May 18, 2021
COVID-19 Enforcement Update
The Manitoba government is providing an update on ongoing enforcement efforts to protect Manitobans from the spread of COVID-19.
A total of 123 warnings and 70 tickets were issued for the week of May 10 to 16 including:
• 62 $1,296 tickets to individuals for various offences;
• five $298 tickets to individuals for failure to wear a mask in indoor public places; and
• three $5,000 tickets to businesses.
Officials advise 53 of the 62 $1,296 tickets issued were in relation to gatherings in private residences or outdoors, six tickets issued for failure to self-isolate, one ticket issued for unnecessary northern travel and two tickets issued to sole proprietorships.
Manitoba Justice officials continue to followup and investigate all large gathering and rallies they are made aware of and advise 22 $1,296 tickets were issued in relations to rallies. This includes two tickets from the Winkler rally on May 1, six tickets from The Forks rally on May 1 and 14 tickets from the Law Courts rally on May 3. All events remain under investigation and additional charges are expected. Officials advise the choice to defy public health orders is a serious offence and violators will be held to account.
Manitobans are urged to continue reporting compliance and enforcement issues by visiting www.manitoba.ca/COVID19 and completing the reporting form, or by calling 204-945-3744 or (toll-free) 1-866-626-4862 and pressing option three on the call menu.
Manitobans are reminded that unpaid fines for tickets for Public Health Act offences proceed through the provincial offences court. If the ticket is not responded to during the response period indicated on the ticket, the individual would be default convicted and a $100 default conviction penalty would be applied. In such cases, the individual would also be prohibited from renewing a driver’s license or vehicle registration until the amount is paid. Unpaid amounts are also sent to a collections agency for further collection action. Information related to unpaid fines for tickets is available on Manitoba Justice’s website at www.gov.mb.ca/justice/tickets/index.html.
Officials advise that security personnel from Commissionaires Manitoba are greeting all travellers arriving at the Winnipeg International Airport to advise on Manitoba’s self-isolation requirements, distribute public health materials and answer basic questions about public health orders. Officials also advise public health officials are following up with the public to ensure compliance with self-isolation requirements.
The Manitoba government has made amendments to the Preset Fines and Offence Descriptions Regulation and the Provincial Offences General Regulation under the Provincial Offences Act to strengthen provincial public health order enforcement.
Almost 3,300 personnel across various agencies are empowered to enforce public health orders to protect Manitobans. This includes RCMP, law enforcement agencies, provincial employees and municipal partners, such as the City of Winnipeg.
Since enforcement efforts began in April 2020, a total of 4,228 warnings and 1,424 tickets have been issued, resulting in over $1.9 million in fines to businesses and individuals.
Updated enforcement statistics are posted online weekly at https://manitoba.ca/openmb/infomb/departments/index.html#cdr.
Additional data related to COVID-19, including data on enforcement, vaccines, outbreaks as well as some downloadable and historic data, can be found at https://geoportal.gov.mb.ca/.
Fine amounts for violating public health orders have been set at $298 for not wearing a mask in indoor public places, $1,296 for tickets issued to individuals for various offences, including sole proprietorships and partnerships, and $5,000 for tickets issued to corporations.
The Manitoba government is taking strong action to protect Manitobans and ensure timely access to care. Current orders under the Public Health Act are available at https://manitoba.ca/asset_library/en/proactive/20212022/orders-soe-05122021.pdf.
Public health orders remain in effect and Manitobans are reminded to adhere to all current public health orders and stay home. Stick to the fundamentals of physical distancing, hand washing and wearing a mask. For more information on COVID-19 in Manitoba, visit www.manitoba.ca/COVID19.
For information about activities designed to make staying home a little easier, visit Safe at Home Manitoba at www.safeathomemb.ca/.
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