 Good morning. I'm Mike Farnworth, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General. I'd like to gratefully acknowledge that I'm speaking to you today from the traditional territory of the Lekwungen speaking people and the Songhees and the Squimalt nations. Off the top, I want to thank the vast majority of British Columbians who are following provincial health orders. Such as masking up, avoiding large gatherings and doing an extraordinary job in fighting COVID-19 during this recent spike in cases. We've all made great sacrifices to protect our collective health and to keep our health care system functioning safely. While I'm disappointed, additional measures are necessary. I am taking further action to carry us through the current spike in COVID-19 cases until more of the population can be vaccinated in the coming weeks. As we've heard from Minister Dix and Dr Henry, we've also heard from Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor and Minister Dix and Dr Henry, COVID-19 variants have started to take hold in our communities. These variants are spread much more easily. And each case has a higher chance of infecting more people. And these cases have led to record hospitalizations and a growing strain on our health care system. Things may get worse before they get better. And we need to work together to get through the coming weeks. At this point, we've vaccinated more than 30% of our eligible population. And in a month's time, that number is projected to double. But for now, though, we need to hunker down and stay local. If we act now, do the right thing, we can still have a summer that is more like those that we're all used to. While the province and the provincial health officer have long asked British Columbians to stay within their own communities, the time has come to formally restrict non-essential travel. That is why, based on the advice of the provincial health officer, I'm restricting non-essential travel into or out of all health authority regions in British Columbia effective immediately. This order will remain in place until after the May long weekend. Specifically May 25th. This is a legal order under the Emergency Program Act and there will be consequences for not following it. But beyond that, these measures, most importantly, can save lives. And it's in the best interest of all British Columbians to follow them. For the purposes of this order, the Northern and Interior health authorities will be considered a combined region. And the Vancouver Coastal Health and Fraser Health authorities will be considered a combined region as well. The boundaries of the Vancouver Island region will not change except with some exceptions for the Central Coast, the Belacoola Valley and Hope. Details on this are available in the news release and on the COVID-19 website. We will be able to travel within the region or combine region in which they reside but not out of their region or combined region. This order is to ensure that people stop traversing large parts of the province. For example, going from Kamloops to Whistler or from Vancouver to Tafino. It will not apply to travel within the defined regions. While this order doesn't stop someone from travelling from the provinces and the provinces within their own region from Merritt to Nelson or Abbotsford to Squamish, for example, that doesn't mean that these trips should be happening. Our message on travel has not changed. Do the right thing and stay within the areas that you live. We also need the public to be informed before heading out, even locally. There are some places you simply should not go. Whistler's mayor, for example, is asking people not to visit right now. We need to make common-sense decisions on how to protect us all from further spread. So go hiking. Go camping. But do it locally. The success of these travel restrictions will take the cooperation of all British Columbians. As with previous measures, this is an all-hands-on-deck approach. To help ensure this order is effectively enforced and communicated, the province is working with the Ministry of Transportation and infrastructure on highway signage and installing new signage on the border. BC ferries on restricting non-essential vehicle passage, deterring non-essential bookings and limiting salings. Tourism and accommodation industry leaders on strongly encouraging all operators and businesses to support the order by declining new bookings from outside their region and cancelling out-of-area bookings. BC parks to inform the public about restrictions and refund bookings were necessary. I see BC to contact their customers who have booked road tests outside their health authority and offer them another booking within their own region if appropriate. And police departments on enforcement measures. Over the coming days, we will continue working with police to establish additional measures to ensure they have the ability to conduct periodic roadside checks like the counter-attack program at strategic points into and out of the defined regions. At that time, a contravention of this order may be subject to a $575 fine. The provisions of this order recognize reasonable exemptions to travel restrictions such as going to work and going to school, the commercial transportation of goods, returning to a principal residence, obtaining health care. And a full list of exemptions is available in the news release and on the COVID-19 website and in the order itself. Our top priority is to keep British Columbians particularly our most vulnerable people healthy and safe. We know this virus needs people to transmit and that people traveling outside their communities increases COVID-19's ability to supply and spread. The surest path to the success of these measures is voluntary compliance. If a friend or family member is planning to break the rules, let them know that now is not the time to travel. Help spread the word. I know British Columbians are strong. Vaccines are rolling out and we will get through this. We just need to hold the line, follow the guidance of the provincial health officer and do the right thing. Thank you. A reminder to reporters on the line, please press star 1 to enter the queue. You are limited to one question and one follow-up. For the first question, we go to Bindersagin CTV. Hi Minister, I'm wondering if you have a definition of non-essential. If somebody, let's say their grandmother or grandfather dies in a different health authority, are they able to leave their health authority to go to another one to attend a funeral for instance? And in fact, you will see a very comprehensive list of what is considered essential travel that is in the order. This is primarily it is focused on recreational travel, non-essential travel. That's what it's focused on. It recognizes that there are essential reasons to travel and they are listed in the order but the example you gave absolutely