As a protest against the provincial lockdown measures in Ontario played out in Queen’s Park on Saturday, Premier Doug Ford didn’t mince words when it came to expressing his thoughts on the event and those who were participating.

Ford commented on the situation after being asked about it during his daily COVID-19 briefing.

“We have a bunch of yahoos out in front of Queen’s Park sitting there protesting that the place isn’t open,” he said. “They’re breaking the law and putting everyone in jeopardy, and God forbid one of them end up in the hospital down the street.”

“We’ve come such a long way and then we have these people that want to break ranks with 14.5 million people and just go rogue?” he continued. “It’s irresponsible, it’s reckless and it’s selfish. We’ve worked so hard and we have a bunch of yahoos out there thinking it’s alright.”

Ford then mused about what would happen if every Ontarian followed the actions of the protesters.

“It would set us back months,” he said. “That’s what they’re doing through these reckless protests, they’re setting us back. I don’t know who these people are, but obviously they don’t care about everyone else in Ontario. It just burns me up.”

Ford said he understands that people are eager to “get out there” and get the economy going again.

“There’s no one that wants to open up the economy more than I do, but we’re going to do it responsibly, and we’re going to do it through the guidance of our chief medical officer of health and through the proper consultation,” he said. “We have to be responsible, we have to make sure – we’ve come such a long way – that we protect the health and the well-being of every single person in this province.”

And at the end of the day, “we’re better than this,” he said. “We’re better than this as a people, and as a province.”