Published Friday, September 18, 2020 8:24AM EDT
Last Updated Friday, September 18, 2020 9:59AM EDT
“The best thing to do, as much as it comes as bad news… is just not to have them right now or to have something very tiny and have a big party later,” Tory told CP24 on Friday morning.
New restrictions on gatherings in Toronto, Peel Region, and Ottawa officially came into effect at midnight, which means residents of the three COVID-19 hotspots will now only be permitted to have gatherings of 25 people outdoors and 10 people indoors.
The restrictions do not apply to “staffed businesses,” including restaurants, movie theatres, banquet halls, and gyms and Premier Doug Ford said Thursday that weddings would not be impacted as long as the festivities occur at businesses that are permitted to host larger gatherings.
The new rules come as local public health officials report an increasing number of cases linked to private parties and events.
The province reported 293 cases of COVID-19 on Thursday with 85 of those infections coming from Toronto, 63 from Peel Region, and 39 from Ottawa.
“Our medical officers of health have been very clear in saying these kinds of large events, where you get crowd scenes together involving people who don't live together, pose a risk,” Tory said.
Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health Dr. Eileen de Villa recently confirmed that public health officials are investigating four weddings in the city that are linked to 22 new cases of COVID-19.
Tory noted that any wedding that can be held this year would be “somewhat dull” due to all of the restrictions in place to slow the spread of the virus.
“No music, no dancing, no singing. I mean it really isn't anything that would make for the best of weddings so maybe people are best to just put them off for now,” he said.