would be considered legitimate. Yes, and sorry, we don't have the news yet, so this may be in there as well. But when you talk about Vancouver coastal health and Fraser health being sort of one health authority, that's a pretty large region. I know the message is to stay local, but there are questions about whether somebody in Vancouver could be traveling to hope, for instance, on their own. And would these rules apply no matter how they are traveling? For instance, for those on the front end, people who cycle around the country. You were breaking up there, but I think I got the gist of the question. This order is prohibiting travel outside the health authority, the health region. In essence, Fraser health and Vancouver coastal, the lower mainland. But within that, the guidelines that the provincial health officer has put in place still remain. That advice is don't travel outside your local area. Stay on the north shore. If you want to go hiking, then go hike up Grouse Mountain. If you live in the Tri-Cities, you know Burke Mountain has wonderful trails. Stay in your local area. Those still apply. Next question, Katie DeRosa, Vancouver Sun. There has been a letter from 11 legal and First Nations groups raising concerns about any disproportionate impact on racialized groups. You said that you have met with some of those groups yesterday. Can you specifically say who you met with and what assurances you gave them that this will not disproportionately impact racialized groups? No, as I said, I did meet with a number of groups representing racialized communities yesterday. They have asked that that be kept confidential in terms of who attended. But I can tell you, they raised some very important concerns from their perspective. That is why we are ensuring that the enforcement order around the authority in terms of how police conduct at the periodic COVID road checks that will take place at key points at the borders of the health authorities will operate. That is why we are taking our time to do it right. But I think you will see from the order today and the exemptions, for example, that things will be done in a way that will not affect the health of the community. They are very aware of that as well. KD, do you have a follow-up? Yes, is there specific funding for police departments similar to integrated road safety units for the counter-attack programs? Will there be specific funding to resource this properly? Because police departments are wondering where these resources will come from? Absolutely. We fully recognize that this is an initiative related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the implementation of a provincial health order. So, yes, there will be provincial monies to put this in place. Next question. We go to Mike Hager, Globe and Mail. Thank you. So it looks like the Atlantic bubble is able to enable provinces to police the travel between their borders. We have police on the highways, trans-Canada stopping people from Nova Scotia, from the front. Why can't it work here with Alberta? When will you release that legal opinion that you referenced? The situation in British Columbia is, I would argue, significantly different than that of Atlantic Canada. The size and the geography of our province. What we are doing is dealing with the provincial health orders request to restrict intra-provincial travel. There will be signs and signage at the Alberta border. Discouraging people from non-essential travel. We've been working with the tourism industry to, you know, to cancel the travel, for example, out of province bookings. They have been working cooperatively with us and doing a terrific job. Right now we are doing what is required by the provincial health officer. Do you have a follow-up, Mike? Yes. Will you release the legal opinion that you referenced as to why BC can enable more stringent restrictions at the border? Sorry, I just heard you. Is that all out of province bookings are being cancelled? Who is following up? We are working with the tourism association to encourage tourism operators, for example, let's say in the Okanagan, to not accept out of area out of province bookings and to cancel bookings that have already been made. We have been very pleased with the response because they recognize that we deal with this now then they have a greater chance of having the kind of summer that I think all of us in this province want. And as for legal opinions on when and how we would release a legal opinion that is something that I would take up with the Attorney General. Next question. Is this an acknowledgement that you could not figure out a way to legitimately stop travel within health authorities like Metro Vancouver, the virus going from Surrey to Chilliwack or from Surrey to Vancouver? You couldn't figure out a way to actually crack down on that. And do we know if that contributes more to spread of the virus than this travel outside of larger health regions? Well, I actually disagree with the premise of that question to this extent. I think what we're acknowledging is the complication of two significant health authorities in the lower mainland where people cross back and forth every single day to work and the ability to police that, for example, or to do checks or the resources are not, it's just not practical. So we took a common sense approach which is to recognize that that is one health authority. The reality is this. The bulk of the hotspots are in the lower mainland and it's to, by making the restrictions within a health authority so don't go from the lower mainland to the interior. That is an extremely effective way of stopping the transmission of the virus out of hotspots to other parts of the province. Likewise, not going from the lower mainland to the island again and it's the same rationale and so that's the approach that's been taken and that's why we're doing what we're doing. Richard, do you have a follow-up? I do. There's been a lot of different terms thrown out stay in your local area, stay in your community. People are confused by this in some regards and I know we can't go over every single possible thing that people are asking to do but there's a sense of camping from the city to Chilliwack. You can go play golf from the city to Squamish, like are these things that are still okay to do because they're outdoor activities or how do you define your local area or your local community? Well, the provincial health officer and the guidelines to date about local I think have been pretty clear and pretty straightforward. That is if you really have to ask should I go out to Chilliwack if you live in Vancouver. As I said earlier, if you live on the North Shore that's your local area. Stay in that area. I live in the Tri-Cities. I'm not going to be going to White Rock as much as I might want to. I'm staying in the Tri-Cities. If I live in Surrey, that's my local area. If you are on the