The Ontario government unveiled its guidelines for Ontario residents on how to celebrate the holidays this year.
In order to curb the spread of the coronavirus, the government is asking Ontarians to only celebrate the holidays with those who live in the same household and to avoid large holiday parties and dinners.
Those who live alone are asked to exclusively visit one additional household.
“I know there are many people looking forward to their traditional family celebrations, but to keep your loved ones safe, traditions will have to be adjusted,” said Premier Doug Ford during his daily update.
“We’re asking everyone to please stick to your own household when celebrating.”
The guidelines suggest alternative ways to celebrate the holidays, such as taking photos with Santa and Mrs. Clause outdoors while staying two meters apart or participating in virtual events.
People or businesses who are not compliant with the restrictions on gathering limits face fines of up to $750.
Earlier this month, Premier Ford threatened to cancel Christmas in light of an increase of cases of COVID-19. “We’ll always have other celebrations, we’ll always have other Christmases,” Ford said.
This week, the Ontario government plunged Toronto and Peel into another lockdown.
Under the latest lockdown regime, indoor social gatherings are prohibited except for members of the same household. Outdoor public social gatherings have now also been limited to a maximum of 10 people at one time. Meanwhile, weddings, funerals and religious services are also being restricted to 10 people for both indoor and outdoor services.
