Ford commits to vaccinating vulnerable people before 'most dangerous criminals in the entire country'

Ontario Premier Doug Ford told reporters yesterday that inmates within his province will not be prioritized for the vaccine over residents of long-term care homes or frontline workers.

On Tuesday, CTV News Ottawa revealed that "hundreds of federal inmates" would be receiving COVID-19 vaccines, starting on Friday. In all, it was reported that 1,200 doses of vaccines would be distributed across Canada's prisons. That discovery led to fierce criticism from the likes of Conservative Party Leader Erin O'Toole, who said that "Not one criminal should be vaccinated" before any vulnerable Canadian or front-line health worker.

Ford echoed O'Toole's sentiment, calling those in federal prison "the most dangerous criminals in the entire country," reports The Toronto Sun.

When I first heard it, I didn’t believe it," said Ford. "These are people that are in federal prison penitentiaries, again, the most dangerous criminals in the entire country... How do you square this?”

Governor General Sylvia Jones added that the Ford government has made "very clear decision as a government" that priority will go to "long-term care residents, the staff that work within those facilities, as well as healthcare workers and critical volunteers who are in those facilities."

"As we continue to vaccinate, certainly group homes, homes that have developmental disability, adults and children and congregate living like our corrections facilities will be in the queue. But right now, our priority continues to be long-term care residents," she concluded.