North Shore and you go hiking you've got lots of trails on the highway. If you're in Vancouver, you've got Stanley Park. I think most people do understand what their local area means. Next question. Rob Monroe, info news. Hi, minister. I just wondered if you could give us a bit more information on what kind of road checks or roadblocks there will be. I know you're still working with police on it, but how will these work and what is the term that you're using to address these issues? First off, the information on that will be coming out, the detailed information on that will be coming out next week. What I want to stress, it is not arbitrary or random and it's not roadblocks. What it is is periodic road checks similar to what you see with the counter-attack program at key points, strategic points if you like at the borders between health authorities. In the case of the lower mainland and the lower mainland, for example, that combined area it would be highway one just before it turns into the canyon routes, the Coca-Cola, or the Hope Princeton. That's the approach that's being considered and taken. I'll have further information on that later next week. Rob, do you have a follow-up? Yes, I'm wondering if there would be any fines for out of problems people coming in and also in terms of not taking the bookings are Airbnb's cooperating with this? Or is there any discussion with them? Could you just repeat that first part of your question, please? I didn't quite get that. If someone's coming in from Alberta will they be subject to the fine of being outside their area? Certainly if you're coming into British Columbia from Alberta and then you decide that you're going to we're going to now go to Vancouver no, you potentially could get a fine. The fines that we've outlined today are $575 and that will be in the order as well. Next question. Tanya Fletcher, CBC News. You keep saying these road checks will be like the drunk driving counterattacks the RCMP union expressed concern about that saying it's much different with the counterattacks police are checking for specific criminal activity whereas this is much more open to interpretation it can be subjective, it's ambiguous and they say it's a line they don't want to cross so the National Police Federation stated what your letter raising these concerns they asked to meet with you before today did you meet with them and did you make any changes to satisfy their concerns? We've received the letter and we've been working with them but what I can tell you is this we have been working very closely with the police, the RCMP here in British Columbia and the chiefs of police on how the order can work and how the process will work and we're very mindful of the issues that the public has raised that's why I've said that the details on the order will be made next week. Do you have a follow up Tanya? Yes, thanks. What about private bookings like Airbnb? Many are desperate for those tourism dollars. Will there be any way to monitor or enforce perhaps under the table reservations that could still see people especially from other provinces coming here when they shouldn't be today? We are working with the tourism industry very closely on these kinds of issues but my message would be this I understand that if you're Airbnb relying on the business for your place and obviously it's clearly as important now is not the time to encourage people to come out to British Columbia if you want to have a long-term viability understand that these health restrictions these travel restrictions have been put in place for just this reason. We get this virus under control we get the population vaccinated so going from 30% today to 60% by the May day long weekend then all of a sudden that starts to have a significant impact in terms of hospitalizations and caseloads and the pressure on our health care system and that will allow us to have the kind of summer that tourism operators including Airbnb types want to have to ensure a long-term viability of their business. Next question. Why do we have to wait until later this next week for details on a major move that you said just took effect instantly today? That seems like a long time to wait for something that's important. I want to make sure that it's done right. I want to make sure that we address the concerns that people have. I want to make sure that the order that is in place which takes place under section 10 of the emergency program act is the right one. I want us to avoid the situation for example that happened in Ontario. So we are working with police very closely and ensuring that what comes out is what's right. Do you have a follow-up, Les? I'm just picturing the checkpoints and do you think this is going to boil down to police pulling over anybody in an RV or a camper or with a canoe on top? I can't see them interrogating every single traveler about their reasons for travel. That's why, as I said, the details on the order will be coming out next week but the bottom line is this. This is about discouraging travel. Unnecessary travel. Common sense. Ensuring that people know what is going to be taking place. That's why it's being brought in now. That's why there's a sunset clause that it will expire after the Maylong weekend. It's about reminding people that if we take this action now that we don't travel outside our health region like outside of the lower mainland to the interior, from the lower mainland to Vancouver Island then you know what? Come the summer we'll be in a much better place where you hopefully will be able to travel like we used to. We have time for one more question. Can you go to Camille Bain's Canadian Press? Hi, Minister. You mentioned there will be consequences and the Premier also said the same thing. What will those consequences be? So, for example, on the ferry, you could be denied your booking but as announced today there will be a fine. There is a fine, the potential of a fine for $575. Camille, do you have a follow-up? Yes, thank you. We know that most people haven't paid their fines so far for other infractions during the pandemic. What makes you think that this is going to be a deterrent? Well, first off, we do live in a democracy where people do have administrative fairness when it comes to fines so people do have the ability to fight and dispute a ticket that they receive. The way the current process works is that you have to dispute a ticket. You are deemed to be guilty and then that is forwarded to a collection agency for follow-up and collection. I have also indicated that is my intention within the next few weeks we are currently in session that I will be introducing legislation that will allow for further debt collection measures to be taken to ensure that all fines that are issued under COVID-19 will in fact be collected and paid. And that is all we have time for today. Thank you everyone. That concludes today's event.