Premier Jason Kenney provided, from Calgary on Friday, January 29, 2021, an update on COVID-19. EDMONTON (660 NEWS) – Alberta’s Opposition leader is calling on the premier to reintroduce public health measures as COVID-19 cases spike and hospitalizations grow. Karen Gott, Assistant General Manager of Trolley 5 Brewpub, poses for a photo after the province announced it will lifting some public health restrictions for in-person dining and gyms. Kenney resisted a lockdown and talked about the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and how he wasn’t trigger-happy about using his power and how lockdowns caused “profound damage” and how he wasn’t going to let political pressure get to him and how it was all about lives and livelihoods. Friday, January 29, 2021. We encountered an issue signing you up. Kenney says such decisions are not political but a “broader factor” is “the willingness of Albertans to comply with measures.”. Anyway, your scribbler asks Kenney the following question. We have enabled email notifications—you will now receive an email if you receive a reply to your comment, there is an update to a comment thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Earlier this month, the premier said opening businesses only to close them again was like being on a roller-coaster. If you don't see it please check your junk folder. The premier tells us of a poll with 20 per cent of Albertans thinking the current restrictions are too severe and 40 per cent saying the restrictions are about right and 40 per cent believing the current measures are not strong enough. Eating at 11 p.m. No VLTs, pool tables, live music. © 2021 Calgary Sun, a division of Postmedia Network Inc. All rights reserved. Kenney said Thursday that the movement of people between different parts of the province would make regional restrictions less effective than the province-wide measures currently in place. No group exercise. We ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. Premier Jason Kenney says the provincial government has considered regional public health restrictions for Alberta’s fight against COVID-19, but it’s not an option at this time. They read the emails. Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. During her Tuesday’s press conference, Hinshaw said Alberta’s rising active cases means the number of COVID-19 patients in hospitals and intensive care units will also increase in upcoming weeks. Premier Jason Kenney has listened to the demands from Alberta residents, reversing his decision not to hand out punishments for members of his United Conservative Party that broke COVID travel restrictions imposed by his government. When Premier Jason Kenney held his long-awaited news conference on Tuesday to announce new COVID-related restrictions, he did two unusual things. The next issue of Calgary Sun Headline News will soon be in your inbox. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Liquor service will end at 10 p.m. Premier Jason Kenney made the announcement on Thursday, January 7 during the regular COVID update informing Albertans the restrictions for individuals, businesses, and … The press conference comes one day after Hinshaw announced to the public her plans to recommend new COVID-19 restrictions in the face of rising cases and a soon-to-be overwhelmed public health sector. New COVID-19 restrictions are likely on their way for Alberta. Then, a week before he was to decide on whether stricter measures were needed, Kenney had enough. The fact is for many days a growing number of those who supported Premier Jason Kenney in the last election asked, pleaded, demanded COVID-19 restrictions start coming off. They wanted something done, like now. The Priorities Implementation Cabinet Committee met Monday afternoon to discuss options for additional restrictions. If the numbers get worse then restrictions will be slapped back on. Premier Jason Kenney and Dr. Deena Hinshaw are warning summer’s reopening plan could be delayed and more restrictions announced if COVID-19’s spread does not slow soon. … Then it would be quite the scene. The Province of Alberta announced in a press release on Tuesday morning that a press conference would be taking place later in the day and would include Alberta Minister of Health Tyler Shandro, Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw, President and CEO of Alberta Health Service Dr. Verna Yiu, and Alberta Premier Jason Kenney. Unauthorized distribution, transmission or republication strictly prohibited. We were told before Christmas the province was locking down because the COVID case count was high and it could hit the roof. Highly contagious COVID-19 variants could force Alberta to change its phased reopening plan, warns Premier Jason Kenney. Premier Jason Kenney on Jan. 7, 2021. 'Beat the spike': Kenney claims Alberta will lift most COVID-19 health restrictions by June CALGARY -- While he expects the current wave of COVID-19 … https://dailyhive.com/calgary/alberta-health-officials-kenney-covid-19-restrictions Alberta rolled out new restrictions on Tuesday that prohibit all social gatherings in people's homes and make masks mandatory for all indoor workplaces in the province's two largest cities. The fact is for many days a growing number of those who supported Premier Jason Kenney in the last election asked, pleaded, demanded COVID-19 restrictions start coming off. This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Sign up for our newsletter to get exclusive content, contests, and perks direct to you. Premier Jason Kenney has enacted new COVID-19 restrictions as the pandemic grows in the province. PostPandemic: How COVID-19 is reshaping Canada, Bell: Kenney faces pressure, COVID-19 restrictions to loosen. So, late Friday afternoon, we took another baby step to the Land of Normal. 365 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 3L4. Others will say it’s not fast enough. There’s a lot of politics. They got the phone calls. Not this coming Monday. Kenney says province on track to start relaxing COVID-19 restrictions in ‘about a month’ – Apr 12, 2021 “Once two-thirds of us have immunity, we’ll start to feel back to normal. So we had the Christmas lockdown and the premier looked in his crystal ball and saw the number of COVID patients in hospital doubling and then doubling again and doctors deciding who would live and who would die. Kenney discussed plans for vaccines over the next few months, adding it could be as early as May when the province would allow the general population to get their COVID-19 shot. