The provincial government has officially declared a Public Health Emergency, meaning what were recommendations on Wednesday morning, are now enforceable by law.

Under the advice of Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Janice Fitzgerald, Health Minister John Haggie signed the first declaration of a Public Health Emergency in the province, under the Public Health and Promotion Act of 2018.

In 2018 the province went from having the oldest public health legislation in Canada, to what Haggie says is now some of the newest, strongest legislation in the country.

Here is a look at the Public Health Emergency Declaration signed by Health Minister John Haggie today.@VOCMNEWS #covid19nfld pic.twitter.com/8PbEzYh0xn

— Ben Murphy (@VOCMBen) March 18, 2020

It enables the force of law and regulation to be applied to what were previously recommendations by Dr. Fitzgerald.

Haggie says this comes after government heard concerns of businesses and people who may not have acted as responsibly as government hoped they would.

The Health Minister says by and large, compliance has been high. But, the opportunity to flatten the curve is now, and they are seizing that.

Haggie says the penalties are among the most severe of any public health legislation in Canada.

For example, for a person’s first incidence of non-compliance, they face a fine of anywhere between $500 and $2500, a prison sentence of less than six-months, or a combination of the two. For corporations, the fine is anywhere from $5000 to $50,000 and directors in corporations would be held personally liable, and are open to individual penalties as well.

Those penalties are then multiplied for subsequent offences. That means every day someone is not in compliance it’s a new and separate offence for as long as it continues.

Haggie says they are significant penalties and they hope they never have to use them, but they will if necessary.