 Good morning. It's good to see so few of you here today practicing safe physical distancing. We have today on the traditional territory of the Lekongan speaking people the Songhees and Esquimalt First Nations I want to make another series of statements with respect to our COVID-19 action plan It's been eight weeks since the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed here in British Columbia and it amazes me How much our lives have changed in that time? It's a stressful time. It's an uncertain time But people have been resilient Every day health experts give us the latest information and advice to stop the virus Frontline workers report to duty caring for people and protecting them from harm Businesses have been finding new ways to operate by adapting to the needs of their customers as well as Directives from the public health officer and more and more people are taking up the charge every day to help their neighbors to help their friends to help their Families and to help their communities That's inspiring and that gives hope to those Healthcare workers those frontline workers that are putting themselves at risk every day to do what they can to make life better For those who have become ill But we need to make sure that people can count on government to put forward the best possible advice We're receiving from experts to make sure that British Columbians are safe to make sure we can continue to get through this together We've been calling on businesses and and people to do what they can and they have been doing everything They can to support healthcare workers. We have their backs. They have our backs That's the way it should be as you know on Monday We announced a five billion dollar package for people and businesses Yesterday, we announced a package for renters and landlords and earlier in the week We put in place legislation to protect workers through employment standards changes so that they can be protected if they become sick Today, we're taking the next steps in that response to protect supply chains to stop people from reselling goods and medical Supplies to define which businesses are indeed essential services and to make sure British Columbians are complying with public health officer orders The steps we're taking today are unprecedented But I find myself saying that almost every day. These are uncharted territories for all of us But together we'll get through this. This is not a drill. It's a pandemic We're facing tremendous challenges and together we can get through them But to do that we all need to be pulling in the same direction local governments Businesses indigenous communities and people from every part of BC We need to follow the orders of dr. Bonnie Henry and the public health officers They're not suggestions are good advice. They're the law We're counting on everyone to do their part and BC's action plan will get us to where we need to be in the days and weeks ahead I'm now going to turn it over to Minister Farnworth to talk about some of the changes We're making today so that people have a better understanding of what our BC COVID-19 action plan will do for them in the days ahead Thank you premier and good day everyone I'd like to acknowledge that we're gathered on the territory of the Lekwungen peoples and the song he's in a squimalt First Nations, I'm Mike Farnworth the minister of public safety and minister responsible for emergency management BC COVID-19 is impacting all of us touching our lives and our economy and I know it's been extremely hard on people Not only here in BC, but globally we find ourselves coming to terms with a rapidly changing world Adjusting to this new temporary reality isn't easy, but it's necessary And I want to assure you that our government is working to alleviate the pressures that we're all facing On Monday, you heard premier Horgan and the minister of finance outline our plan to support people and protect protect workers These efforts are in concert with the federal government's economic plan And we'll give immediate relief to the people of our province who are worried about paying bills and staying afloat As house leader, I also resumed the legislature on Monday to expedite our government's response to COVID-19 and Some of the key actions to be taken in the coming weeks. I Want British Columbians to know that these steps are being taken to support all of us who are doing our part to flatten the curve These measures will allow us to do the right thing To stay home when possible look after our kids and avoid community transition All these measures have laid the groundwork for our government to take further extraordinary and unprecedented action Which I will be discussing today We've now been in a provincial state of emergency for a week But this health crisis has lasted much longer and we're at a critical junction We all need to ask ourselves. What are we doing to flatten the curve? Are we all playing our part and most importantly are we following the clear directions and orders of Dr. Henry? Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Minister of Health Adrienne Dix have been tirelessly working to prevent the spread of COVID-19 And they have given us all of us important direction on how everyone has a role to play While many in British Columbia are playing their part We have all seen examples of some who continue to defy orders and instruction Whether that is hoarding important medical supplies and goods or coming together in large groups It has become clear that additional extraordinary measures are necessary to secure Critical supply chains and safeguard the most vulnerable. I want to be clear as the Premier just said a moment ago Dr. Henry's orders are not suggestions or good advice. They are the law and As Minister of Public Safety, I will exercise my powers under the emergency program Act to ensure that those laws are enforced That is why today based on the recommendation of BC's health and emergency management officials I am taking the unprecedented step to