Sask. Opposition accuses Premier Moe of delaying COVID-19 response until after election

Saskatchewan's Opposition Leader says Premier Scott Moe is pandering to residents resistant to additional measures to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Ryan Meili suggested Moe saw the trend of rising cases during the provincial election campaign, but decided to wait until after the Oct. 26 vote to take action.

"There are people [who]are understandably resistant to changes, resistant to things that could reduce transmission and this is a government that has not wanted to bother anyone," he said Friday.

"As a result, doing what's politically convenient, what's politically easy, they've put us at greater risk of more people getting sick and losing their lives."

Starting Friday, masks must be worn in indoor public spaces in Regina, Saskatoon and Prince Albert cities where a majority of the new spread is happening.

The maximum limit for people allowed to gather inside a home also dropped to 10 from 15.

Health officials reported 87 new cases, which included nine from earlier in the week that were delayed because of a technical issue in the lab, on Friday.

The province set a new record Thursday for cases in a single day with 129 new infections.

Meili said Moe campaigned on a message that COVID-19 was under control and residents deserve more information around the current spread of the novel coronavirus.

"I think they will continue to pander to those who are resistant to making the right choices instead of actually showing leadership."

Meili said the public ought to know what the current infection rate isand see some updated modelling that details how many more people could be infected, given that case numbers have been steadily creeping up for the past month.

The NDP also renewed its calls for shrinking classroom sizes and expanding testing capacity, and called for clarity around how mandatory masks will be enforced.

In a statement, Moe rejected the suggestion that political considerations were factored into the response around COVID-19and called Meili's words irresponsible.

"Our government has consistently acted on the advice of public health officials throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and I have no time for Mr. Meili's ill-advised attempts at politicizing our response to COVID-19," he said Friday.

"These statements only serve as an insult to the professionalism of the dedicated public health officials that have provided sound guidance."