Last Updated on October 23, 2020, 7:58 AM AST by Anthony Morris
The new COVID-19 (Prevention and Control) Bill, 2020, had its first reading on October 15 in National Assembly, and it would ensure a more permanent solution to public safety after it passes.
Superintendent of Police Cromwell Henry said during the National Emergency Operations Center COVID-19 Briefing for October 21.
The Bill is intended to replace the Emergency Powers COVID-19 Regulations for providing a permanent legal framework for regulating the containment of the spread of COVID-19 in the Federation.
He said that the main provisions of the COVID-19 Regulations which everyone is familiar with would form part of this new Bill.
All stakeholders, as well as ports of entry, within the tourism sector, would also be guided by this Bill.
Cromwell further said that it would also give legal effect to all the protocols which would be implemented at the air and seaports for incoming travellers and at the hotels and other tourism sites.
There would be a strict regime of COVID-19 certification and inspections for all major sectors of the country’s economy, hotels, sea transportation, taxi and tour operators and boating sector, tourism-related sites and educational institutions.
Also, he said that all sectors would be required to satisfactorily show that they can operate safely in a manner that minimizes risk to public health significantly.
Superintendent Henry also touched briefly on the Compliance Task Force and said that a critical and important component to the efforts of the country to prevent the spread would be compliance.
He added that therefore, the law makes provisions for a compliance team, and it has provided this team with the broad authority of entering businesses, enterprises and offices for ensuring compliance with the provisions of the law.
He said that the compliance team is also empowered to monitor all social events for ensuring that these events have approvals from the Commissioner of Police, and they comply with the terms and conditions of such approval.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