issue a series of orders for the duration of this provincial state of emergency To support our provincial health officer and Minister of Health in our swift and powerful response to the COVID-19 pandemic It's crucial that response and recovery is coordinated and that we move forward in lockstep with federal and local governments Under a single action plan. I Know many British Columbians are worried about our flow of essential goods and our ability to ensure shelves are stocked Therefore effective immediately We have established a new provincial supply chain coordination unit to work in partnership with industry to coordinate goods and services distribution and Any bylaws that restrict the delivery of goods at any time of day are repealed The province through emergency management BC will take a more active role in coordinating essential goods and services movement by land air marine and rail and At EMBC's request Retailers and suppliers must report on inventory of critical supplies including health supplies for frontline workers To protect British Columbians and give everyone the peace of mind that they will be able to buy groceries and other essential supplies We are prohibiting the resale of food medical supplies personal protective equipment cleaning and other essential supplies and Working with retailers on measures to restrict quantities of certain essential products at the point of sale These measures will help end hoarding at our grocery stores and the shameful black market for medical supplies Making sure our essential service workers including health workers have every resource available That they need to continue with their incredible efforts in caring for all of us We are at a critical stage in our response to COVID-19 The message from health officials is clear and simple How we act today will determine our future Most people are doing the right thing staying home Staying physically distant and adjusting to life at the direction of our provincial health officer As I said again, and I'll remind everyone Dr. Henry's orders aren't suggestions. They are the law to that end We will be we will be enabling municipal bylaw officers to be redeployed To help ensure compliance with prevent with the provincial health officers recommendations and orders Orders which could carry fines or even jail time The PHO's recommendations and orders include physical distancing Making sure that businesses order to close our state are staying closed and that gatherings of more than 50 people don't take place I want to commend the passion and dedication of our frontline workers Working to fight COVID-19 and keep people safe And I also acknowledge the steps many communities have already taken to respond to this health crisis Many local governments have declared local states of emergency in an effort to combat this pandemic on the front lines But in these unprecedented times, it's more important than ever To coordinate emergency response to better serve and protect British colombians Effective immediately Municipal states of emergency related to COVID-19 are suspended They this will ensure a coordinated approach is taken under the under the provincially declared state of emergency Local governments are key partners To that end local governments are being asked To identify and make available any publicly owned facility that may be used for pandemic response Including facilities for self-isolation medical care and testing That they should they must respond to any requests for information from the province to identify resources and critical supply and service needs This is not an exhaustive list and more information on these measures will be available in the coming days and weeks ahead I'd like to take a minute to acknowledge the many people adapting at work and at home to the new environment under COVID-19 All those people working in essential services to keep society running Thank you If you're adapting your business and finding ways to work from home, it's important that you continue to do so In fact, it's crucial Every day you log in from home. You're doing your part to keep your community healthy and safe These are unprecedented measures for unprecedented times And these are actions. I would not be taking unless absolutely necessary Our frontline workers are supporting all of us through this health emergency The rest of us need to do our part by supporting them As the premier said They've had our back It's time that we have theirs And we can and we will by following the provincial health office's orders Staying home and keeping our essential goods and services flowing Now is the time for all of us to be kind to be calm and to be safe But it's also a time to be selfless To know the decisions you make today could drastically impact the lives of your family friends and neighbors So on a close by saying follow the advice of the public health officer Be vigilant about your hand hygiene maintain physical distancing Do not leave home if you're sick And remember public safety orders in place from the provincial health officer and the province Must be followed Failure to do so will have real consequences for all of us. Thank you We're going to start with a question from Keith Baldry Hi, minister. So uh suspending municipal States of emergency in and kubernetes declared one. Have you talked to uh, mayor steward about this and what was his reaction to that? Um, the the municipal state of emergency in the city of vancouver is is not suspended because it was done Under the the vancouver charter all the other states of local emergency Were done under the emergency program act For the rest of british columbia What we have communicated to the to the city of vancouver is that while their locals their state of emergency Remains in place because it was done under the charter. No further additional orders can be taken Without the express approval of myself as minister Our next question comes from penny daflus Hi there. Thank you for the question. We're seeing that while many