Mayor John Tory is calling for stricter enforcement to help stop the spread of COVID-19 in the city.
The Mayor has written to Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders and Carleton Grant, executive director of Municipal Licensing and Standards, to request stricter enforcement as part of the ongoing blitz of parks and public squares.
Hundreds of police and bylaw officers are enforcing municipal and provincial regulations implemented based on the advice of public health officials to encourage physical distancing to prevent COVID-19 from spreading further in the community.
In the letter, the Mayor acknowledges that while the vast majority of Toronto residents are keeping their distance and helping us fight COVID-19, police and bylaw officers have given hundreds of informational talks, many warnings and some tickets to the worst offenders.
“It seems to me however, that when, after a week, we are still having informational chats with hundreds of people who don’t get it or won’t comply, the time has come for stricter enforcement and more tickets. We are facing a deadly virus – tragically it has already claimed the lives of 77 Toronto residents – and we need people to realize as quickly as possible what they need to do to stay healthy,” the Mayor states in the letter.
“I am by way of this letter offering my strong opinion and support as Mayor for stricter enforcement which would be in the interests of fairness to law abiding people and in the interests of protecting our city’s health and moving us faster to the day when life can return to normal.”
A copy of the Mayor’s letter is attached to this release.