After months of playing defence and hunkering down against the deadly coronavirus, London can now finally begin to fight back.
On Wednesday, the city’s first citizen received the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccination, launching what will be a long, concerted program to inoculate London and its surrounding region against a virus that has killed more than 14,000 Canadians, including 93 locally.
Those who work in long-term care will be the first to get the shot before the program expands to those who work in frontline health care. Also near the front of the line will be people in home care with chronic conditions that make them vulnerable to COVID-19.
A 1-800 number has been set up to allow long-term care workers who’ve been approved to get the vaccine to make an appointment.
And though it will likely be a long time — perhaps months — before members of the general public can receive the vaccine, the fact that vaccinations have started was welcome news at the Western Fair District’s Agriplex building, where all COVID-19 vaccinations will happen at a clinic set up in just seven days.
The first person to get vaccinated Wednesday was Karen Dann, a registered nurse and administrator at Country Terrace, a care home in Komoka dealing with an active COVID-19 outbreak.
BREAKING. Karen Dann who works at Country Terrace care home in Komoka becomes the first person in <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/ldnont?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#ldnont</a> to get the <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/COVID19?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#COVID19</a> vaccine. <a href=”https://t.co/9IpuLxdML6″>pic.twitter.com/9IpuLxdML6</a>
“This is going to be a game-changer for us,” said Dann. “We have been in a 10- or 11-month battle now with COVID that we are not winning. We’re not winning in the community and we’re certainly not winning in the long-term care homes.
Dann said COVID-19 has taken a toll on Country Terrace residents and staff and she hopes the vaccine’s arrival means better days ahead.
“We’ve got our armour, we never had a weapon,” she said. “Today we have a weapon. The COVID vaccine is the weapon that we needed to keep our residents safe and our staff safe.”
Cheers went up moments after Dann received the shot from the clinic’s health care workers who will administer thousands of vaccinations in the months to come.
The vaccine’s arrival in London is a welcome Christmas present and comes as Ontario deals with skyrocketing COVID-19 infection numbers, increasing deaths and mounting pressure on hospital intensive care wards.
On Wednesday, London reported 88 new cases, a daily record health officials say is likely to be broken in the coming days as case counts continue to rise.
London’s vaccination clinic will be operated by the Middlesex-London Health Unit in partnership with London Health Sciences (LHSC).
Neil Johnson, LHSC’s COO, led reporters on a tour of the vaccination clinic Wednesday.
‘Everyone is pumped’
Neil Johnson is the Chief Operating Officer at the London Health Sciences Centre. He gave media representatives a tour of the vaccine clinic on Dec. 23, 2020. (Andrew Lupton/ CBC News)
He wouldn’t say exactly how many vaccine doses London has received, estimating it was “a few thousand.”
He said the clinic will start operating four, eight-hour clinics, two clinics this week, resuming again Monday through to Thursday, Dec. 31. If the vaccine supply holds up and enough staff are available, they will move to 12-hours of operation in the New Year.
“This is one of the most exciting days for people who work in health care,” said Johnson. “Everyone is pumped. This is the only thing that is going to turn the corner for our community and for our country.”
Wednesday’s news that Health Canada has approved the Moderna vaccine has the potential to help ease the supply problem in London and elsewhere.
Once delivered to the Agriplex, the Pfizer vaccine can’t be moved because it must be stored at -70 C, which requires special freezers. The Moderna vaccine can be stored in a standard freezer, which makes its distribution less limited, a help in getting the vaccine to more remote and rural areas.
Can’t let up on safety measures
For all the hope the vaccine brings, local health officials have cautioned that its arrival doesn’t mean it’s time to abandon the now familiar measures to guard against infection, such as limiting personal contact to people in your household, wearing a mask, and practising physical distancing.
Mayor Ed Holder tweeted that though this is a crucial milestone in London’s fight against COVID-19, it’s only the first step in what will be a long process.
“The vaccine has arrived, it’s being administered, but this will take time,” he said. “Let’s stay focused, determined and committed. We’re almost there.”
TORONTO – Canada Goose Holdings Inc. says it has signed a deal that will result in the creation of its first eyewear collection.
The deal announced on Thursday by the Toronto-based luxury apparel company comes in the form of an exclusive, long-term global licensing agreement with Marchon Eyewear Inc.
