Doug Ford

Giving in to mounting pressure from experts, businesses and political opponents, Premier Doug Ford announced a vaccine certificate system on Wednesday, September 1, 2021, that will see Ontarians showing proof of immunization to access public spaces such as restaurants, gyms and movie theatres.

The Trudeau-Ford détente and Ford’s extraordinary decision to bar his ministers from even interacting with O’Toole’s candidates could impact the election’s dynamics in seat-rich Ontario.

Nobody knows where the premier is, and even his own staffers are unwilling to talk about when he might return, writes columnist Max Fawcett.

The trustees of the Toronto District School Board, Ontario’s and Canada’s largest school board, Wednesday night took a much stronger stance in its policy on COVID-19 vaccinations than the Ford government has, unanimously voting to insist on proof or multiple other steps to keep young people safe.

Two weeks ahead of a long-awaited return to classrooms in Ontario, a top doctor has quit the science group advising the Ford government on COVID-19, saying it’s too close to the government and downplaying grim projections.

The three major pediatric hospitals issued guidance tougher than the provincial directive given the unique vulnerabilities of their patients and clients, more than 70 per cent of whom cannot get the COVID-19 vaccine.

The Ford government will require workers in publicly funded Ontario schools to disclose, but not prove, their COVID-19 vaccine status. And those who say they have not gotten the shot, will be required to test regularly.

The University of Toronto now says all who wish to walk its reopened halls must declare they are fully vaccinated or get tested twice a week, and a federation of the province’s faculty associations says the Ford government should enforce the same on all Ontario campuses.

The forest fires raging across northern Ontario and much of the rest of the world are another stark and frightening reminder of the climate emergency that fossil fuels create, writes Dianne Saxe.

The Canadian business community appears to be largely supportive of the Quebec government's move to impose the country's first vaccine passport system.

Doug Ford's attempt to defund student unions has been rejected by an Ontario appeals court, with the judge ruling the effort was “a profound interference in university autonomy.”

Ontario’s long-awaited back-to-school plan requires students and staff to wear masks indoors but does not mandate being vaccinated against COVID-19.

The chief medical officer says unvaccinated students will face stiff restrictions if they test positive for COVID-19, making elementary students especially vulnerable to missing more chunks of class.

Ontario's Opposition is calling on the government to declare a state of emergency over wildfires burning in the province's northwestern region, saying the premier "must stop ignoring the wildfire crisis."

The Ontario government is inviting high school students to share their thoughts on climate change and the environment via a new youth council.