BC Today – Daily Report April 6, 2020 Quotation of the day “This is not the only time that baseless allegations have put an MLA’s career under a long shadow.” After a six-month investigation into unspecified allegations against NDP MLA Jinny Sims ​ turned up no wrongdoing, Premier John Horgan suggests B.C.’s special prosecutor process ​ ​ could use a tune-up. Today in B.C. On the schedule Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix will provide an ​ ​ ​ ​ update on B.C.’s COVID-19 cases at 1:30 p.m. The briefing will be livestreamed. ​ ​ Committees this week There are four virtual committee meetings scheduled for this week. On Tuesday morning, the Select Standing Committee on Children and Youth will meet in camera. The committee will review the Ministry of Children and Family Development’s response to the committee’s report on children and youth with neuro-diverse special needs. It will also plan its meetings with Children and Youth Representative Jennifer Charlesworth. ​ ​ The Special Committee to Review the Personal Information Protection Act will also meet for in camera deliberations. The Legislative Assembly Management Committee (LAMC) is scheduled to convene Tuesday afternoon to review the legislative assembly’s financial statements and accountability reports for the 2017-18 and 2018-19 fiscal years and the financial update for the third quarter of the current one. On Wednesday, the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services will meet to review a supplementary funding request from Elections BC and do some in camera planning for consultations on Budget 2021. Special prosecutor clears MLA Sims of all criminal allegations A former NDP cabinet minister has been cleared of any criminal wrongdoing by Special ​ ​ Prosecutor Richard Peck. ​ ​ The determination comes six months after the investigation into unspecified allegations against Jinny Sims, MLA for Surrey—Panorama, began. ​ Sims, who resigned from her post as citizens’ services minister last October after being notified of the investigation, thanked the RCMP for conducting a thorough probe of what she called “baseless accusations” against her. “I’m pleased that the RCMP has confirmed there is no evidence to support any of these claims,” Sims said. “Unfortunately, [BC Liberal Party Leader] Andrew Wilkinson’s decision to promote ​ ​ ​ ​ these fabricated claims resulted in the unnecessary diversion of police time and resources.” In May 2019, the Liberals asked that the RCMP investigate Sims over allegations she had ​ ​ accepted money in exchange for writing visa reference letters for several individuals from Pakistan. Premier John Horgan and the NDP dismissed the allegations, which were levied by ​ ​ Sims’ former constituency assistant. In the wake of Sims’ resignation, Wilkinson castigated the NDP government for “insisting” Sims had done nothing wrong. “The fault lies at the feet of John Horgan and he needs to immediately explain to British Columbians why a special prosecutor has been appointed to investigate an NDP minister,” he said in a statement at the time. The Liberals also flooded her riding with flyers accusing the NDP ​ ​ of a coverup. But, even now, the premier says neither he nor Sims have any idea what Sims was investigated for. In a statement, Horgan said the former cabinet minister “co-operated with the investigation throughout, despite not knowing who had accused her, nor the nature of the allegations.” The premier suggested it may be time to overhaul the special prosecutor process, noting that the fruitless investigation into Sims “cast a shadow” over her reputation — something other MLAs have experienced in the past. ​ ​ “Both the public and elected officials would be better served by a special prosecutor process that is speedier and more transparent,” Horgan said. Any changes to the process will wait until the legislature resumes. Topics of conversation ● As of Saturday, there were 1,203 confirmed COVID-19 cases in B.C. with 29 new cases confirmed by Dr. Bonnie Henry during the daily briefing; an additional 53 cases were ​ ​ confirmed on Friday. ○ B.C.’s COVID-19 death toll has risen to 38 with seven fatalities confirmed since Friday, most of them residents of the Lynn Valley Care Centre and Haro Park care facility. There are now 23 B.C. care homes dealing with COVID-19 cases. ○ The province’s hospitalization rate for coronavirus patients has risen slowly but steadily. As of Saturday, there were 149 people in hospital with the viral infection and 68 critical cases. More than 700 people have recovered. ○ In an effort to free up hospital beds for a possible surge in COVID-19 cases, the province has already cancelled 11,276 scheduled surgeries. ○ “This is our time to hold the line. We must be unwavering in our