Bloc leader Blanchet, his caucus and staff isolate after staffer tests positive for COVID-19

Bloc Qubcois Leader Yves-Franois Blanchet and members of his caucus have put themselves in isolation after a staffer in the leader's office tested positive for COVID-19.

According to a statement from the party, staff and caucus members will be screened to determine how wide the virus has spread.

The statement says that caucus members and staff will remain segregated from one another but will continue to perform their duties virtually.

Bloc Qubcois spokesperson Carolane Landry said that the party will adhere to strict public health guidelines, is taking the incident very seriously and isencouraging others in Quebecto do the same.

The number of confirmedCOVID-19 cases in Quebec continued to climb Monday, with 276 being reported. It'sthe fifth day in a row the province has seen more than 200 cases.

Quebec now has a seven-day moving average of 25.9 cases per million inhabitants, surpassing the 20 cases per million public health had set as a threshold last month.

Last Friday, provincial Health Minister Christian Dub shifted the target to between 20 and 25 cases per million, saying he wouldn't be concerned if the daily numbers remained in that area. Quebec has now passed that threshold as well.

In announcing the latest numbers on Monday, Dub said the province is seeing an increase in outbreaksandcommunity transmission. Hospitalizations, however, remained steady and there were no new deaths reported.

At the peak of the pandemic in the spring, Quebec often reported upwards of 800 cases per day.