Consultations Prompt Changes to Oct 1 Regulations

Magali Marin Young

There is one change to report. Minister of Health Michel Chebat has decided to scale back the reach of the regulations, reportedly after consultations. Viewers may recall that when he first made the announcement, live on Open Your Eyes two weeks ago, Minister Chebat said the mandate would apply to all buildings the public has legal access to, including private businesses. Well, he walked that back, and this morning AG Young noted that the mandate will only apply to government owned buildings. This news should come as a relief to the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry, because they were concerned about the cost businesses would incur to ensure compliance with these regulations, and the administrative challenges of such a measure. Notwithstanding, private business will be able to enforce these regulations if they opt to do so.

Magali Marin Young, Attorney General of Belize

“Initially when the discussion started, we were thinking of all buildings that the public access. But, Minister Chebat has been in consultations and for right now we are only doing public owned facilities, owned by the Government, or by a statutory body controlled by the government. But, there is nothing to stop private business from enacting these same regulations. It is their property and they can control who enters their building and who does not. Similarly with their employs, they have a contract with their employees, and they have a duty to safeguard their employees. So, they can, from the perspective of controlling persons who enter the building, to protect their employees. And also their employees, requiring that they be vaccinated or produce a negative PCR or Rapid test to protect fellow employees.”