Montreal mayor apologizes for breaking rules by sharing patio table with several others
'Rules are good for everybody, including the mayor,' Plante says
On the first day that Montrealers were allowed to gather on terrasses, Mayor Valérie Plante sat down at an outdoor table with four other people.
In doing so, Plante was in fact breaking public health rules. The current measures in place allow for a maximum of two adults from different households to share a table.
On Saturday, the mayor admitted she was wrong.
"Yes, it's my mistake. I was eating with a friend, and the [restaurant's chef] as well as two members of my team came to sit with us for a few minutes. We should have put our masks back on," Plante wrote on Twitter. "It shows that we have to be vigilant, that we are not immune to making mistakes despite our good intentions."
Had all five of them been wearing a mask, as Plante said they should have, they still would have been flouting the rules.
Oui c’est mon erreur. Je mangeais avec une amie, et le chef et deux membres de mon équipe sont venus s’asseoir avec nous qqs minutes. On aurait du remettre nos masques. Ça montre qu’on doit être vigilants et qu’on n’est pas à l’abri d’une erreur malgré nos bonnes intentions. <a href="https://t.co/sOatHqRJAk">https://t.co/sOatHqRJAk</a>
—@Val_PlanteOn Friday, the mayor was outside a new restaurant in the Plateau-Mont-Royal neighbourhood called Le Pontiac.
In the photo circulating online, she is sitting with her assistant, the restaurant's owner as well as one of her political attachés and her partner.
Plante says the gathering of five people lasted about 15 minutes.
"Even if it was a short period, it was going against the rules. Rules are good for everybody, including the mayor," Plante said during a brief meeting with reporters on Saturday afternoon.
"I apologize for that."
Plante also commented on the city's first night without a curfew, urging people to not gather in groups larger than what is allowed.
Montreal will remain a red zone until at least June 7. Outdoor gatherings on private property are allowed with up to eight people present, or the occupants from two addresses.
Outdoor gatherings on public property are limited to eight people, and physical distancing rules apply.