The Molson Indy comes to Toronto this weekend and organizers
believe it will bring in the people and the bucks
it has in the past. Tickets to the July 30
Rolling Stones concert are hot sellers. The U.S. Centers for
Disease Control has lifted its travel alert, giving Americans the
nod to travel to Toronto. Things are looking up, despite
the need for ongoing vigilance.
Shame on the federal government for continuing to sidestep its
crucial role in Ontario's recovery from the battle against SARS.
SARS-related health costs alone are running more than $1 billion
in the province. A new study by the Canadian Tourism
Commission predicts the country's tourism industry will take a $519-million
hit this year because of SARS. The federal government has
offered Ontario $150 million and the possibility of another $100
million.
Premier Ernie Eves has been adamant that is not enough
and we agree. SARS is not a natural disaster in
the sense of the 1998 ice storm or the 1997
Manitoba floods. But clearly, given the high mobility within the
global village in which we now live, the definition of
disaster, when it comes to federal relief, must be broadened
to include situations such as SARS.
Quebec Premier Jean Charest has pledged to support Eves's quest
for substantial federal relief. As Charest pointed out on the
eve of this week's annual meeting of provincial and territorial
leaders in Charlottetown, SARS could easily have been a crisis
for Quebec rather than Ontario.Source.
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