Ontario Finance Minister 'Deeply Regrets' Taking A Caribbean Vacation Right Now

He says he's coming home immediately.
Ontario Finance Minister 'Deeply Regrets' Taking A Caribbean Vacation Right Now
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It looks like Ontario Finance Minister Rod Phillips' tropical vacation is over. 

In a statement sent to Narcity via email, Phillips expressed deep regret for his decision to travel to the Caribbean destination St. Barts amid surging cases and stay-at-home orders in Ontario.

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I deeply regret travelling over the holidays. It was a mistake and I apologize. Rod Phillips

Phillips left on the vacation on December 13, "following the end of the Legislative Session," he wrote.

"I am making arrangements to return to Ontario immediately and will begin a 14-day quarantine as soon as I arrive,” he concluded.

In a statement made Tuesday evening, Premier Doug Ford said that he was "extremely disappointed" in Phillips' decision to leave the country. 

"I have let the minister know that his decision to travel is completely unacceptable and that it will not be tolerated again, by him or any member of our cabinet and caucus," Ford wrote.

Ford did not specify whether he was made aware of Phillips' decision to leave the country prior to his departure.

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  • Abby Neufeld
    Abby Neufeld was a writer at Narcity Canada. She received her Bachelor of Arts in English and Professional Communications at the University of Victoria. Her past work has been published in The Toronto Star, Bitch Media, Canadian Dimension, This Magazine, and more. In 2019, Abby co-founded The New Twenties, an environmentally-focused literary and arts magazine.

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