people are keeping up with developments in covet 19 response Some aren't and are getting second or third hand information Some of it gets convoluted and I just wonder if you will be Activating anything through the emergency alert system just so that everybody is on the same page and understand Exactly what restrictions are in place and what kind of enforcement they can expect Well, I'll do a broader answer to that question and then might can fill in the detail We have been uh four weeks now daily Having significant briefings with dr. Bonnie henry and minister dicks about the health consequences about public safety And how people should respond under the circumstances we find ourselves in that remains the case Dr. Henry is available every day for extensive Q and a's with the media. This is broadcast live on many networks We are doing everything we can to have up-to-date information in the public domain as quickly as possible And we'll continue to do that and if there are Requirements for improving that distribution of information will certainly do that But at this point based on the powers that minister farm with is laid out Based on the work that we've been doing again. It's a cross-government approach. We have been all hands on deck We've got to the finance ministry working on packages to make sure that resources get to people into businesses The minister of housing is working on making sure we're addressing the hard to home Those who are concerned about their rent and concerned about their mortgage And this carries right across the board the minister of tourism and culture working with Film and cultural organizations who have seen an elimination of their industry literally overnight There's a whole host of things that we're working on day by day by day And getting that information out to the public as quickly as possible If there's need need for alert systems the minister will deploy those at this point We believe that the public is responding very very well There are some outliers and those are the people that mike was speaking about in terms of their behavior In terms of selfishness their behavior in terms of disregarding the law As it's been articulated by dr. Henry if there's a need the minister has the powers to invoke New mechanisms, but at this point we're comfortable with the way we're going from here Next question is justine hunter Premier along those same lines you your your government has been rolling out very gradually over the last 11 days increasing amounts of restrictions And i'm just wondering if you can talk about how you're pacing this how is there a sort of a social component to this in terms of Bringing the public along could you have done what you're doing today on march 16th? Well, we don't believe we could have we've been trying to be methodical work with our partners local governments working with the federal government Working with indigenous communities Healthcare providers first and foremost the front line workers are our primary concern So that we can make sure that we're getting all of the services they need In place so they can continue to do their good work to protect people's well-being We are taking a methodical approach. We do not want to flood the airwaves with too much information We want people to focus on dr. Henry and minister dicks on a daily basis And we will fill in the gaps as required In terms of essential services Designations that is Appropriate today and that's why we're doing it today In in the terms of trying to stop the patchwork of emergencies across the province It was appropriate that we do this today and that's why we've done it What we have been advised to do it eight or nine days ago the situation was not the same then so I believe we're responding as information comes to us Science-based information. That's the value of our public health officials who have never been more heroic than they are In these very very challenging times. We need to take their advice. We're doing that and we're building our COVID-19 response based on that information But we're doing it in a way that ensures we're bringing everyone along Case in point was minister farm with reconvening the legislature and having a level of collaboration between the various political parties That's unprecedented in british-clumbia history exactly what the public would expect of us And now we're saying to the public we have expectations of you as well Follow the orders follow the law. We'll all get through this together Next question comes from donna gibson Donna go ahead make sure your phone is unmuted Oh, sorry. I'm just wondering where exactly people can find a list of what the orders are They will be online on the the government of bc website on emergency management bc website And that they will be available in in a number of other formats as well online We're going to go to shan ekford next Sean, please go ahead Hi, thank you Minister farnworth. I believe you're going to receive soon a letter from our local governments here on the sunshine coast asking that We've lost you shan You'll be making that recommendation to the health minister shan. Could you repeat that question? We lost you part way through I'm sorry. What? Sean, could you repeat the question please we we lost the feed? Oh, I'm sorry. I was asking minister farnworth About a communication. He's going to get soon from local governments on the sunshine coast the health minister I think it's going to get it to asking that police officers and other first responders get the same priority for testing that health care workers currently have Here in rural communities a lot of them are volunteers and and we're worried Yeah, no, thank you. And that's that's a good question. We want to make sure as many people can get tested as possible there is a priority and a determination that is made by the provincial health officer and the ministry of health So when that letter is received by them, they will be making those determinations That's the that's their job and their jurisdiction