An Ottawa-based consulting firm with a history of reviewing allegations of workplace harassment on Parliament Hill is being tasked to do so again at Rideau Hall.The Privy Council Office says it has hired Quintet Consulting Corp. to conduct a third-party investigation into allegations of a toxic work environment at the office of Gov. Gen. Julie Payette.An online notice says Quintet is to interview current and former employees in the office of the Governor General so they can share their experiences.Payette will also get a meeting with the consultants as they try to determine precisely what beha

There are 128,948 confirmed cases in Canada. Quebec: 62,492 confirmed (including 5,760 deaths, 55,353 resolved) Ontario: 42,309 confirmed (including 2,811 deaths, 38,277 resolved) Alberta: 13,902 confirmed (including 239 deaths, 12,293 resolved) British Columbia: 5,790 confirmed (including 208 deaths, 4,406 resolved) Saskatchewan: 1,619 confirmed (including 24 deaths, 1,561 resolved) Manitoba: 1,214 confirmed (including 14 deaths, 731 resolved) Nova Scotia: 1,085 confirmed (including 65 deaths, 1,013 resolved) Newfoundland and Labrador: 269 confirmed (including 3 deaths, 265 resolved) New Bru

BC is reporting 294 new cases of COVID-19 over the past three days as well as four more deaths, all residents of long-term care homes. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says recent increases in cases are concerning with September arriving tomorrow. Dr. Henry says people needed to re-connect with family and friends over the summer but it's now time to take a step back from social interactions. She says the bar to stay home needs to be lower than it's ever been before so the province can successfully move forward when the respiratory season arrives.

Mounties in Kelowna are investigating a shooting death after they say a man drove himself and another victim to hospital on Sunday. Police were called by hospital staff who found a dead man in the vehicle.The driver had non-life threatening injuries. Corporal Jocelyn Noseworthy says the shooting occurred in east Kelowna and police are canvassing the area and searching for evidence.

The search for a 52 year old hiker lost in a vast area of Eagle Mountain near Coquitlam has been called off. Coquitlam RCMP and the local search and rescue have made the decision to suspend the search for Ali Naderi. The experienced hiker was reported missing August 23rd and search volunteers and others have scoured all the trails in the area. RCMP Corporal Michael McLauglin says given the time frame Naderi has been gone, his lack of supplies and the large area where he went missing, it doesn't make sense to continue to put others at risk.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has turned British Columbia's budget forecast from black to red. The government's final budget numbers show a deficit of $321 million from a projected surplus of $274 million for the 2019-20 budget.Finance Minister Carole James says that while the first three quarters of the fiscal year saw steady economic growth, the province's financial picture dimmed because of the pandemic.She says declines in tax revenues, losses at the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, and early measures to tackle the pandemic plunged the fiscal year into deficit.In a fiscal u

The Vancouver Aquarium is shutting down again because of the COVID-19 pandemic, forcing the elimination of 209 staff. The aquarium stays in a statement it is putting its programming on pause while it attempts to recovery from the financial devastation of COVID-19. Ocean Wise says it will close Sept. 7 and all animals on site will continue to receive care from 75 specialized staff.The Vancouver Aquarium reopened in June following a three-month closure at the start of the pandemic. Ocean Wise, the non-profit that runs the aquarium, says in a statement it will focus on transforming to a new model

Former Indian President Pranab Mukherjee passed away on Monday at the Army Hospital (Research and Referral) Hospital where he was admitted earlier this month and had undergone surgery for removal of a clot in his brain. His son and former MP Abhijit Mukherjee gave the information in a tweet. "With a Heavy Heart , this is to inform you that my father Shri PranabMukherjee has just passed away inspite of the best efforts of Doctors of RR Hospital prayers ,duas and prarthanas from people throughout India ! I thank all of You," he said. He was admitted to the Army Hospital here on August 10 and aft

The Liberals have announced an extension of the Canada Emergency Business Account until the end of October. Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland says the government is also working with financial institutions to expand eligibility to companies that have been shut out of the program. That would include those who use personal rather than business bank accounts. The government had said in mid-May that it was working to address that particular issue. Freeland says details about eligibility changes will be released in the coming days. The business loan program has provided more than 29 billion dolla