Good evening – here are the coronavirus updates you need to know tonight.
Top headlines
- Ontario and Quebec ordering all non-essential businesses to close
- Liberal government to table an emergency spending bill Tuesday
- More than a million people returned to Canada last week as other countries gradually closed their borders
- Trump considers reopening U.S. economy despite coronavirus risks
Have questions about the coronavirus? Email audience@globeandmail.com. The Globe’s paywall has been removed on coronavirus news stories.
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Workers produce medical gloves at a factory in Huaibei in China's eastern Anhui province on March 23, 2020.
STR/AFP/Getty Images
Number of the day
1,003,490
More than a million people returned to Canada between March 14 and 20, as borders around the world closed. A total of 959,600 Canadian citizens and 43,890 permanent residents returned to the country, according to the Canada Border Services Agency.
- 529,407 Canadians and 23,615 permanent residents flew in.
- 428,724 Canadians and 20,243 permanent residents returned by land.
- 1,469 Canadians and 32 permanent residents arrived by sea
The Liberal government is planning to table an emergency spending bill Tuesday that would grant the federal cabinet sweeping new powers to tax and spend without parliamentary approval until Dec. 31, 2021.
Ottawa is working with airlines to repatriate Canadians stranded abroad, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.
Previously, the Prime Minister urged all Canadians abroad to return home (and self-isolate), but the Foreign Affairs Minister acknowledged some might be stuck for weeks.
Coronavirus in Canada
2,049: cases in Canada reported; with 112 recoveries and 24 deaths reported.
- Governments in Ontario and Quebec ordered all non-essential businesses to close Tuesday night. Ontario businesses will remain shut for 14 days; Quebec businesses are shuttered for three weeks. A hospital in Toronto is accepting donations of face masks as a shortage looms.
- British Columbia will provide $5-billion in financial assistance: $2.8-billion for individuals and services and $2.2-billion for businesses. “There has to be hope as we get through these challenging times,” Premier John Horgan said. The province reported three additional deaths and 48 new cases today.
- As of today, anyone entering Nova Scotia will have to self-isolate for 14 days, though there are exceptions for people who provide essential services.
- Manitoba urged people to avoid all non-essential travel. Anyone returning from travel must self-isolate. “This is not just a suggestion,” the chief public health officer said.
- The provincial Liberal party in Newfoundland suspended its leadership race.
Prime Minister Trudeau told Canadians to “go home and stay home” at his daily press briefing today. This weekend, posts on social media showed many Canadians disregarding calls to socially distance or stay home.
“We’re going to make sure this happens, whether by educating people more on the risks or by enforcing the rules, if needed,” he said. The Emergencies Act is still on the table, Trudeau said, though he hopes Canadians comply without coercion.
On Sunday, the federal Health Minister said said Ottawa will use “every measure in our toolbox” if Canadians don’t take self-isolation and social distancing seriously, including threat of prison and massive fines.
Also today:
- Trudeau announced $5-billion in credit will be made available for farmers and producers.
- The federal government has signed deals with companies and researchers to “accelerate their work” and to prepare for the eventual production of a vaccine in Canada.
Happening tomorrow: Parliament will reconvene to vote on emergency aid legislation. Just 32 MPs will be present in the Commons chamber.
Coronavirus around the world
- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the public to “stay at home” and ordered non-essential shops to close.
- The United Nations will create a fund to prevent the spread of coronavirus and support the treatment of patients worldwide, Norway said.
- Indians breathed easier as lockdowns ordered to combat the spread of the coronavirus in India’s megacities kept cars off the road and closed factories, improving air quality.
- Signs are emerging that the upwards curve in new coronavirus infections in Germany is flattening off for the first time thanks to social distancing measures, the head of Germany’s public health institute said on Monday.
- The International Olympic Committee has decided to postpone the Tokyo 2020 Summer Games because of the pandemic.
- U.S. President Donald Trump suggested the country should ease measures to control coronavirus spread starting next week, because social distancing is hurting the economy.
- The manager of a ventilator manufacturer in China said the global demand for the devices has surpassed the country’s manufacturing capacity. Meanwhile, mainland China reported a drop in its daily new cases.
- Watch: The coronavirus pandemic is “accelerating,” with more than 300,000 cases now recorded worldwide and from nearly every country, the head of the World Health Organization said.
- India announced a halt to domestic flights and said the majority of the country was under complete lockdown to stop the spread of coronavirus as the number of people dying of the disease ticked up across densely populated South Asia.
Coronavirus and business:
What happened today?
The U.S. Federal Reserve unveiled new measures aimed at blunting “severe disruptions” to the economy. The central bank committed to:
- Unlimited buying of U.S. Treasuries and most mortgage-backed securities;
- Reviving a program to buy up debt securities backed by student loans, credit card loans and some small-business loans;
- Buying corporate bonds and a lending program for small businesses.
It’s a massive intervention into the U.S. economy – a ‘we’ll do whatever it takes’ moment,” said economist Russell Price. “It is difficult to find a superlative to describe what the Fed announced this morning,” Jim Bianco of Bianco Research wrote in a note.
Have you had to self-quarantine because of the coronavirus? We’d like to hear your story. E-mail: tips@globeandmail.com
Reader question
Question: Can I drop my child off at daycare?
Answer: This is a tough one because the recommendations are all over the map. Some provinces have closed daycares, some have closed only public daycare and some not at all. Also, families who work in essential services need daycare. If a child is going to be in care, the groups should be kept as small as possible and the children should be monitored closely (taking their temperature at least a couple of times a day).
The Globe’s health columnist André Picard answered additional reader questions. Need more answers? Email audience@globeandmail.com
More Globe opinion and reporting:
- “Close your eyes. I’m hugging you”: Some long-married couples are facing indefinite separation because of nursing-home visitor bans.
- Our new pants-free, bra-free, makeup-free work-at-home wardrobes
- Small business owners are being forced to make the tough choice: lay off staff so they can get EI or keep them on in case the government offers an improved financial incentive package.
- Michael Sabia: In this pandemic, governments will face three tests — including how best to restart the economy
- Cathal Kelly: Canada’s decision to pull out of the Olympics is to our collective credit
- Michael Wolfson: What happens after the pandemic curve flattens?
- Niall Ferguson: Some leaders didn’t learn from SARS – and seniors will pay the price
Information centre:
- How to minimize damage to your credit score through the financial slog to come.
- Here’s how to self-isolate and how to get social distancing right. How are condo buildings are encouraging social distancing?
- Wash your hands: How to help slow the spread of the new coronavirus.
- What to do if you think you have the virus and what essentials to buy if you think you might need to self-isolate. And how to clean your space effectively.
- How many coronavirus cases are there in Canada, by province, and worldwide? The latest maps and charts.
- Coronavirus guide: The latest news on COVID-19 and the toll it’s taking around the world
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