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Oct 6, 2020 3:31 PM -

State funeral for former PM John Turner today, COVID-19 to limit attendance

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Former Canadian prime minister John Turner attends an Economic Club of Canada luncheon in Toronto on Monday December 15 2014. Former Liberal prime minister John Turner is being laid to rest in Toronto today. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

A state funeral for former Liberal prime minister John Turner is underway in downtown Toronto.

About 170 invited guests are in attendance, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Toronto Mayor John Tory, and federal minister Carolyn Bennett.

Attendees are spaced out in the pews at the recently renovated St. Michael's Cathedral Basilica to maintain physical distancing.

Organizers limited the guest list in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Turner died at age 91 on Sept. 19.

He had spent decades in politics, serving as solicitor general and justice and finance ministers before his brief stint as prime minister in 1984.

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