By Tea Lynn @Tealynnm

Ontario MPP Roman Baber was kicked out of Ford’s caucus and won’t be able to run as a PC in the next election after penning a letter that claims “the lockdown is deadlier than COVID.”

Baber’s letter included a list of staggering statistics including “Ontario’s hospital and ICU capacity are better than in the last 3 years.” He also noted on the “infection fatality rate — the IFR” (the percentage of people with COVID who die, which differs from the “case fatality rate-the CFR” -the percentage of people officially diagnosed with COVID who die) and noted that 80% of COVID deaths in Ontario occurred in long-term care homes and similar group living settings.

He ended his letter with a proposed strategy and asked the premier to “stop scaring children… they should not believe that coming close to another child may result in someone’s death.”

Baber is not the first member of Ford’s caucus to be ejected during the pandemic. Last June, former Tory legislator Belinda Karahalios was also kicked out of caucus by Ford for voting against a sweeping law that extended pandemic emergency orders. Karahalios said she opposed the measure because it gave Ford’s government too much power.

Following the release of Baber’s letter, the former Ontario Chief Medical officer sent a letter to Ontario Premier Doug Ford siding with Baber. He noted that Baber “deserves great credit” for opening up the discussion on lockdowns. “Lockdown was never part of our planned pandemic response nor is it supported by strong science” Schabas added.

“Lockdown is an affront to social justice because its burdens fall disproportionately on the young, the working poor and visible minorities,” observes Schabas in his letter. “We will be paying for lockdown in lives and dollars for decades to come.”

Indeed, it is important to have an open dialog about lockdowns without the fear of losing your position when particular facts are brought to light, as Schabas writes, “Our wellintentioned but misguided efforts to control COVID are only compounding the tragedy. We need to change course. No one has all the answers but the first step is to start asking the right questions.”

Hospital Occupancy statistics Baber included in his letter. He obtained these numbers from the Ontario Ministry of Health.