos, art galleries, libraries and recreational facilities or one-third of current capacity, whichever is less.
The Saskatoon area then, as now, had the most COVID-19 cases in the province.
The province denied the request. When a reporter asked Merriman on Thursday why it was denied, Merriman said that the province had created a base layer of COVID-19 restrictions and recommendations.
"If the municipalities want to be able to add on top of that they have that ability to do that," Merriman said.
Kirton said the city only has jurisdiction over its own facilities such as leisure centres, City Hall and municipally-owned rinks.
On Oct. 1 the city started requiring proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test for dryland areas within leisure centres to comply with the provincial rules. Effective Friday, that requirement will be expanded to all areas within leisure centres and indoor rinks.
"That's as far as we can go without the province giving its thumbs up to any other requests that we make, so we're pretty limited here in Saskatoon," Kirton said.
He said he's "disappointed" that the province is not recognizing that Saskatoon needs different measures than other municipalities.
"I guess it just frustrates me because we were just trying to make it as safe as possible for the citizens of Saskatoon."
Municipalities across Saskatchewan have been reticent to make their own restrictions after seeing Regina get its "hand slapped" when the province quashed its own local restrictions in March 2020, Kirton said.
"For Health Minister Merriman to say this, I guess I would love to hear more information from him as to where we can do this because at this point, I don't have that information."
With files from Nicole Di Donato
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Half of Canadians have negative opinion of latest Liberal budget: poll
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Twins from Toronto were Canada's top two female finishers at this year's Boston Marathon
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
Ottawa injects another $36M into vaccine injury compensation fund
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
NASA hears from Voyager 1, the most distant spacecraft from Earth, after months of quiet
NASA has finally heard back from Voyager 1 again in a way that makes sense. The most distant spacecraft from Earth hadn't sent home any understandable data since last November.
U.S. Senate passes bill forcing TikTok's parent company to sell or face ban, sends to Biden for signature
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
Train derailed in Sarnia after colliding with a truck
Police are investigating after a transport truck collided with a train in Sarnia.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.