COVID-19 Ottawa:
Two more people in Ottawa have died from COVID-19.
Ottawa Public Health says 361 people have now died after contracting the Novel Coronavirus in our city.
The number of new cases is down significantly Tuesday though. Eleven new cases are being reported, sending the city’s total up to 7,968, with 7,145 resolved, and 462 active.
COVID-19 Ontario:
1,249 new cases, and 12 more deaths from the virus are being reported across Ontario Tuesday.
Throughout the pandemic, the province has confirmed 96,745 cases, with 3,383 deaths, and 80,430 cases resolved.
Lecce Considering Longer Break For Students:
Ontario students could get an extended winter break or start classes remotely in the new year. This, as the Ford government considers ways to reduce transmission after the holidays.
Education Minister Stephen Lecce says he’s talking to health officials and looking at solutions that may include some period out of class at the beginning of January, but has not yet made a decision. Lecce says he will announce a plan in the next week or two to allow parents to prepare.
Quebec Creates First Nations Working Group:
The Quebec government is creating a new political working group that will hold regular ‘nation-to-nation’ meetings with First Nations leaders on issues that concern them.
The announcement was made Tuesday by Indigenous Affairs Minister Ian Lafreniere and Ghislain Picard, the Chief of the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador, who will be the group’s co-chairs.
Picard says the working group will help advance issues such as Joyce’s Principle, which is a list of measures proposed by the Atikamekw Nation to ensure equitable access to health care for Indigenous people.
Trudeau Encourages Snowbirds to Stay Home:
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is recommending that Canadians do not travel outside the country during the holidays.
However, Trudeau suggests those who do make a trip get comprehensive health and travel insurance. Trudeau says the pandemic is resurgent across large swaths of the United States, including the South, and Canadians are safest at home.