Editor's Note -- Column by Quesnel Mayor Bob Simpson. He can be reached by email here
I chose the title of this update deliberately, risking the
possibility of some ‘what the heck’ reactions as I need to clarify a very
crucial point about the current state of emergency that is causing some
confusion and some very unrealistic expectations of City Council and City
staff.
The declaration of a state of emergency (SOE) is never made
lightly. These declarations should only ever be made when a government (First
Nation, local, regional, provincial, or federal) needs to take extraordinary
and temporary measures to address an immediate crisis that threatens the
safety and security of its citizens.
It should be noted that during this current crisis the Federal
Government has not yet made the declaration for the whole country, and not
all Provinces or Territories have done so either.
When a government declares a state of emergency the temporary
nature of that declaration is defined in law. In BC, a state of emergency
automatically expires in 14 days and must be renewed by the Provincial
Cabinet, again only for another 14 days. This is to prevent any government
from using the unilateral powers it obtains under an SOE, which are
considerable, indefinitely. Local government SOEs automatically expire in 7
days and can be renewed, but only with permission of the provincial
government.
It is also important to note that a local SOE can only be
applied to the geographic area that the local government has legal
jurisdiction over and no more. The provincial government has the latitude to
declare an SOE for certain parts of the province or the entire province but
cannot extend their SOE beyond the provincial boundaries. The province can
also cancel the SOEs of local governments.
Most states of emergency, and particularly local SOEs, are
declared due to natural or man-made disasters or events that are clearly
putting the public in imminent danger: fires, floods, large scale explosions,
major chemical spills or gas leaks – that is, tangible physical threats to
life, limb, and property.
All this background information is to make this crucial point:
the current state of emergency we are under is of a different kind and scale
than anything we’ve ever experienced, it is a provincial public health
emergency to deal with an unseen virus rather than a self-evident physical
threat like a wildfire or a flood.
The lead agency for this public health emergency is the
Province, and in particular its public health authorities, not local
government. As a result, the City is playing a supporting role in this
emergency, unlike the lead role we can and often do have in local SOEs during
wildfires or floods.
This means that the City does not always have the authority
people believe we ought to have or the information people demand we provide
to them.
For example, we do not know where the confirmed COVID cases
are in our region; we do not decide what businesses are or are not essential;
we do not determine who can or cannot travel into and out of our community;
and we do not decide what information will be shared with the public and what
will be withheld.
As a Council, we’re taking our supporting role very seriously
and we’re working on multiple fronts to get our community through this
unprecedented global pandemic while assisting the province and health
authorities to limit the spread of the virus.
But it is NOT our emergency. So, when Council members or City
staff say you need to speak with the Province or the Health Authority, we’re
not passing the buck, we’re directing you to the authoritative agencies who
are the only ones who can answer your questions or address your concerns.
For updated information about what we’re doing and links to
the most authoritative information sources about this pandemic, visit the
City’s website at www.quesnel.ca/covid-19. You can also sign
up for email notifications at www.quesnel.ca/subscribe.
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