Changes – Addiction and Mental Health

39 full time and three part time staff will be terminated at Addiction and Mental Health Services of Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington in a major shakeup of the agency.

It issued a news release yesterday saying the majority of the jobs do not relate to health care and it will be hiring 30 full time health care professionals to replace the people who are being laid off.

The Southeast Local Health Integration Network took control of the agency last year and appointed a supervisor to investigate concerns over services, finances, leadership and accountability.

 

Solitary Confinement

An Ontario judge has ruled the Correctional Service of Canada has violated the charter rights of thousands of mentally ill inmates by placing them in solitary confinement for more than 30 days.

The judge issued the ruling in a class action suit filed against the Correctional Service over its use of administrative segregation.

The federal government to pay 20-million dollars to boost mental health resources in the federal prison system as well as legal fees.

Compensation for individual members of the class action lawsuit will be determined at a future date.

 

Lockdown Over

A lockdown at Collins Bay Institution has ended and the institution has resumed its normal operations.

It was put in place on March 19th to allow staff to conduct an exceptional search.

Correctional staff found a number of unauthorized items during the search including over a pound of marijuana and about 24 grams of tobacco.

A news release says the value of the stuff inside the institution would have been $49,190.00.

 

City Council – Priorities

Kingston City Council has held its first of three sessions to work out its strategic plan for the next four years.

Councillors were advised last night to develop on four to six priorities for the city.

The strategic plan they are working on will be voted on in mid-April and city staff will then work to achieve the goals outlined in the plan.  Part of the exercise is going over about 250 pages of comments and suggestions from the public.

 

Hillier

Lanark – Frontenac – Kingston MPP Randy Hillier isn’t giving up in his fight with the Doug Ford government.  Hillier was kicked out of the Progressive Conservative Party last week.

He is now an Independent MPP in the Ontario legislature.

Hillier says he has spoken with Ontario’s Integrity Commissioner about his allegations of illegal lobbying by Premier Ford’s advisors.

Government House Leader Todd Smith of Belleville says the allegations have no basis in fact.

 

Dylan – Screen Award

Kingston comedian Steve Dylan has won an award at the 2019 Canadian Screen Awards.

Dylan writes for the show Still Standing.  He won the award with Jonny Harris, Fraser Young and Graham Chittenden last night.

Dylan and his colleagues attended a gala as part of several events leading up the Screen Awards show on Sunday.

 

Grafting Apple Trees

If you’re interested in fruit trees – there’s a session coming up at Topsy Farms on Amherst Islands on Saturday to teach people how to graft a tree – a process where you can save the genetics of an old tree or create a combination of the size and type of tree you want by grafting one tree to another.

 

https://www.topsyfarms.com/