Next question is from Eric Zimmer Hi You talked about banning the secondary resale of food medical supplies protective equipment, etc Just curious what the enforcement of this looks like and how will that work logistically? Well, first off when it become it comes to our attention that this is in fact taking place Then the the police will have the powers that they have to be able to to to not only to do investigations but to press charges and to lay charges And people engage in that that kind of activity of which there's no place for can expect to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law Next we have Justin McElroy uh, premier six days ago I spoke with a lot of the provincial officials about this difference between local states of emergency and they said that municipalities were Perfectly fine to put in local states if they wanted to give into the situation What changed specifically over the last six days that made the province now go who I guess it's monday for the province to say that It was important for a centralized response. Was it anything like Prince Rupert's Decisions to put travel restrictions and things like that that went well beyond what the province was currently doing Well, it was a variety of factors. Justin. First of all, we didn't want to see a patchwork Emerging across british columbia one of the earlier questions was about how do we ensure continuity of information? Reduced confusion to the greatest extent possible And if you have different jurisdictions in different parts of the province evoking different powers That are inconsistent with their neighbors that leads to a first of all a leapfrogging effect An expectation in community a that if community b has done something then I have to as well We want to reduce anxiety. We want to increase public confidence And the best way to do that is to have a uniform approach We will absolutely be working with Municipal of municipal officials in in fact part of minister farmworth's Directive today is Utilizing by-law officials at the municipal level so that we can implement Emergency plans at the provincial level We have also been in discussions with premiers across the country as well as the prime minister About what role the federal government has to play in terms of their emergency powers It's our view that the province is best placed to as we deliver the services that are most important right now that being health care services That the province take the lead on these issues The vast majority of municipalities I would suggest are breathing a sigh of relief that they now can fall in behind a provincial approach Every corner of the province approach rather than being concerned about a neighboring municipality Inacting a principal that they might not be able to achieve based on the resources They have available we need to make sure that everyone's treated equally Everyone's treated fairly and minister farmworth is the best place to do that with the provincial powers that are in the epa Next question is from glenda looms from vancouver sun Hi, yeah, thank you Um in the u.s. President trump has been saying he wants to open some sections of the u.s. Economy by easter Are you concerned that this could interfere interfere with our own efforts to keep the virus in check and that it Will send a wrong message to british columbians that we can return to normal that soon I've resisted uh commenting on any uh questions directly related to the federal government Immediately below us. I can say that I am in regular contact with governor inslee in washington state where uh prior to New york and california emerging because of their large populations as epicenters of covet 19 in the u.s washington state was ground zero and State officials there worked very cooperatively with us and our federal government to ensure that we were able to put in Border restrictions that prohibited Random travel or unnecessary travel frivolous travel and focused on making sure that supply chains could remain open So that level of cooperation province to state with the assistance of the federal government here in canada is my focus what the united states does uh from washington dc is uh Is uh, I I'm just going to pass on that if it's okay with you richards this mid next question Premier and minister farnworth I'm not sure if you've seen this letter from uh prince rupert mayor lee brain But he sent a mayor to his uh letter to his fellow mayors um when I Assumed based on the letter that you have formed under this was happening a few days ago And part of it reads the province stripping local autonomy to do a central coordination When we need the power to be part of this fight is the wrong decision and they will see that in the long run What do you see about quashing municipalities abilities to make their own decision considering as mr Brain lays out in this note that they know best what their local communities need and not victoria This is a pandemic uh like we have never seen in this province before And it requires a coordinated approach I respect that there are different views and different opinions on how this is to be dealt with But the reality is this We have a provincial health officer Whose background in pandemics is unparalleled It is her job And the job of the ministry of health To ensure that the province is doing everything it can and its power Their measures their orders their directions their advice Is what we make our decisions on Along with the experts within my own ministry of emergency management bc We have been clear That local government is a key partner and we have laid out the things today that we want and expect them to do And we will continue to work with them to deal with local issues as they come up But let me be really clear their needs to be A province-wide coordinated approach where everybody is working together On the best available advice the best available it's science And that is having the uh the the Listening to and implementing the directions and the orders of our