Victoria (with files from CP/CPAC/CITY) — As the latest numbers were released, the youngest COVID victim is now a 2 year old from the Fraser Health region. The child had previous conditions but Dr. Bonnie Henry said that COVID was responsible for the death ( The child was treated at BC Children’s Hospital)
B.C.’s ‘circuit breaker’ restrictions will remain in place until at least end of May long weekend. That includes:
- For restaurants, bars and pubs, all food and liquor-serving premises must only provide take-out or delivery service. Dine-in service is prohibited, except for outdoor patios. People dining on patios should do so with their immediate household or core bubble.
- Indoor, adult group fitness activities of any kind are also paused. Gyms and fitness centres are restricted to individual or one-on-one activities only i.e. one-on-one personal training.
- The previously announced class variance for limited indoor worship services has been suspended. Outdoor worship services under the current variance may continue.
- All workers are strongly encouraged to work from home, where possible.
- Public health guidance for schools has also been amended to support and encourage students down to Grade 4 to wear masks while at school.
Stay in your health authority- That was the message from Premier John Horgan. Starting Friday April 23, expect random road checks to ensure people are not travelling outside their health authorities without a legitimate reason. BC Ferries will no longer accept bookings for vehicles like campers and trailers. While there will be signs at the border with Alberta to discourage non-essential travel into B.C. The Tourism sector was in the talks about cancellations of bookings.
As well, the B.C. government has introduced amendments to the Employment Standards Act that, if passed, will provide workers with up to three hours of paid leave to get each dose of their COVID-19 vaccine.
The amendments ensure no one will lose pay if they need time away from work to get vaccinated.
The Ministry of Labour consulted with the business community, labour organizations, Indigenous partners and other stakeholders in developing this legislation to balance paid leave with supports for employers. Businesses suffering from the economic impact of COVID-19 can access direct financial support through the Circuit Breaker Business Relief Grant and the Small and Medium Sized Business Recovery Grant program.
If passed, the effective date will be retroactive to the date of introduction (April 19, 2021).