commitment to keep our firewall up here in B.C., to keep it strong, and to flatten our curve,” Dr. Henry said of the preliminary indications that the province’s efforts to slow the spread of the virus may be working. ● Health Minister Adrian Dix called the White House’s order halting the export of N95 ​ ​ masks manufactured by 3M “not surprising” but said Canada “shouldn’t respond with ​ ​ retaliation.” ○ “It’s wrong for them and wrong for us,” he said of the Trump administration’s action. “Part of the reason we have challenges in British Columbia is because there were challenges in Washington state.” ○ Meanwhile, Nanaimo’s Harmac Pacific pulp mill is now working around the clock to produce pulp for medical supplies, including masks and gowns, manufactured ​ ​ in the U.S. “We’ve never had a doubling for this grade of pulp, so you can tell that there’s some supply problems out there,” the company’s president said. ○ Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he’s confident Canada will still be able to ​ ​ acquire N95s from south of the border and planned to talk to U.S. President Donald Trump about the issue. ​ ○ Ontario Premier Doug Ford floated a possible retaliatory measure by noting that ​ ​ about 1,000 nurses in Windsor cross the border to work in hospitals in nearby Detroit, Michigan (but said “tit for tat” is the wrong direction for this to go in.) ● B.C. is not planning to release any projections about the possible death toll of COVID-19, according to Dr. Henry. “You can't predict where this is going to erupt,” she ​ said following Ontario’s release of a modelling projection that shows up to 100,000 people could die if no public health interventions took place. (Between 3,000 and 15,000 deaths are expected under current social-distancing rules.) ○ Working out estimates of how many fatalities the province may see isn’t “particularly useful” for informing an effective response to the virus, according to the provincial health officer. ○ Instead, B.C. plans to focus on modelling possible paths the provincial pandemic could follow. “The modelling we've done really is about how do we prepare so that we can meet those scenarios, no matter what happens,” the provincial health officer said. ● The Tsleil-Waututh, Squamish and Coldwater First Nations in B.C. want the Supreme Court to hear their challenge to Ottawa’s reapproval of the Trans Mountain pipeline ​ ​ expansion. ○ In February, the Federal Court of Appeal rejected their argument that Ottawa’s second round of consultations with Indigenous stakeholders was inadequate. ○ Squamish Nation spokesperson Khelsilem contends the “flawed decision” ​ ​ cannot be left unchallenged, saying the ruling “essentially lets the government be the judge and jury of its own consultation efforts.” ○ The Supreme Court has already declined to hear other challenges to the project’s reapproval on environmental grounds. ● On Saturday, BC Ferries suspended service on the Horseshoe Bay-Nanaimo and Mill ​ ​ Bay-Brentwood Bay routes and cut the number of daily sailings from Tsawwassen to Victoria and Nanaimo down to four. Four extra cargo only sailings between Tsawwassen and Nanaimo’s Duke Point terminal will keep essential goods moving. ○ “These changes are designed to ensure we have sufficient capacity to allow the flow of essential goods, services, supplies and workers to their destinations,” said BC Ferries CEO Mark Collins. “We will continue to transport the goods ​ ​ communities rely on, and we will get people to where they need to go.” ○ Northern and mid-coast routes will continue to operate at winter service levels, according to BC Ferries. Changes to the Gulf Island routes “are currently being finalized and will be announced soon.” ● The April 30 deadline for appealing this year’s property assessments has been extended ​ ​ to June 1, 2020. Funding announcements ● The Ministry of Health is partnering with the BC Care Providers Association ​ ​ ​ (BCCPA) on a new $10-million program aimed at enhancing infection prevention and control in long-term care and facilities. ○ EquipCare BC expands the mandate and scope of the Seniors Safety Quality ​ ​ ​ Improvement Program. It will be overseen by a group of industry stakeholders ​ and government officials, including representatives from BCCPA, SafeCare BC, ​ ​ the Denominational Health Association and the health ministry. A provincial ​ ​ representative with expertise in infection prevention control will join the oversight committee in the near future. ● The Ministry of Advanced Education, Skills and Training is boosting the Indigenous ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Emergency Assistance Fund by $1.5 million to give Indigenous students at any of ​ B.C.’s 25 colleges and universities access to extra emergency aid. .