Article content
British Columbians will not have to show sensitive medical documents to prove their journey is essential and no police officers will be redeployed from crime fighting to staff checkpoints, Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth vowed Thursday, the day before the province announces details on travel restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of COVID-19.
Even before the new rules come into effect, the union representing Vancouver police officers says its members won’t enforce the measures.
We apologize, but this video has failed to load.
Try refreshing your browser, or COVID-19: New travel restrictions cause confusion, anxiety for B.C. residents, Liberals say Back to video
B.C. restricts some intraprovincial travel to combat virus spread.
Canadians get creative to avoid mandatory hotel quarantine for returning air travellers.
Pope Francis visits a vaccination centre at the Paul VI Hall where the poor and homeless are being inoculated at the Vatican on Friday. (Vatican Media/Reuters)
Federal modelling data suggest lockdowns have slowed COVID-19 spread
Top health officials urged provinces to maintain restrictive policies enacted in the face of soaring case and hospitalization rates until the summer to keep the pandemic at a manageable level.
The national rT the metric that tracks the average number of people one infected person will pass the virus on to has dipped below one, said Dr. Theresa Tam, who called it a spark of good news.
COVID-19: New travel restrictions cause confusion, anxiety for B C residents, Liberals say canada.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from canada.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Article content
VICTORIA The union representing B.C.’s 6,500 RCMP officers says it has “grave concerns” about the new COVID-19 travel restrictions coming into force on Friday, measures which it said could erode trust with racialized communities and put officers at increased risk of catching the virus.
And 11 legal and First Nations advocacy groups sent a joint letter to the province Wednesday raising alarm bells about the “over-broad and unconstitutional expansion of police powers” that will disproportionately affect Black, Indigenous and other racialized communities.
We apologize, but this video has failed to load.
Try refreshing your browser, or COVID-19: RCMP union, legal advocates and First Nations groups raise concerns over B.C. travel restrictions Back to video
Port Mann bridge heading into Metro Vancouver (Josef Hanus/Shutterstock)
BC Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth is attempting to further clarify exactly how BC’s new travel restrictions will work once they take effect this Friday.
On Wednesday, Farnworth said that when it comes to the neighbouring health regions of Vancouver Coastal and Fraser Health, the two would be classified as one.
As a result, things like roadblocks “will not be set up in places such as Boundary Road,” he said.
Farnworth said again, however, that the goal of the restrictions is to discourage recreational travel outside of health authorities.