Articles by Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press

Sep 24 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Quebec's Health Minister is asking people to limit interactions outside their immediate household — including cancelling their Thanksgiving plans — as the province tries to beat back a second COVID-19 wave. Christian Dube told reporters Thursday in Quebec City that minimizing all non-essential private gatherings in the coming weeks might help bring community spread of the virus under […]

Sep 24 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Quebec's Health Minister is asking people to limit interactions outside their immediate household — including cancelling their Thanksgiving plans — as the province tries to beat back a second COVID-19 wave. Christian Dube told reporters Thursday in Quebec City that minimizing all non-essential private gatherings in the coming weeks might help bring community spread of the virus under […]

Sep 23 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Quebec has begun rolling out a COVID-19 advertising campaign aimed at putting a human face on the deadly virus and reaching those who discount its severity. The ads — the first of which was released Tuesday night — include testimonials of those impacted directly by COVID-19. In the first spot, the camera focuses on Francis, a general contractor who […]

Sep 23 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Quebec has begun rolling out a COVID-19 advertising campaign aimed at putting a human face on the deadly virus and reaching those who discount its severity. The ads — the first of which was released Tuesday night — include testimonials of those impacted directly by COVID-19. In the first spot, the camera focuses on Francis, a general contractor who […]

Sep 21 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — ST-HUBERT, Que. — RCMP raided a residence on Montreal's south shore Monday in connection with envelopes containing the poison ricin that were sent to the White House and to various locations in Texas. The home is tied to a woman arrested Sunday night at the New York-Canada border who authorities suspect is involved in the case, Cpl. Charles Poirier told […]

Sep 21 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — ST-HUBERT, Que. — RCMP raided a residence on Montreal's south shore Monday in connection with envelopes containing the poison ricin that were sent to the White House and to various locations in Texas. The home is tied to a woman arrested Sunday night at the New York-Canada border who authorities suspect is involved in the case, Cpl. Charles Poirier told […]

Sep 17 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Quebec regions that have seen sharp increases in COVID-19 cases in recent days will remain at a pre-alert level as health officials decide on next steps, authorities said Thursday. In the meantime, Health Minister Christian Dube implored people in those regions — which make up 75 per cent of the province's population — to show restraint over the […]

Sep 17 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Quebec regions that have seen sharp increases in COVID-19 cases in recent days will remain at a pre-alert level as health officials decide on next steps, authorities said Thursday. In the meantime, Health Minister Christian Dube implored people in those regions — which make up 75 per cent of the province's population — to show restraint over the […]

Sep 17 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Quebec provincial police are warning of a spike in online threats directed at the general public and towards politicians. Between March and September, police received 300 complaints from politicians about online threats compared with 53 complaints received during the same period in 2019, Chief Insp. Guy Lapointe said Thursday on Twitter. Overall, he said police received 1,748 complaints from […]

Sep 16 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Quebec's premier says his government is looking at ways the state can more easily intervene in private homes to stop the spread of COVID-19, despite a law preventing police from entering a residence without a warrant. Private gatherings are the main source of COVID-19 transmission in Quebec, Francois Legault said Wednesday, as the province reported 303 new infections and three […]

Sep 16 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Quebec's premier says his government is looking at ways the state can more easily intervene in private homes to stop the spread of COVID-19, despite a law preventing police from entering a residence without a warrant. Private gatherings are the main source of COVID-19 transmission in Quebec, Francois Legault said Wednesday, as the province reported 303 new infections and three […]

Sep 15 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Health Minister Christian Dube offered a series of examples on Tuesday to illustrate how easily the novel coronavirus is spreading throughout the province and straining the health-care network. A 17-person gathering in a restaurant south of Montreal is linked to 31 confirmed COVID-19 infections and has health authorities scrambling to track down 330 other […]

Sep 15 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Health Minister Christian Dube offered a series of examples on Tuesday to illustrate how easily the novel coronavirus is spreading throughout the province and straining the health-care network. A 17-person gathering in a restaurant south of Montreal is linked to 31 confirmed COVID-19 infections and has health authorities scrambling to track down 330 other […]

Sep 15 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole said following a meeting Monday with Quebec Premier Francois Legault that he supports the province's right to pass legislation banning religious symbols and he wouldn't challenge it in court. Canada is facing a national unity crisis, O'Toole told reporters after his first in-person meeting with a premier since winning the leadership race in late August. The federal government, […]

Sep 14 2020 — Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press — MONTREAL — Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole said he supports Quebec's ban on religious symbols and that he wouldn't launch a legal challenge against it, following a meeting Monday with Premier Francois Legault. Canada is facing a national unity crisis, O'Toole told reporters after his first in-person meeting with a premier since winning the leadership race in late August. The federal government, therefore, shouldn't be interfering with […]