Injunction denied by the chief justice of the BC Supreme Court

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Fraser Valley churches to be heard by BC Supreme Court

BC's Provincial Health Officer has lost her bid for an injunction against three Fraser Valley churches that continue to defy COVID-19 rules banning in-person religious gatherings. Dr. Bonnie Henry applied for the injunction in response to the churches launching a legal challenge to her orders. But the chief justice of the BC Supreme Court has turned down the request. Justice Christopher Hinkson says the health orders already prohibit in-person religious services and Henry and the province have the power to escalate enforcement. Earlier this week, Henry said she isn't sure about that.

"My ability to under the public health act, to add additional measures to the orders, I don't think. I'm not aware that I have that authority, let's put it that way. But I think it is important that we needed to ensure that people realized that while the court challenge that the churches brought was being heard, that these rules still apply."
—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.

The larger court challenge to the health orders by the Riverside Calvary Chapel in Langley, the Immanuel Covenant Reformed Church in Abbotsford and the Free Reformed Church of Chilliwack will be heard next month.

Social service agencies impacted by pandemic

An interim report on the effects of the pandemic on social service agencies has found some good and some bad. Researchers from the Department of Social Work at Vancouver Island University interviewed representatives from eleven social service groups in greater Nanaimo last September. They found the organizations felt they were thrown into chaos when the pandemic was declared last March. The agencies had to respond to dramatic shutdowns, public health orders, and local directives they say changed from one day to the next. In the months that followed, some organizations were able to resume some in-person services. Many said they benefited from having time to train employees in online services and to collaborate with others to share best practices. The report found the organizations were grateful that emergency funding did not come with strings attached. That allowed them to act on what was urgently needed but not predicted. However, researcher Holly Bradley says some challenges remain unresolved.

"Who is becoming invisible? Not everyone is getting the same kind of service through remote service delivery. Not everyone is able to access it. Not everyone has access to free internet, to cell plans with phone minutes, with internet data, so there is that awareness that there are gaps, that there are people falling through the cracks, that there are needs that are not being met."
—Survey Researcher Holly Bradley.

Bradley and her research partner, Jeanette Schmid hope to delve into that topic in the next round of research that begins next month when they re-interview the agencies' representatives. Their final report is planned for September.