provincial health officer and the ministry of health And what we are doing today is the best way To do just that Thank you. Our next question is from von palmer Good day, um Mr. farnworth a couple of things that that jumped out of what you just said one is the Compiling the local inventory of facilities that might be needed and uh Could you confirm that the government is considering using the vacant convention centers for overflow health care? And the other thing is you're taking control of supply systems or supply lines for medical equipment And as I understand it one of the big problems is that the stuff that british columbia has ordered from the united states Is not being delivered because the americans need it for their own uses. So i'm wondering how These orders that you've brought in can help the province deal with that In answer to your to your first question the answer is yes We are considering that and that is uh that is one of the reasons why we've asked uh local governments to identify Facilities that could be of use Uh in dealing with either self-isolation or to to be able to house uh individuals So yes, that is something that is that is underway in regards to the second question. Yeah, that's a very uh Serious serious issue that we're trying to deal with and so what the the powers and what the orders where we've Announced today will allow us to do is to determine what additional supplies are available here in british columbia Where they are how we can coordinate To make sure that they get to where they need to be There's a lot of that work is going on on underway already as you know minister dicks And dr. Bonnie henry Are working on that plan to ensure that we have the protective Equipment and the health equipment that is necessary and i know that they will be doing further updates Later today and later this week I can also tell you that we've had very good response already From industry in terms of identifying. Uh, what's what what equipment may well be out there We're also working very closely with the the federal government on this issue The other issue that is being dealt with in terms of these orders is it's allowing us to identify critical gaps In different parts of the province so that they can be addressed But also to be able to put in place the necessary transportation measures whether it be by air By by marine truck or rail to ensure that supplies get to jurisdictions Right around this province when and where that they're needed to add a couple of points vaughn firstly As you know and have commented on Unprecedented capacity within our acute care system has been created Over the past couple of weeks to prepare for any eventuality But uh, you know out of an abundance of caution and appropriate emergency planning alternative sources to to Put people to get the care that they need that may not be acute care Is an appropriate part of the plan and dr. Henry and her team have been working on this for some time And and this is just a natural evolution of those Implementing those policy decisions with respect to equipment We've been working the council of federation premiers across the country to ensure that we're doing our level best To not duplicate creating manufacturing capacity for potential shortages as a result of supply chain issues on the health side and A good example of that would be ontario which has got a massive space a manufacturing space as a result of the downsizing of the auto sector and of course extraordinary talented canadians are Being asked to step up with innovative ways to find solutions to potential Disruptions in our supply chains and i'm really really excited about that again another example I think that all canadians should be proud of of people putting aside regional concerns partisan concerns and focusing on how can we all work together and we don't want to reinvent wheels if ontario is the best place to To put in place manufacturing capacity to meet our needs That's what we should do together and the federal government has been coordinating that very effectively and again To all of the watchers or viewers today Take comfort in the fact that people are focusing on on people as they should That's not always the case in daily life here in in in the political sphere but today In the current circumstances emergency circumstances unprecedented circumstances people are all pulling together those very few outliers That people have talked about and seen the hoarders the The profiteers and those that are selfishly putting themselves ahead of their neighbors and their community Those are the people we're speaking directly to today get on board with the rest of the province and the country and we'll get through this Our next question is from colton davis Hi minister farnworth the number of communities of course have a state of have had a state of local emergency in place Up here like cam loops merit clear water Have you spoken directly to all the communities that have had one in place about the next steps and As well could this nullify some restrictions that specific communities with the state of local emergency have put in place um first uh, we uh, we had a uh a conference call Early this week with local governments from across the province to outline And give them a heads up on some of the issues that we would be announcing today in particular Around the issue of local states of emergency We will also be talking with them after this press conference. So that communication is ongoing As i've said and as the premier said what we need to have is a A coordinated approach right across the province so that we don't have a patchwork response That's what these orders are about We also want to make it clear that local government has an important role to play Working with them to to deal with the issues that they're facing that we're facing That uh, you know, we've asking we're asking them Issues that we want them to identify whether it's supply chain issues, whether it's critical service issues in their communities