Canada could get up to 1.1 million additional doses of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine by the end of March through the global vaccine-sharing initiative COVAX. That's if and when it's approved by Health Canada, and would be over and above Ottawa's existing agreement with the drugmaker. And since there is the potential for production delays, COVAX is giving countries a range of potential deliveries. Canada was told it would get between 1.9 million and 3.2 million doses by the end of June, with between 500,000 and 1.1 million of those arriving before the end of next month. The vaccine alliance

Sites are now being cleared to make way for the 2.83 billion dollar Broadway subway project, which aims to help people get around one of the busiest parts of Vancouver when it's completed in 2025. Federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine McKenna says her government is making historic investments in infrastructure projects and the subway will introduce a new transportation option while reducing traffic congestion and air pollution. The government says in a joint release with BC and local officials that some building demolition is necessary to construct six new station entrances. It is also im

Victoria police officers are investigating after a suspicious incident near a school yesterday afternoon. Police say shortly after 12 pm, they were called to the area of SJ Willis School for a report of a man holding what appeared to be a firearm in Topaz Park. Officers contained the area surrounding SJ Willis School and nearby Quadra Elementary School and both schools were placed in lockdown. Police say they searched the area for over an hour and did not find a man similar in description to the suspect. Officers are continuing to investigate the incident but do not believe there is a risk to

The Opposition Liberals say rebates promised to BC drivers due to the decline in crashes during the COVID-19 pandemic fall short of those in other jurisdictions. Premier John Horgan announced yesterday that rebates will average about 190 dollars each. Liberal critic Mike Morris says other insurers in Canada gave rebates averaging 280 dollars. Morris says the rebates are welcome news for drivers, but it should have happened months ago and it's confusing why it will take another six weeks to deliver. Horgan says ICBC will return 600 million dollars in net savings to about three million drivers

The RCMP Dive Team has found a body in the North Thompson River in Kamloops, after a days-long search. Constable Crystal Evelyn says the discovery came five days after witnesses reported seeing a man trying to swim across the river before disappearing. She says the body matched the description of the man who went missing. The man was found in shallow water near the area he was last observed. The missing person was described as Caucasian, slender, and likely in his 30s, but the identity of the body found has not been provided at this point.

The Centre has issued a notice to Twitter to comply with its order to remove contents/accounts related to "farmer genocide". Twitter may face penal action for not complying with government orders, according to the sources. Content with the 'ModiPlanningFarmerGenocide' hashtag was posted on Twitter which was designed to inflame passions and hatred and is factually incorrect, according to the sources. Twitter had unilaterally unblocked accounts/tweets despite the government order for blocking. Twitter is an intermediary and it is obliged to obey the direction of the government, refusal to do s

A longtime labour and human rights leader in British Columbia has died. The family of Charan Gill say he died in hospital on Feb. 2, following a battle with cancer. Gill was 84. Born in Hong Kong and raised in India, Gill moved to Canada in 1967, settling in Surrey, where he co-founded the Canadian Farmworkers Union and the British Columbia Organization to Fight Racism. The farm workers union led to improved pay, benefits and working conditions for farm and ranch workers across Canada while the organization to fight racism was instrumental in stemming the growth of racist groups in B.C. Gill

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says "rare exceptions" to new travel restrictions will be made on compassionate grounds, but that more contagious COVID-19 variants now taking hold in Canada mean tough rules must be implemented in the next few weeks.Trudeau announced last week that passengers returning from abroad will have to quarantine at a hotel for up to three days after taking a PCR test at the airport, but no date has been set for when this will take effect.The move is one of several measures meant to choke off entry of the virus into Canada, but comes after case numbers of more transmissib

British Columbia health officials say there's an encouraging trend in the COVID-19 curve in the province with the efforts of residents making a difference. It comes as the state of emergency was extended again in B.C. on Tuesday, allowing officials to use its extraordinary powers to respond to the pandemic. In a joint statement, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix reported 429 new cases and eight deaths, bringing to 1,218 the number of fatalities liked to COVID-19. The statement says with people in B.C. following the restrictions, the COVID-19 spread is s