NDP leader Andrea Horwath says her COVID-19 quarantine is almost over, and she’s excited to resume her provincial election tour.
“Tomorrow I’m back on the campaign trail, back on the bus, and I’m really looking forward to it,” said Horwath.
Last Thursday Horwath tested positive for COVID-19 and put a halt to her campaign trail to isolate.
This morning, she says she tested negative but wanted to remain in isolation out of caution.
In one of her last virtual campaign events, she spoke about restoring the ability for residents and their families to sue long-term care home operators over conditions in the homes during the pandemic.
During the press conference, reporters asked Horwath about polls showing a close race for second place in the election and the lack of momentum for the NDP.
“Every time I visited a campaign on this election trail it has been very positive and the local campaigns have a great deal of momentum,” she said.
Horwath says she looks forward to the decision the people of Ontario will make at the end of the election and will continue to push her commitment to work for and alongside Ontarians.
“There is a lot at stake in this election there’s a lot that the COVID-19 pandemic has shown us is broken, we know that Liberals won’t fix those things because they had the chance and they didn’t,” said Horwath. “Doug Ford has no intention of fixing any of those things.”
Horwath also responded to the storm that struck across the province Saturday. She made note of how this is taking a toll on children whose schools are still closed due to power outages, and those who are mourning and have lost loved ones.
She said this shows Ontario’s disaster relief program needs to improve.
“What we need to do is have an ability to provide financial support to people as quickly as possible and that’s not what happens at this point in our province and it needs to change.”
Currently, the government disaster relief program is limited to $250,000 per application, is subject to a $500 deductible, which may be waived for low-income households, and reimburses up to 90% of your total eligible costs with limits for; emergency expenses, household appliances, and furnishings.