Mounting pressure on Alberta premier as doctors and experts call for his resignation
Increasing criticism is being directed at Premier Jason Kenney for Alberta's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The calls from doctors and political experts for the premier to step down are growing louder following Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw's admission that lifting pandemic restrictions for the summer was a mistake. The mounting pressure for change also comes as the number of COVID-19 patients in Alberta's intensive care units reaches record highs.
The premier has yet to respond to the criticism. Kenney has not addressed the province or answered questions from media since Sept. 3, when he announced the $100 vaccine incentive.
The premier was scheduled to make remarks at an oil and gas conference in Fort McMurray Wednesday, but that appearance has been cancelled. Instead, Kenney called an emergency meeting with his COVID-19 cabinet committee.
Duane Bratt, a political scientist at MRU, is questioning the premier's pandemic leadership, asking how many Albertan's lives need to be put at risk to keep the UCP together.
"I don’t know how they can survive this," said Bratt. "You often hear wealthy people in hospitals say 'money can’t buy your health'. Well, neither can party unity."
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is also taking aim at Kenney’s leadership, and says he feels bad for the millions of Albertans that are fully vaccinated.
Dr. James Talbot, Alberta's former chief medical officer of health, says he hopes the UCP will learn from past mistakes. Following Dr. Deena Hinshaw's comments about how the pandemic has been handled, Talbot says he's interested to see how the government will now act in a time of crisis.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
BREAKING Ottawa public school board, 3 Toronto-area school boards launch lawsuit against social media giants
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and three school boards in the Toronto-area have launched legal action against social media giants, accusing them of "disrupting students' fundamental right to education."
Doctors visiting a Gaza hospital are stunned by the war's toll on Palestinian children
An international team of doctors visiting a hospital in central Gaza was prepared for the worst. But the gruesome impact Israel’s war against Hamas is having on Palestinian children still left them stunned.
Crypt near Marilyn Monroe and Hugh Hefner could fetch US$400,000 at auction
A one-space mausoleum crypt in the vicinity of Marilyn Monroe and Hugh Hefner will go on auction Saturday, when it is expected to reach between US$200,000 and $400,000.
This Toronto restaurant is no longer accepting tips. Here's how it's going
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff – tipping is no longer accepted.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Premiers not being truthful about carbon tax, Trudeau says while sparks fly in Ottawa
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Conservative premiers across the country are 'not telling the truth' when it comes to the carbon tax. Trudeau's comments came as fresh sparks were flying in Ottawa at a recalled House of Commons committee.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.
What new auto insurance reforms will mean for Ontarians, if they get introduced
Ontario has among the highest rates for auto insurance premiums in Canada -- just below Alberta and Nova Scotia -- however, the introduction of an insurance reform in the provincial budget could soon lower prices.