Nearly one third of Ottawa restaurants aren’t following vaccination rules: MacLeod
An Ontario cabinet minister says nearly one third of Ottawa restaurants aren’t enforcing provincial vaccine requirements.
Nepean MPP Lisa MacLeod made the statement in the Ontario legislature on Tuesday, calling the figure “troubling.”
“I had some troubling information today from Ottawa Public Health, where 30 per cent of restaurants in the city of Ottawa failed to comply with the vaccination requirements at this point in time,” said MacLeod, who is Ontario’s minister of heritage, sport, tourism and culture.
MacLeod told CTV News she and Social Services Minister Merrilee Fullerton received a briefing from Ottawa Public Health officials, who raised concern and shared the number.
Restaurants and bars are required under provincial rules to check proof of vaccination for diners eating indoors. That rule came into effect Sept. 22.
MacLeod was speaking in response to a question about why sports venues are allowed to be at full capacity, while restaurants are not.
A spokesperson for MacLeod said she was unavailable for an interview.
But it's possible she was referring to a blitz of 31 businesses that Ottawa bylaw officials conducted on Friday and Saturday to check for compliance with rules on masking, capacity limits, contact tracing and proof of vaccination.
Of the 31 businesses inspected, 10 were found not to be in compliance with various rules, the city's director of bylaw services Roger Chapman said in a statement on Wednesday.
However, the inspections focused on establishments previously reported as being non-compliant. And the violations were of various provincial rules, not just vaccination requirements.
Restaurants aren’t operating at full capacity because physical distancing is still required between tables. Many in the industry say those restrictions are unfair now that much larger venues, such as arenas and event spaces, can welcome capacity crowds.
- With files from Leslie Roberts, CTV Morning Live
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.