The Premier says the province plans get tougher on British Columbians who still aren’t willing to follow COVID-19 health orders.
John Horgan says he understands people want to gather with family and friends during the holiday season but he says they need to remember their sacrifices now may keep people alive.
“There are those who are not prepared to bend a little bit in their personal lives to the benefit of all of us collectively. And so consequently, we’re going to be beefing up enforcement on public health orders,” he said. “That means holding rule breakers accountable. That means ensuring the fines that we levy are collected.”
Horgan notes the idea is to target people who continue to ignore the rules on things like no parties, large gatherings or social visits until at least Jan. 8, saying the province will be holding them accountable with fines.
“Certainly everyone has a right to appeal, everyone has a right to due process but once that due process has been finalized, if you do not pay the fines, we will send collections after you,” Horgan added.
“This is serious. This is not a lark. This is not something we do lightly. Those who do not want to obey the rules that the rest of us are following will have to pay the consequences.”
Horgan says most British Columbians are following the rules that are in place – a sentiment shared by Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, and Health Minister Adrian Dix among others.
“Although the numbers are unacceptable high here in British Columbia, we together have flattened the curve over the past couple of weeks and we hopeful that if we continue to abide by public health orders over the weeks ahead, we’ll be in a much better position come January when we all turn the page on this tragic year,” Horgan said.
As is stands, people can be fined $230 fine for, among other things, refusing to wear a mask in an indoor public setting, refusing to comply with the direction of an enforcement officer, or engaging in abusive or belligerent behaviour. A $2,300 fine can be issued to people who organize large gatherings or parties, with a Kamloops man among people who have gotten that fine after he hosted a card game at his house.
Last week, Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth also referenced increased enforcement for people who repeatedly break health orders.
“I’ve asked my ministry to look at how we may look at increasing fines for repeat offenders,” he said. “It’s unfortunate that we do have a small minority of people who, to put it bluntly, are ignorant when it comes to following these orders. They like to say they have rights.”
Farnworth says while that is the case, people also have responsibilities.
“The sooner we bend the curve, the sooner we defeat this virus, the sooner life will be able to get back to normal, which is what we all want,” he added.
Heading into the holiday season, Horgan again asked people to keep with with measures like the use of masks and physical distancing, while also keeping their bubbles small.
“I want you to have a great holiday season, but I also want you to be safe,” Horgan said. “I want you to recognize and understand that your actions could not just save your family members but it could save other people’s family members as well. It’s not too much to ask.”
Dr. Henry too is asking people to avoid holiday gatherings to prevent COVID cases from spiking in January. She says while a vaccine will protect people from COVID-19, it is not here yet, adding it will also take time to immunize everyone so things can go back to normal.
B.C. today reported 522 new cases of COVID-19, 56 of which were in Interior Health as well as 21 additional deaths from the virus.
