Restaurants Canada has criticized the Ontario government’s latest COVID restrictions on the foodservice industry, saying people are seeing “their life’s work destroyed.”
The association, which advocates for the country’s foodservice industry, released a statement shortly after the province announced new measures, including a ban on eating indoors, in an attempt to curb the spread of the Omicron variant.
“Once again, Ontario makes a move that will irreparably harm our industry without any consultation,” Restaurants Canada said in a statement.
“The foodservice industry continues to bear the brunt of the restrictions and to pay the cost of fighting this pandemic, despite having done everything that was asked of them.”
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Beginning Wednesday at 12:01 a.m. and through at least January 26, indoor dining is prohibited in Ontario. Takeout, drive-thru, and home delivery are allowed, as are cookouts with restrictions.
The sale of alcohol is restricted after 10 p.m. M., Like the consumption of alcohol in shops after 11 pm. M., With delivery and takeaway exempt.
Indoor meeting and event spaces are closed “with limited exceptions,” but outdoor spaces may remain open with restrictions.
“The data we have seen shows that restaurants are NOT the problem, however, we continue to be singled out and have never been allowed to meet with the medical director or the Ministry of Health to discuss data and strategies for restaurants, but we are rejected in all the time, ”the Restaurants Canada statement said.
Government officials said the latest restrictions are being imposed in an attempt to stem the spread of the Omicron variant and an impact on the hospital sector. While the Omicron variant appears to be less severe, its higher transmissibility means the hospital sector may be overwhelmed, authorities said.
“The evidence tells us that about 1 percent of people who receive Omicron will end up in the hospital,” said Prime Minister Doug Ford.
“Our public health experts tell us that we could see hundreds of thousands of cases every day. One percent of the hundreds of thousands are too many new patients for our hospitals to handle. “
Ford said many interior spaces are being closed because the risk of transmission in those environments is greater.
“These [measures] they will be directed and will be limited in time. The immediate goal of these measures will be to mitigate the latest wave so that we can ease the pressure on our hospitals and allow more time to administer these important booster vaccines, which continue at a tremendous rate because vaccines remain the key to our long term. term of success against this virus, ”said Ford.
But Restaurants Canada said Monday’s announcement will cause irreparable damage to the foodservice industry and called for greater government support.
“Today’s decision hurts real people who are seeing their life’s work destroyed,” the association’s statement said.
“We need support now. Broken hearts don’t pay the bills. “
Restaurants Canada called for an “immediate injection” of grants, the deferral of HST payments, the immediate opening of a portal to allow property taxes and utility refunds to be processed quickly, and the reimposition of an eviction ban. commercial.
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The government announced some support for businesses affected by the latest restrictions, including an expansion of the Ontario Business Cost Reimbursement Program.
Eligible businesses that must shut down indoor activities, such as restaurants, will receive a full refund for any property taxes and energy costs they encounter while the restrictions are in effect.
Eligible businesses limited to 50 percent of their capacity will be able to receive a refund equal to 50 percent.
The government said they are also providing up to $ 7.5 billion for a six-month period without interest and without penalties for companies to make payments for provincially administered taxes.
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The government said they are also exploring options to provide grants to affected businesses and workers.
“The government will also continue to ask the federal government to come to the table and help us support Ontario businesses and Ontario workers by allowing eligible businesses to defer the HST and improve the supports available to workers affected by the current ones. public health measures, ”officials said.
The supports are also in place of the federal government.
The Ontario Restaurant Hotel and Motel Association also issued a statement following Monday’s announcement.
Association president Tony Elenis said the restrictions now imposed will have a “more severe” impact than previous measures because the hotel industry has already been under financial pressure for 22 months.
“We welcome the recently announced relief offered by the provincial and federal governments, but they need to step up it now more than ever and support all fixed costs in an industry that is barely holding up,” Elenis said.
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