Hour 1 of Ottawa Now for Fri. March 13th, 2026

On Friday, the Ford government confirmed that Ontario’s retail stores will now be open for business on Family Day and Victoria Day. Last month, Premier Doug Ford mused about opening stores during some of the province’s STAT holidays, saying he was disappointed he couldn’t shop at Home Depot during a Holiday Monday. Furthermore, he’s received several calls from people looking to shop over the holidays, and questioned why shopping centres aren’t open for business when restaurants are. This gut call, however, has been pretty divisive. In Hour 1, we hear from Sebastian Prins, the Ontario Director of Government Relations for the Retail Council of Canada. And later in the program, Kristy checks in with Ontario Liberal MPP John Fraser. But first, we bring you up to speed on today’s top headlines.