Crisis Management: 'Ontarians are understandably frustrated' with latest lockdown

With cases of COVID-19 variants surging across the province, Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced on April 7 that the province would return to a state of emergency and be put under a stay-at-home order for at least four weeks.

Sean Speer, a Fellow in Residence at the Public Policy Forum, says the decision – made less than a week after a previous lockdown announcement – has left many Ontarioans “understandably frustrated.” While he said the public is willing to give politicians and policymakers the benefit of the doubt through the pandemic, “that tolerance is not unlimited” and there may be a higher degree of pushback this time around.

On this episode of Crisis Management, Speer explains the importance of clear communication through the pandemic, and what policymakers should be thinking as Canada continues to grapple with the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.