Londoners could find out next week whether the city will make masks mandatory in all indoor public spaces.
Mayor Ed Holder announced a special strategic priorities and policy committee meeting has been set for Monday, where politicians will receive advice and recommendations from the region's medical officer of health on the topic.
"That will be the earliest that council will consider how to deal with this," Holder said during the health unit’s daily COVID-19 briefing. "One of the things that occurred in our meeting [Tuesday] night was direction for us to request that Dr. Mackie come to council so we could have some dialogue around the issue of mandatory maskings and at the same time look at the possibility of council putting some bylaws in place."
Many cities and municipalities across the province, including Toronto, Hamilton, and Waterloo Region, have already made it mandatory for people to wear masks or face coverings in all indoor settings. However, an order from Mackie, that goes into effect on Monday, only covers high-risk locations like public transit and hair and nail salons.
Mackie has offered no hints as to what he will tell city politicians when they meet next week.
"The advice that I will give them is going to be made public on Monday. Right now, we’re doing the analysis to make sure that we have all the relevant information to give the best possible advice,” said Mackie.
He went on to explain that there are several ways in which masks could become mandatory. Those include a provincial order, a municipal bylaw or a public health order.
Mackie added that Londoners should be prepared with masks or face coverings at their disposal so that if they do become mandatory or if they encounter a business that requires them, they can comply.
"The health unit has been recommending mask use for two months... people should already be taking masking seriously and doing it whenever they are in an indoor space," said Mackie.
London and Middlesex County are among the many regions across Ontario that will enter Stage 3 of reopening on Friday. With that comes the return of indoor dining at restaurants and bars, movie theatres, and gyms.
Ahead of the economic reopening, Holder said his office has received hundreds of emails from Londoners, the "greatest majority" of whom stated they were in favour of mandatory masks.
As of Wednesday, the total number of COVID-19 cases reported in the London-area since the start of the pandemic was 640, with 57 deaths and 570 recoveries.
