Opposition Leader Andrea Horwath says she's committed to small business and the agri-farm sector during the COVID-19 pandemic in Windsor-Essex.
The New Democrat fielded questions from reporters at the Atlas Tube Centre at 447 Renaud Line Rd. in Lakeshore. Ont. Sunday. Shortly after a Zoom meeting with local business owners to discuss the challenges they're facing, she released the NDP's plan to Save Mainstreet.
Small and medium sized businesses, charities and community-based non-profits would all be included, according to Horwath.
It could cost up to $1.15-billion and includes:
Horwath says small business owners in Windsor-Essex made it clear they're frustrated under current conditions.
"The absolute need for direct financial support financial support from the government; when I talked about the rent subsidy, 75 per cent commercial rent subsidy up to $10,000 a month, there were head nods," she says.
After talking to seasonal businesses that depend on tourism, Horwath plans on adding to the Save Mainstreet Plan.
"What can be done acknowledge that for some of these businesses six months is all they have, they don't have 12 months and now half of that six months is gone," says Horwath.
Horwath says Premier Doug Ford needs to stop pointing fingers and start taking action.
"That's what Mr. Ford has done from day one, point to the feds, we can't do anything provincially because it's [Prime Minister Justin] Trudeau's responsibility," she says. "Everybody knows that's not the case because in other provinces they are stepping up to the plate to help small businesses."
Essex County mayors and medical professionals called on the upper levels of government to take the lead in containing the outbreak in the agri-farm sector at a meeting Friday.
"If the leadership here politically is saying we need the province to come in and take the co-ordinating role so that people aren't tripping over each other in terms of trying to solve this crisis, then that's what they need to do," Horwath says. "It's horrifying for everyone to acknowledge the government wasn't proactive."
She says bad calls like allowing asymptomatic staff to continue working made things worse and the province needs to take responsibility.
"We learned in long-term care that it's not the way to do things and yet the government of Ontario didn't learn that lesson," she added. "The outbreaks that are happening now I believe are a direct responsibility of Mr. Ford and his government's lack of proactivity when it comes to preventing those outbreaks from happening."
Leamington Mayor Hilda MacDonald said farm owners need a "carrot or a stick" to agree to mandatory testing at last week's meeting.
Horwath agrees assurances are needed to get farm owners and workers onboard with the idea.
"They need to provide capacity for the farms to actually participate. They need to provide the resources to ensure that farm workers understand what's happening in their own languages and they need to provide the extra support base for isolation," says Horwath.
The MPP spent the weekend touring Windsor-Essex.