For Immediate Release
December 18, 2020
STATEMENT: Mayor Bonnie Crombie’s Response to Peel Region Remaining in Province’s Grey Lockdown Zone
“Today, Premier Doug Ford announced that Peel Region will remain in the Grey lockdown zone of the Province’s COVID-19 Response Framework this coming Monday, when the measures were set to expire.
I know this will be disappointing for many people who have been holding out hope that Peel will be moved out of lockdown before the holiday season.
The Premier also said today that he will be announcing next steps for the rest of the Province on Monday, December 21.
The reality is that while COVID-19 case numbers in Peel are beginning to plateau, the situation at our hospitals remains dire, with elective surgeries being cancelled and patients being transferred to neighbouring regions to make room for a surge in COVID patients.
I firmly believe keeping Peel in lockdown will avoid more COVID-19 hospitalizations, further spread in our long-term care homes and preventable deaths in Mississauga. I believe these continued measures will help us avoid a larger and longer lockdown in the New Year.
What is becoming evident from the aggregate cellphone data we have is that people across the GTHA are moving from one region to another much more than they did in the first wave. And unfortunately, this is also leading to more community spread.
I am calling on the Province to issue a GTHA-wide lockdown on Monday to drive down case numbers across the larger region and to protect our hospitals.
I know a lot of people in our community are suffering right now due to this lockdown – our residents, businesses and faith-based groups – and I am so sorry for the stress and pain these measures have caused.
We have seen promising news with the arrival of the vaccine in Ontario, and frontline workers will begin receiving the vaccine in Peel Region starting this Monday.
For now, we must remain vigilant and continue listening to the advice our health experts – to stay home as much as possible, only leave for the essentials and limit your close in-person contact to just your immediate household.
Be safe and be well, Mississauga.
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