Mutual aid agreements for example between them and neighboring communities so that we can deal with some of the challenges on on critical infrastructure that need to be in place Bylaw officers that are that are that that are able to to assist in terms of dealing with and enforcing The the orders that dr. Bonnie henry has put in place Because those are the measures that are going to get us through this pandemic and by working together And so we will be continuing to work with local government to make sure that all of us are doing everything that we can To get through this and I know that we will We have time for two more questions. The first one is from dirk meister I have premier with the supply chain unit Are are you saying that you could tell someone like jimmy paddison where to send his grocery trucks? You go ahead The the unit that you're talking about is is a group that comprises key ministries And members of of industry In determining what some of the roadblocks are that need to be overcome And also in terms of identifying the best way to to get some of the supply chains moving We've been very pleased with the discussions that we have had already On these issues and a lot of them are being are being resolved And you're seeing it right from the from from at the very base level in terms of how many stores are already Putting in place the social distancing measures that are required To identifying problems one of the ones which the measures that we deal with is that ability to deliver Goods any time of the day or night to get them into communities to get them into the stores But it also looks at if for example, there are challenges In certain parts of the province in terms of getting goods To that location. What's the best way to do it? You know many airlines now or large and small have spare capacity now We want to bring them in so that they're able to to assist us So it's very much a cooperative effort. It does give us Some considerable power, but again, it's all about planning For the for the long term as well as the immediate needs As dr. Bonnie Henry has said on many occasions. This is a marathon It's not a sprint and so we're doing everything we can to make sure that we can deal with the immediate But also have in place those measures that we're going to need for the medium and the long term And And I would just add dirk The reason I chuckled is that uh, I saw a tweet the other day of a friend of mine who had bumped into jimmy Paterson at one of his outlets in vancouver. They're talking to staff talking to customers So jimmy paterson and the entire business community to be quite frank has been overwhelmingly supportive of offering suggestions offering Proposals taking advice from governments about how we can get through this and and that is absolutely critical We we always think of course of our our health care workers our doctors our nurses our care aides Who are our paramedics ambulance attendants that are right there? Every day, but we also need to make sure that those shelves are stocked and people get the food that they need We need to make sure that child care is available for first responders frontline workers Not just of those critically important health workers, but also truck drivers Warehousemen people who are keeping the the supply lines going and and I you know again I just I marvel at 90 years old jimmy paterson is out in his stores Talking to employees talking to customers and and I think that's symbolic of what we would like to see From all british columbians those those better angels stepping forward to do what's right And I know we'll get that in full measure from our business community Our final question today is from tanya Fletcher Hi, I'm just wondering like a lot of the measures today seem very focused on on on keeping the supply and the stock for critical supplies up and well and coordinating a provincial response, but why isn't there more of a restriction on the movement of people perhaps more lockdown style measures I know under the emergency act you have the power to restrict people from traveling anywhere around the province Why aren't we seeing more of those types of measures? Well, we've been saying that for weeks quite frankly And dr. Henry has been abundantly clear if you don't need to be out stay home That that includes not just not traveling to To the the okanagan or not traveling to prince rupert. It means stay home So we we have been clear on that We need to make sure that those supply chains however are are open and that We can have seamless movement of goods and services to meet the needs in an emergency setting So, uh, I believe that uh, you know people are looking for for terminology to kind of capture these extraordinary times And if lockdown is a term people want to use fair enough. We our borders were closed unprecedented In the past 10 days to travel from outside of british columbia And we've been saying to those inside british columbia stay close to home Stay where you should be and we'll get through this together. So, uh, I believe that Reinforcing as minister farm worth is done today The ability of the government to impose restrictions further than those that have already been put in place Based on the advice of dr. Henry will do that But today we believe we're on the right track and and we will we will modify again. I've been saying this as well tanya for some weeks now We're this is a work in progress and if we need to do more we will if we need to ease restrictions We will but we have to do that based on the evidence based on what we're hearing from People in communities and that's why it's so important that our local governments who are The the essence of who we are at the component parts of bc make bc spectacular every part of this great province and And the people that step up for public service are there and wanting to help and and we're going to be calling on them increasingly to collaborate and coordinate that activity in the interest of all british columbians Thank you everyone