Earlier, health officials had suggested a four to six-week lockdown to contain the spread, which has seen an alarming rise recently.
With the alarming rise in the number of coronavirus cases in Canada's, Ontario on Monday announced a province-wide lockdown. The decision was taken due to the second wave of coronavirus in the coutnry's most populous province.
The shutdown will stay in place from December 26 till January 23 for northern Ontario and till January 9 for southern Ontario.
The province has reported over 2,000 fresh COVID-19 cases for seven days in a row now. The number is expected to double in January.
On the other hand, health officials have criticized the delay, with some even calling it 'ridiculous' to wait till the day after Christmas to impose the lockdown. Earlier, the health officials had suggested a four to six-week lockdown to contain the spread.
"We have flattened the curve before and we can do it again," Health Minister Christine Elliott said.
An official said the delay until December 26 will allow businesses outside the current lockdown zones to get ready for it.
Meanwhile, Canada is halting passenger flights from the United Kingdom for 72 hours, the health ministry said on Sunday, joining a growing list of countries barring British travellers to prevent the spread of a new coronavirus strain from the country.
The restrictions do not apply to cargo planes or planes landing for safety reasons, according to an earlier Transport Canada notice to airmen, which said the move is "necessary for aviation safety and the protection of the public." The measures go into effect at midnight on Sunday (0500 GMT Monday).
"While no cases linked to this new strain have been identified in Canada, work continues to identify if this variant is present or has been previously observed in Canada," the statement said.
Cases continue to rise in Canada, which begun inoculations with the Pfizer Inc/BioNTech vaccine last week. Canada reported a total of 507,795 cases of COVID-19 and 14,228 deaths, with 6,203 new cases on Sunday.
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