Finance Minister Bill Morneau says the Liberals are easing eligibility rules for the government's emergency wage subsidy and changing the amounts businesses can receive. The government had been under pressure to make the subsidy more accessible, specifically by loosening the requirement of a 30 per cent drop in revenues, so more companies under that cut-off can qualify. Speaking in Toronto, Morneau says the rules will be changed so amounts paid out will be proportional to revenue declines due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program is the heart of the Liberals' promise to help Canadians get bac

Another House of Commons committee is to begin probing the aborted deal between the federal government and WE Charity to run a massive student-volunteering program. WE gave up running the $912-million program amid controversy over hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees the WE organization paid to members of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's family for appearances at WE events. Conservatives on the Commons ethics committee say they'll be seeking copies of all records related to any speaking appearances involving Trudeau, his wife, his mother and his brother. According to WE, most of the fees we

A newborn intensive care unit at a Vancouver hospital is the site of the latest COVID-19 outbreak in the city.Vancouver Coastal Health, which administers health care services for much of Greater Vancouver region and the inner south and central coasts, issued a notice about the outbreak Thursday.The outbreak covers the neo-natal intensive care unit at St. Paul's hospital in downtown Vancouver.The agency did not say if the outbreak is related to staff or patients at the unit, or how many cases have been reported.Officials with the health authority say a satellite unit has been set up to continu

There are 109,155 confirmed cases in Canada. Quebec: 57,001 confirmed (including 5,646 deaths, 26,097 resolved) Ontario: 37,052 confirmed (including 2,732 deaths, 32,920 resolved) Alberta: 9,114 confirmed (including 165 deaths, 8,142 resolved) British Columbia: 3,170 confirmed (including 189 deaths, 2,789 resolved) Nova Scotia: 1,067 confirmed (including 63 deaths, 1,002 resolved) Saskatchewan: 923 confirmed (including 15 deaths, 794 resolved) Manitoba: 320 confirmed (including 7 deaths, 318 resolved), 11 presumptive Newfoundland and Labrador: 262 confirmed (including 3 deaths, 258 resolved)

Premier John Horgan says he expects BC will receive nearly two billion dollars from the federal government under a new COVID-19 Safe Restart Agreement. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government is providing a total of 19-billion dollars to provinces and territories to boost their economies amid the pandemic. The agreement includes 10 days of paid sick leave, fully funded by the federal government. Horgan says the sick-leave program is a key move to make sure nobody feels pressured to go to work while ill.

BC is reporting 21 new cases of COVID-19 and no additional deaths. The province's death toll stands at 189. The province's top doctor says 2,789 people in BC have recovered from the illness out of 3,170 cases in total. Doctor Bonnie Henry says 192 of BC's cases are active. Four cases are now associated with Krazy Cherry Fruit Company in Oliver and Henry says 27 cases have been linked to recent instances of community exposure in Kelowna. Dr. Henry says the next step is more targeted antibody testing to help understand who has been most affected by the virus.

Police say a pedestrian is in critical condition after a crash involving a semi truck in Surrey's Cloverdale neighbourhood this morning. RCMP say they responded to the collision at the intersection of 172 Street and Highway 10 just after 9:40 A-M and roads are closed in the area. They say the driver of the semi truck remained at the scene and officers are investigating. The pedestrian is in hospital in critical condition and police ask that anyone who witnessed the collision come forward.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has repeated his apology for getting involved in the awarding of a 900 million dollar contract to the WE charity. He says again that he ``deeply regrets'' taking part in discussions about the contract. Trudeau is under investigation by the ethics commissioner because his mother, brother and wife have all received money from WE. At a news conference in Ottawa, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland also took responsibility for her part in the affair. But she added Trudeau has her ``complete confidence'' in his leadership.

Another record for monthly overdose deaths related to illicit drugs has been set in British Columbia. The BC Coroners Service says 175 fatalities in June surpassed the previous high of 171 deaths in May. Chief coroner Lisa Lapointe says the pandemic has limited access to harm-reduction services and people should not be using opioids or other substances alone. Lapointe is urging substance users to have someone present when using drugs or to go to an overdose prevention or supervised-consumption site where drugs can be checked for toxicity. She says opioids, along with cocaine and the stimulant