By Matt Fetinko

Initial government support for vulnerable people

Mar 21, 2020 | 12:02 PM

VANCOUVER — The provincial government is taking action to protect vulnerable people including those facing homelessness.

Initial action includes a ban on evictions for non-payment of rent in BC Housing-funded buildings, development of distinct protocols and identification of sites to support isolation for vulnerable people experiencing homelessness sheltered or unsheltered and those in private single room occupancy and social housing buildings, sustaining service providers through continued payments to ensure they can pay their staff and operating costs, and centralized procurement for critical supplies needed by frontline providers such as gloves and cleaning products.

A provincial Vulnerable Population Working Group is working to identify, assess, and address the immediate challenges faced in particular by five groups. Those include people living on the street, people experiencing homelessness living in encampments, shelter residents, tenants of private single room occupancies, and tenants in social and supportive housing buildings. The working group is built of representatives from various ministries and other provincial programs.

“While all of us are feeling the effects of the COVID-19 crisis, there is no doubt that our most vulnerable populations including the homeless and the working poor are disproportionately affected,” said Shane Simpson, Minister of Social Development and Poverty Reduction, in a statement. “We are working together with our partners at every level of government and in the social services sector to find safe and efficient ways to provide supports to the people who need them the most as quickly as possible.”