Kenney is late for the Thursday Covid update, which normally I don't bother with because, let's face it, we all just want the facts.
But the neighbour's kid, who mine spent the weekend outside with after our quarantine ended, became a close contact on the bus Friday. #ableg

Kenney: Alberta is taking another hard step to get Alberta through this pandemic. A little more than three weeks ago, I stood here and announced a return to Step 1. We hoped it would help but the vaccines didn't arrive fast enough.

JK: Our positivity rate is 10%, variants are more than 63% of the daily totals, over 600 people in hospital including 151 in ICU. #YEG and #YYC have postponed surgeries allowing us to open up beds. We've seen what happens elsewhere and we don't want that to happen here.

JK: We'll be enacting targeted measures, including Ft Mac, Edmonton, Calgary, Strathcona Calgary, Airdrie, Red Deer, a list will be posted online. We've only been able to identify around 2500 cases of in school transmission in schools since January. Indoor fitness and sports down

JK: We'll work with restaurants to increase verification that parties are from the same household. Where needed we will implement a curfew in areas with more than 1,000 cases per 100,000. If your community is not seeing high levels of spread, you will not see changes.

JK: police and AHS will continue to enforce (he said "continue") the rules and the government will be increasing penalties including barring registry services. Says the vast majority of cases are happening at home and through social activity.

JK: I know the last 13 months have been filled with anxiety and stress. Luckily we have vaccines on our side in this fight, we've expanded testing and hospital capacity but ultimately, Albertans need to step up.

Narrator: and thankfully the govt admits that won't happen

JK: There's no question vaccination is our way out. The lack of spread among seniors showed that.

Shandro up next.

Narrator: it's a wonder they didn't ask the Deputy Speaker to address the province. https://twitter.com/Mitchell_AB/status/1387619765141733378?s=20

Shandro: Those who are immunocompromised will have access to vaccinations and their second dose faster. Front-line, police and firefighters will get access. http://Alberta.ca/vaccine  to see which groups now qualify.

TS: Alberta's rollout has been fantastic. Although it may not feel like it, we are nearing the end of this pandemic. We need to, as the premier said, dig in and reduce the spread over the next couple of weeks.

Hinshaw is at home because she has a sore throat. (Do we need to get into sick days and employers who respect sick employees? Another time perhaps).

Let's talk triage instead (good news all around).

DH: This may be scary but important; the planning has been underway all year

DH: AHS will strive to continue with emergent surgeries whenever possible. These measures will help free up space and give AHS the flexibility to redeploy staff when needed. The strain is growing and that's why we need to act.

DH: Those Albertans not following the rules need to follow the measures. And get the vaccine as soon as you are able.

Reporter questions!

Q: Premier, in the last week, Monday you said existing restrictions were fine and people wouldn't follow new ones anyone, yesterday same.

Q: now today is a 180 - where do you stand?
JK: I didn't say that, I've said we'll consider it. Lives and livelihoods. Negative impacts on broader society. I've always said we'd use targeted measures if we deem it necessary and now we do.

JK: I hope Albertans respond to these measures and buckle down over the next few weeks, but if they don't we'll have to do more.
Q: So how successful do you expect this to be? Let's say I live in Airdrie and hey, my MLA doesn't think this is fair either.

JK: (disagrees with the premise) the fact that we've changed policy, so has every jurisdiction on the face of the earth. They've all moved to reflect what is actually happening.

This. This is actually happening Premier. https://twitter.com/Mitchell_AB/status/1387619765141733378?s=20

Q: If these restrictions aren't placed on the entire province, are you concerned about spread?
JK: Well, we discourage non-essential travel. I encourage people, if they can possibly do so, to stay home, and stay in their home community. Other places took regional approaches.

JK: SK is doing that, BC, QC - there's always a chance in a free society that spread will happen, but we wouldn't apply these with the same rigor to areas with low spread and capacity in their hospitals.
Q: You said yesterday stringent measures don't work

JK: No, people who argue for hard lockdowns all the time, they're wrong. We have broadly the same measures and they have lower numbers. There's no one size fits all. We're all learning, there are factors like population density and "climate, weather".

Q: How close are we to capacity in our hospitals and what is the plan to deal with demand beyond hospital capacity? What's your emotional threshold for this.
JK: I don't know (what emotions are), but we have capacity and we've stayed on top of testing.

JK: Ultimately the challenge in the healthcare system is on the staffing side. We can't just cut a cheque and get more people.

Narrator: This was the case yesterday, a week ago, a month ago and a year ago.

Q: Pediatrician's letter about increased hospitalization of children.
JK: I think most businesses are closed. We had casinos and convention centres and nightclubs have been closed for a year. Our current contract tracing data say few cases were acquired in the workplace.

(I feel like I missed half that Q)
JK: We don't want to put more people out of work. We don't want to close more businesses down. With regard to sick leave, there's a federal program that Albertans in need can access. Alberta offers up to 14 days of stay, for free...

JK: at self-isolation hotels.
Q: People are saying fed program takes too long. And Pediatricians are saying younger people are at more risk, please address that.
JK: Sick leave, Alberta was the first to address isolation hotels and $625 payment, plus you can get $1000 from GoC

JK: with respect to children, the variants are showing young people are affected, it's a very real concern and that's why we need people to help bend the curve.

Q: How will you help restaurants?
JK: There's less transmission, it's more than zero. We can help restauranteurs, we'll work with them, without turning servers into bylaw officers.
Q: Besides personal responsibility, is there anything people can do to address noncompliance?

JK: There's a complaints line. There always has been.
Shandro: That's right, there's a complaints line and they've received complaints and AHS will investigate, but we hope that as most Albertans have done, following health measures.

Q: These are not a shock - don't you want to shock people to get us to the end?
JK: People have tuned this out and moved on, they're tired of it, they're not listening, they think the rules have, you know, they maybe have their first dose - I understand that.

JK: We're going to use the provincial alert system with a message to cell phones hopefully to regain their attention. All I can say is that I don't want to be standing here two weeks from now having to bring in a hard lock down because people don't respond to this call.

JK: Numbers are coming down in other provinces, if they can do it, we can do it here in Alberta.

Narrator: This is precisely why the premier received so much backlash after his "quote unquote, lockdowns" comment.

I hate jokes that aren't funny.