Police remind PG protestors of new access to services act

Prince George RCMP said they received complaints today (Monday) of protestors outside COVID-19 vaccine clinics shouting anti-vaccine slogans and following people back to their vehicles.

Cpl Jennifer Cooper is reminding residents of a new act in place called the Access to Services (COVID-19) Act which makes sure protestors do not block or intimidate residents trying to access vaccine clinics by requiring protestors to stay 20 metres away from facilities.

“Under the new Act, police can respond to complaints of this nature in two ways: through arrests and by issuing Violation Tickets with an attached fine of $2300. We want to remind the public that while you may not feel your actions are intimidating, to those people accessing the services of the vaccine clinic being followed to or from their vehicle and being shouted at in close proximity can be very intimidating,” stated Cooper.

Contraventions of the Act include:

• Impeding access to or egress from a facility,
• Physically interfering with or otherwise disrupting the provision of services at the facility,
• Intimidating or attempting to intimidate an individual or otherwise doing or saying anything that could reasonably be expected to cause an individual concern for the individual’s physical or mental safety, or
• Willfully participating in a gathering whose participants are engaged in the conduct in (a) – (c) above.

Cooper said they are trying to educate people where they can, and will be keeping an eye on future clinics.

“We will be proactive, we do know when the upcoming vaccine clinics are, and we will be making sure everyone stays within the bounds of the act.”

People can find more information on the new act on the Government of BC website.

The act is also effective around hospitals, K-12 schools, and COVID-19 testing facilities.