Ontario extends temporary wage increase for personal support workers
The Ontario government is investing an additional $169 million to extend the temporary wage increase for personal support workers and direct support workers for the third time since its initial investment last year. This increase will continue until October 31, 2021.
Click here for more information.
Local Niagara doctor receives Community Leadership Award
Dr. Karl Stobbe, Medical Director of Regional Essential Access to Connected Healthcare (REACH) Niagara, has been recognized with the Community Leader Award for the Ontario region as part of the Canada Volunteer Awards program. In 2018, Dr. Stobbe created REACH to make healthcare services more accessible for those who traditionally have very little access and trust in systems of healthcare. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Stobbe and REACH collaborated with Niagara Region to provide vital medical services to the homeless population.
Click here for more information.
Town of Lincoln receives $1.03M to support community projects
The Town of Lincoln has received Provincial and Federal funding through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program, which will allow four social infrastructure projects valued at $1.35 million to be completed over the next two years.
Projects that will receive support through the ICIP programs include:
- Installation of inclusive playground equipment at Rotary Park (Beamsville)
- Addition of a drive-thru service window at the Lincoln Public Library (Beamsville)
- Installation of rubberized surfacing at playgrounds to increase accessibility (Community-wide)
- Addition of a children’s educational space at the Lincoln Museum and Cultural Centre (Jordan)
Click here for more information.
Heat warning in effect for Niagara
Heat and humidity expected to continue today and possibly into the middle of this week. Daytime maximum temperatures are 30 to 32 degrees Celsius, with humidex values 37 to 40. Nighttime minimum temperatures are near 21 degrees Celsius.
Click here for more information.
The Election Section
Latest Niagara federal vote projections
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| Niagara Centre | Niagara Falls | Niagara West | St. Catharines | Canada (338canada) | Canada (CBC) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bloc Quebecois | 7% (32 seats) | 6.8% (31 seats) | ||||
| Conservative Party | 30% | 38% | 46% | 32% | 31.4% (126 seats) | 31% (119 seats) |
| Green Party | 3% | 3.7% | 3.9% | 3.5% | 3.4% (2 seats) | 3.5% (1 seat) |
| Liberal Party | 35% | 31% | 29% | 36% | 31.9% (148 seats) | 31.5% (155 seats) |
| New Democratic Party | 24% | 21% | 14% | 23% | 19.3% (31 seats) | 19.1% (32 seats) |
| People's Party | 7.6% | 6% | 6.5% | 5.8% | 6% (0 seats) | 7% (0 seats) |
| Christian Heritage | - | - | 1.1% | - | - | - |
Data are provided by 338canada.com using an aggregate of polls. Click here for more information and margins of error.
The Liberals continue to hold a lead over the Conservatives in national polling and would likely gain seats if an election were held today, but are slipping further away from being within reach of the 170 seats needed for a majority government. The Conservatives are trailing in second and are closing the gap on the Liberals. The NDP is poised to gain seats but its momentum might have stalled. The Bloc Québécois and Greens are holding steady but at lower levels of support than in the 2019 election. The People’s Party sits at 4 per cent.
Canada election: How vaccine mandates became an issue
BBC News
Vaccine mandates have emerged as an early wedge issue in Canada’s snap federal election – called by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau two years before his current mandate expires.
Announcing the election on Sunday, Mr Trudeau said the autumn vote would allow Canadians to have their say on the country’s pandemic recovery.
The Liberal leader has announced his government would mandate Covid-19 vaccination for bureaucrats, transportation workers and most air and rail travellers across Canada by the end of October.
Opposition leader Erin O’Toole – the most likely party leader to unseat Mr Trudeau – has come out against the mandate, saying he supports daily testing for such Canadians instead. He’s also accused the prime minister of opting for a “divisive” vaccine strategy and playing politics with the pandemic.
Reading Recommendations
Companies are implementing vaccine mandates. Can employees reject them?
CBC News
Federal and provincial governments, private businesses as well as Canada’s biggest banks have in recent weeks announced plans to implement mandatory vaccination policies for many of their returning staff.
These vaccine mandates require their employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19. But do employers have the right to impose such mandates? What if employees refuse?
CBC News looks at the legal issues these mandates raise.
Canadian small business owners torn on vaccine enforcement: Survey
BNN Bloomberg
As COVID-19 vaccine mandates spread across the country, small business owners, it would appear, are split on how to handle passport requirements.
A new survey from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) indicates this country’s entrepreneurs generally support the use of a COVID-19 vaccine passport in certain settings, but these business owners are less than keen on having to enforce vaccine requirements for their staff and even more so, their customers.
Seventy-four per cent of small business owners polled by the CFIB said they support vaccine passports for international travel, while 65 per cent said they support a government-issued passport for events like concerts, festivals and sporting events.
Niagara COVID-19 statistics tracker
These data show the status of the COVID-19 pandemic in Niagara. The Province of Ontario is now using a provincewide approach to reopening, and these data no longer have any influence on Niagara’s restrictions. Lower numbers are better in all metrics.
| December 18 | December 25 | January 1 | January 8 | January 15 | January 22 | January 29 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reproductive number | 1.4 | 1.8 | 1.4 | 1.1 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 0.9 |
| New cases per 100,000 | 101.2 | 267.3 | 469.8 | 575.8 | 507.1 | 295.5 | 250.6 |
| New cases per day (not including outbreaks) | 60.7 | 178.7 | 311.7 | 376.9 | 325.4 | 182.7 | 145.7 |
| Percent of hospital beds occupied | 97% | 95.2% | 98.2% | 103.2% | 104.5% | 103.6% | 106% |
| Percent of intensive care beds occupied | 78.8% | 77.3% | 87.9% | 87.9% | 90.9% | 89.4% | 93.9% |
| Percentage of positive tests | 6.1% | 15.6% | 28.1% | 28.6% | 26.6% | 21.2% | 16.2% |
Last updated: August 14, 2021
Click here for definitions of terms used in this table.
There are currently 4 patients admitted to Niagara Health with COVID-19. There is currently 1 patient with COVID-19 in a Niagara Health Intensive Care Unit.
Data are drawn from Niagara Region Public Health and Niagara Health.
Niagara COVID vaccination tracker
Niagara’s most up-to-date vaccination numbers are presented below, along with comparison data from Ontario, Canada, and G7 countries.
| Percentage of population with one dose | Percentage of population fully vaccinated | |
|---|---|---|
| Niagara | 82.7% | 78.2% |
| Ontario | 84.6% | 79.1% |
| Canada | 84.7% | 78.6% |
| United States | 75% | 64% |
| United Kingdom | 78% | 72% |
| Germany | 76% | 74% |
| France | 80% | 77% |
| Italy | 83% | 76% |
| Japan | 80% | 79% |
| World | 63% | 53% |
Total doses administered in Niagara: 652,332
New daily doses administered to Niagara residents: 653
Last updated: August 23, 2021
Data are drawn from Niagara Region, the Government of Ontario, and Oxford University’s Our World in Data project.
Free rapid COVID-19 testing kits are now available to businesses. Visit gncc.ca/workplace-self-screening-kits to learn more and reserve kits for your organization.
Information on government grants, resources, and programs, policies, forms, and posters for download and use, are available here. The GNCC is here to support you. Contact us with any questions you have.
