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By Minister of Jobs, Economic Recovery and Innovation Ravi Kahlon

Sound Off

SOUND OFF: B.C.’s restart brings renewed hope for British Columbians

Jun 9, 2021 | 9:37 AM

OVER THE COURSE OF THE LAST 15 MONTHS, British Columbians have banded together like never before through acts of kindness. We put hearts in our windows to honour healthcare workers, we walked a neighbour’s dog, picked up a friend’s groceries and businesses created special shopping time for those most at risk during the pandemic.

The kindness has been endless and the sacrifices have been many. My respect and gratitude go out to all the people that make up this great province. Thank you for your countless selfless acts and for taking care of one another.

A load is slowly being lifted off our shoulders with people continuing to get vaccinated by the thousands every day. There is light and a return to normalcy at the end of the tunnel, and it is beginning to take shape through B.C.’s restart plan.

The plan is a promising four-step road map based on metrics that include declining COVID-19 case counts and increasing vaccination rates for people all over British Columbia.

On May 25, 2021, we started Step 1 that allows most business to be able to return to operating under their current WorkSafeBC COVID-19 safety plans. Now, people can celebrate the joy of a wedding or baptism with up to 10 people in an organized event indoors or have celebrations or remembrances of up to 50 people outside.

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Recreational travel within your health authority has also been restored, so you can now take your family to the lake, go hiking or enjoy some other perfect local “staycation.”

We can also now work in the office a few days a week, as long as we follow our employer’s existing safety plan.

Step 2 will begin in the coming weeks, if we continue our efforts to get vaccinated and our public health metrics, like case counts, continue in the right direction. This means we will be able to have small celebrations at banquet halls, which will reopen with limited capacity and have safety plans in place. Restrictions on liquor service will be lifted to allow service until midnight.

Also in Step 2, we will be able to fully return to work and hold small, in-person meetings. Personally, I look forward to visiting my extended family, meeting people in person and maybe even spending a little time playing the sports that I love.

That is how we will operate until it is safe to move into Step 3 and Step 4 of our restart plan, where businesses will operate under new sector safety plans and we will see bingo halls, casinos and nightclubs reopen with limited capacity.

By working together and achieving our public health goals, we will see increased activity in key industries, such as travel, tourism, food, beverage, hospitality, arts and culture, and more. Carefully renewed activities are a vital part of our restart plan, and each action you take that supports local businesses will help create more jobs and help people return to work.

As we move forward with the restart plan, we will engage with people and businesses at every step through roundtables with industry, labour, WorkSafeBC and public health to develop industry-specific safety plans. We will also continue to engage with First Nations and municipal governments to work on resolving the critically important issues facing us today.

As I reflect on the past 15 months, I am proud to see how innovative and adaptive British Columbians have been over the course of the pandemic. I am also proud of our government’s commitment to providing the vitally important supports and services that British Columbians have needed to get through the pandemic.

Economic recovery is not just about facts and figures and dollar signs. It’s really about people and families travelling, visiting, celebrating, dining, working, playing and experiencing all of the great things British Columbia has to offer.

If you haven’t already, now is the time to get vaccinated so you can safely start to do the things you enjoy and share time with people you love.

It has been a long road, and we are all looking forward to restoring our mental well-being by sharing time with our friends, family and in our community.

As we slowly and cautiously begin to venture out more and more, I encourage you to visit your local businesses. Do some in-person shopping or have lunch with some friends at your favourite restaurant. This is something I am certainly looking forward to.

Remember every dollar you spend on a B.C. product or a B.C. business will help our economy recover and support workers and their families.

There are exciting times ahead as we forge a new way forward in British Columbia. Your actions will make a difference. Your government will be there to support you every step of the way.

I know that we will all continue to rise to the challenge.

Together, through B.C.’s restart plan, we will build a better and brighter future with meaningful jobs and a strong, sustainable, and inclusive economy for everyone.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or the Jim Pattison Broadcast Group.