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. Photo by Chris Schwarz/Government of Alberta Alberta will begin lifting some public-health restrictions meant to prevent the spread of … “How much of this decision has to do with the growing frustration with restrictions especially in areas of Alberta where your government has enjoyed great support?”. Additional health measures will be eased for restaurants, indoor fitness and some children’s activities, effective Feb. 8. The health-care system is nowhere close to being overwhelmed. The number of COVID patients in the hospital has gone down. It was a weird day. That said, nearly the same number (42%) disagree and say that restrictions should go further. Then when you add most of the 20 per cent who think the current rules are too hard but don’t believe the restrictions should all be eliminated …. https://dailyhive.com/calgary/alberta-new-covid-19-restrictions-december-8 Alberta’s COVID-19 restrictions get pushback from Kenney’s caucus April 8, 2021, 7:39 p.m. Don’t let anybody tell you COVID is all about the science. Hinshaw recommending new public health measures to Alberta gov, 1,549 new cases of COVID-19 detected in Alberta on Sunday, Alberta refocusing contact tracing resources amid growing backlog, her plans to recommend new COVID-19 restrictions, Over 3,000 new cases of COVID-19 were detected in Alberta over the weekend. A day later, local RCMP officers and Alberta Health Services officials erected a fence around the GraceLife Church in Spruce Grove after it repeatedly refused to follow public health guidelines and restrict the number of in-person worshippers. No more than six at a table. COVID-19 symptoms can be mild and are similar to influenza and other respiratory illnesses. So why are we still locked down as much as we are? Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. But that’s a whole other column. My head hurts. They must be from the same household or two close contacts for people living alone. Restaurants, pubs and coffee shops can open Feb. 8. Daily Hive is a Canadian-born online news source, established in 2008, that creates compelling, hyperlocal content. The Monday after that. Gyms can open with restrictions. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings. Being able to go to a barber or a hairstylist wasn’t going to cut it. That was the question. The recent renewal of COVID-19 restrictions in Alberta has frustrated some residents, and Premier Jason Kenney is facing vocal pushback from some members of his own caucus. Had enough of the press, the health bigwigs, the headline-grabbing doctors, the NDP opposition, the question, the ever-present question. Over 3,000 new cases of COVID-19 were detected in Alberta over the weekend, and the death toll now sits at 476 for the province as of Monday. Core symptoms: cough, fever (over 38°C), shortness of breath, runny nose or sore throat. Sports for kids is A-OK if related to school, like phys ed classes. The number of COVID cases have dropped big time. Even in the new year, with Albertans of all political stripes pissed off at Kenney over United Conservative bigshots slamming on a lockdown and then flying off to warmer climes and the COVID case count was going down, down, down, the premier held firm before finally letting us get a manicure. So is he saying 80 per cent of Albertans think the Kenney-style lockdown in place today is either fine or should be tougher? The city reported 1,158 new cases Friday, plus 30 new probable cases from rapid tests. EDMONTON -- Single people will be allowed to go to one holiday gathering between Dec. 23 and Dec. 28, Premier Jason Even more than a few in Kenney’s government were peeved. It’s like a high school trigonometry class. You’ll hear a lot of people say that as the news hits the streets. A sign reading “Welcome Home #AlohaAllard” was put up in front of Minister of Municipal Affairs and Grande Prairie MLA Tracy Allard’s constituency office in Grande Prairie on Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021. tap here to see other videos from our team. “To put it as plainly as possible, this is like a snowball rolling down a hill growing bigger and faster, and it will continue unless we implement strong measures to stop it,” she said during the Monday press conference. In Alberta, where Premier Jason Kenney is facing a de-facto caucus revolt – 16 of his own UCP MLAs are publicly opposing the recent re-implementation of restrictions – nearly half the province (45%) say measures go too far. Late last week, the premier had said that if Albertans did their part and followed the current restrictions, new measures wouldn’t be necessary. NDP Leader Rachel Notley spoke Monday morning saying Jason Kenney laid out a plan to take action last week when he said hospitalizations could rise to almost 500 in just a couple weeks. As the number of COVID patients in hospitals goes down, so will the restrictions. Photo by Photo courtesy of the Alberta government. There was an error, please provide a valid email address. Kenney: ‘Changes to restrictions’ coming soon amid rise in COVID-19 cases. Folks were already writing horror stories about makeshift hospitals as the health system overflowed with COVID, COVID, COVID. Did the pushback against the lockdown play into his decision to now start slowly opening up? Hinshaw stated that details regarding what recommendations the cabinet decided to go with would follow on Tuesday. On Tuesday, Kenney announced new restrictions in an attempt to head off the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more about cookies here. Sign up to receive daily headline news from the Calgary SUN, a division of Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. His people later explain they think the 40 per cent who say the current restrictions are about right are actually saying Kenney’s plan is about right. He mentions the anger and frustration with restrictions and how not giving small businesses a sense of hope leads to greater despair. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Please try again. Tuesday’s press conference is expected to start at 4:00 pm MST and can be viewed on the Province of Alberta’s website and Jason Kenney’s Facebook page. , Kenney announced new restrictions in an attempt to head off the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic views our... 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