Ontario Business Registry launched
Today, Ross Romano, Minister of Government and Consumer Services, joined by Nina Tangri, Associate Minister of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction, launched the new Ontario Business Registry, which aims to make it easier, simpler, and more affordable for businesses and not-for-profit corporations to access government services.
Ontario businesses and not-for-profit corporations can visit Ontario.ca/BusinessRegistry for more information and to access the Ontario Business Registry.
Click here for a list of some of the services offered by the Business Registry.
Canadian consumers plan to increase spending significantly but remain cautious because of Delta variant
The Bank of Canada’s third quarter Canadian Survey of Consumer Expectations has revealed that:
- Consumers plan to increase their spending significantly but remain cautious because of the Delta variant. More than 40 percent of respondents reported saving more than usual during the pandemic, often because they reduced their spending.
- Roughly three-quarters of respondents indicated that they are willing to participate in at least a modest level of in-person activity.
- Canadians think inflation will be higher in the near term due to supply disruptions, but they do not expect this situation to last. Inflation expectations remain well anchored.
- People are more willing to change jobs amid increased confidence in the labour market. However, visible minorities, Indigenous people and people with disabilities are much more likely than other Canadians to report concerns about losing their job.
- Since the pandemic, Canadians attach more value to a job with suitable hours. Many respondents also indicated that they would like to work in a different industry.
- Canadians are not expecting significant wage gains despite recent improvements in the labour market and perceptions of higher inflation.
Click here for more information.
New tourism destination brand looks to inspire economic growth in Lincoln
The Town of Lincoln has embraced a new tourism and destination brand identity, the Niagara Benchlands. The Town of Lincoln’s Committee of the Whole unanimously supported the new tourism and brand identity during its meeting on October 18.
The Town’s Economic Development and Tourism team continues to work in partnership with Lincoln’s local tourism sector and strategic tourism partners to roll out the Town’s five-year Tourism Strategy and Action Plan (2020-2025) which was adopted by Council in June 2020.
Click here for more information.
St. Catharines Site COVID-19 assessment centre extends hours
The Niagara Health assessment centre in St. Catharines is extending its hours twice a week starting on Oct. 19 to increase appointment availability. The drive-in centre will take appointments for a COVID-19 test from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Click here for more information.
Pfizer-BioNTech requests Health Canada authorize Comirnaty vaccine for children aged 5 to 11
Health Canada received a submission from Pfizer-BioNTech seeking an authorization for the use of its Comirnaty COVID-19 vaccine in children 5 to 11 years of age. As with all COVID-19 vaccines, the Department will prioritize the review of this submission, while maintaining its high scientific standards for safety, efficacy and quality.
This is the first submission Health Canada has received for the use of a COVID-19 vaccine in this younger age group. Health Canada will only authorize the use of Comirnaty if the independent and thorough scientific review of all the data included in the submission showed that the benefits of the vaccine outweighed the potential risks in this age group.
Click here for more information.
Reading Recommendations
Markets increasingly betting Bank of Canada will hike earlier than forecast — three rate rises seen in 2022
Financial Post
Traders are betting that the Bank of Canada will be forced into raising interest rates earlier than expected, posing one of the stiffest tests yet for Governor Tiff Macklem.
Bets in the overnight swaps market are increasingly tilting toward a move early next year, well ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve. Traders have now priced in three hikes in Canada by the end of 2022, which would bring the policy rate to 1 per cent from the current 0.25 per cent.
That’s about 50 basis points higher than markets were expecting just a month ago. The shift in pricing is increasingly at odds with Macklem’s guidance that borrowing costs won’t increase until slack is absorbed and inflation returns sustainably to its target range.
The bank has said repeatedly it doesn’t see that happening until the second half of next year.
Covid-19: How effective is a third vaccine dose?
BBC Future
Now that it’s clear the world is likely to be riddled with Covid-19 – and its many variant successors – for years to come, the next big question is whether two doses of each vaccine is enough.
Are we likely to start seeing significant numbers of deaths? How effective are booster doses anyway – and what’s the best way to administer them? From radically diverging immunity in different groups of people to the – small – hypothetical possibility that third doses of certain vaccines could actually decrease the amount of immunity we have, there are many scientific reasons that booster programmes are a very different endeavour to the initial vaccine rollout.
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: October 9, 2021
Click here for definitions of terms used in this table.
On October 18, there were 15 patients admitted to Niagara Health with COVID-19, 11 of whom were unvaccinated and 4 of whom were fully vaccinated. There were 5 patients with COVID-19 in a Niagara Health Intensive Care Unit.
Over the last 28 days, a Niagara resident vaccinated with 1 dose was 3 times more likely to contract COVID-19, and an unvaccinated person was 6.5 times more likely. The average weekly rate of hospitalized cases in unvaccinated Canadians was 36 times higher compared to fully vaccinated people. Niagara Health has reported that no vaccinated patients have required intensive care to date.
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: 721,941
New daily doses administered to Niagara residents: 985
Last updated: October 19, 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.
Through the Daily Updates, the GNCC aims to deliver important business news in a timely manner. We disseminate all news and information we feel will be important to businesses. Inclusion in the Daily Update is not an endorsement by the GNCC.