The terms and value of the agreement were not disclosed, but Marchon produces eyewear for brands including Lacoste, Nike, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Longchamp and Zeiss.
Marchon plans to roll out both sunglasses and optical wear under the Canada Goose name next spring, starting in North America.
Canada Goose says the eyewear will be sold through optical retailers, department stores, Canada Goose shops and its website.
Canada Goose CEO Dani Reiss told The Canadian Press in August that he envisioned his company eventually expanding into eyewear and luggage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Almost seven years since news broke of an alleged conspiracy to fix the price of packaged bread across Canada, the saga isn’t over: the Competition Bureau continues to investigate the companies that may have been involved, and two class-action lawsuits continue to work their way through the courts.
Here’s a timeline of key events in the bread price-fixing case.
Oct. 31, 2017: The Competition Bureau says it’s investigating allegations of bread price-fixing and that it was granted search warrants in the case. Several grocers confirm they are co-operating in the probe.
Dec. 19, 2017: Loblaw and George Weston say they participated in an “industry-wide price-fixing arrangement” to raise the price of packaged bread. The companies say they have been co-operating in the Competition Bureau’s investigation since March 2015, when they self-reported to the bureau upon discovering anti-competitive behaviour, and are receiving immunity from prosecution. They announce they are offering $25 gift cards to customers amid the ongoing investigation into alleged bread price-fixing.
Jan. 31, 2018: In court documents, the Competition Bureau says at least $1.50 was added to the price of a loaf of bread between about 2001 and 2016.
Dec. 20, 2019: A class-action lawsuit in a Quebec court against multiple grocers and food companies is certified against a number of companies allegedly involved in bread price-fixing, including Loblaw, George Weston, Metro, Sobeys, Walmart Canada, Canada Bread and Giant Tiger (which have all denied involvement, except for Loblaw and George Weston, which later settled with the plaintiffs).
Dec. 31, 2021: A class-action lawsuit in an Ontario court covering all Canadian residents except those in Quebec who bought packaged bread from a company named in the suit is certified against roughly the same group of companies.
June 21, 2023: Bakery giant Canada Bread Co. is fined $50 million after pleading guilty to four counts of price-fixing under the Competition Act as part of the Competition Bureau’s ongoing investigation.
Oct. 25 2023: Canada Bread files a statement of defence in the Ontario class action denying participating in the alleged conspiracy and saying any anti-competitive behaviour it participated in was at the direction and to the benefit of its then-majority owner Maple Leaf Foods, which is not a defendant in the case (neither is its current owner Grupo Bimbo). Maple Leaf calls Canada Bread’s accusations “baseless.”
Dec. 20, 2023: Metro files new documents in the Ontario class action accusing Loblaw and its parent company George Weston of conspiring to implicate it in the alleged scheme, denying involvement. Sobeys has made a similar claim. The two companies deny the allegations.
July 25, 2024: Loblaw and George Weston say they agreed to pay a combined $500 million to settle both the Ontario and Quebec class-action lawsuits. Loblaw’s share of the settlement includes a $96-million credit for the gift cards it gave out years earlier.
Sept. 12, 2024: Canada Bread files new documents in Ontario court as part of the class action, claiming Maple Leaf used it as a “shield” to avoid liability in the alleged scheme. Maple Leaf was a majority shareholder of Canada Bread until 2014, and the company claims it’s liable for any price-fixing activity. Maple Leaf refutes the claims.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:L, TSX:MFI, TSX:MRU, TSX:EMP.A, TSX:WN)
TORONTO – TD Bank Group, which is mired in a money laundering scandal in the U.S., says chief executive Bharat Masrani will retire next year.
Masrani, who will retire officially on April 10, 2025, says the bank’s, “anti-money laundering challenges,” took place on his watch and he takes full responsibility.
The bank named Raymond Chun, TD’s group head, Canadian personal banking, as his successor.
As part of a transition plan, Chun will become chief operating officer on Nov. 1 before taking over the top job when Masrani steps down at the bank’s annual meeting next year.
TD also announced that Riaz Ahmed, group head, wholesale banking and president and CEO of TD Securities, will retire at the end of January 2025.
TD has taken billions in charges related to ongoing U.S. investigations into the failure of its anti-money laundering program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
