The federal government posted a deficit of $12.7 billion for June compared with a deficit of $33.6 billion in June 2020.The drop in the deficit came as spending dropped compared with a year ago when Ottawa spent billions on emergency aid due to the pandemic and revenue improved.Program spending, excluding net actuarial losses, totalled $39.1 billion in June, down from $51.3 billion a year earlier.Revenue increased to $29.6 billion for the month, up from $19.9 billion in June last year.Public debt charges increased to $1.9 billion from nearly $1.3 billion.The federal deficit for the April to Ju

B.C. is reporting 724 new cases of COVID-19, including five epi-linked cases, for a total of 162,693 cases in the province.There are 5,640 active cases of COVID-19 in the province and 155,096 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 149 individuals are in hospital and 83 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation. In the last 24 hours, two new deaths (Interior Health) have been reported, for an overall total of 1,804. From Aug. 11-24, people not fully vaccinated accounted for 82.4% of cases and 86.4% of hospitalizations.Past week

A 32 year old man is facing charges after a Vancouver Police dog was injured this morning while responding to a violent crime. VPD responded to a Downtown Eastside social housing complex that houses women and children shortly before 5 a.m. today after a man allegedly threatened several people and kicked at a resident’s door. The suspect fled when police arrived, but officers tracked him to a building near Keefer and Abbott streets.The suspect allegedly resisted arrest and bit Police Service Dog Mando, which was assisting in the arrest. With help from the injured dog, officers were able to ga

Federal party leaders hit the campaign trail today, promising money for housing and seniors as well as help for young gig economy workers. Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole says he would require gig economy companies to make contributions equivalent to the employer CPP and EI premiums into a new Employee Savings Account that would follow workers if they take a new contract or gig. Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau promised to increase the Guaranteed Income Supplement by 500 dollars a year for single seniors and 750 dollars for senior couples. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is promising to double the firs

Surrey RCMP’s Gang Enforcement Team (SGET) arrested three men and seized a loaded firearm with help from bystanders. On August 21, 2021, the Surrey RCMP Gang Enforcement Team attempted to conduct a traffic stop in the 16800-block of 60 Avenue after observing the driver of an SUV violating the BC Motor Vehicle Act. The SUV failed to stop, and fled from police at high rate of speed. Additional SGET officers converged on the area, as the driver and two passengers abandoned the SUV in traffic and began to run away.As officers left their own vehicles and pursued the men on foot, they were assiste

Vancouver Police are searching for the owner of $12,000 in dental gold recovered earlier this year during a stolen-property investigation. "This is a strange and puzzling case, unlike anything our investigators have seen in a long time," says Sergeant Steve Addison, VPD. "We don’t know where this gold was taken from or who owns it, but we believe it was obtained through crime and we’re asking anyone with information to come forward."The dental gold – fillings, caps and bridges – was recovered in June after VPD property crime investigators learned it had been sold to a gold buyer in Eas

Two suicide bombers and gunmen have targeted crowds of Afghans flocking to Kabul's airport, in the waning days of a massive airlift that has drawn thousands of people seeking to flee the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. An Afghan official says at least 60 Afghans were killed and 143 wounded. U.S. officials said 12 U.S. service members were killed, including 11 Marines and a Navy medic. A U.S. official said the complex attack was believed to have been carried out by the Islamic State group. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said the two blasts were near an airport entrance and a short distance awa

The wildfire situation is continually evolving, and the information below is current as of 7 p.m. (Pacific time) on Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2021. Fires:Wildfires currently burning in B.C.: 243Since April 1, 2021:1,551 wildfires861,523 hectares of area burnedActive fires by fire centre:Cariboo: 26Coastal: 18Kamloops: 82Northwest: 5Prince George: 52Southeast: 60Resources:Firefighters and other personnel currently fighting the fires: 3,450Out-of-province firefighters: 464Helicopters and planes supporting ground crews: 138Evacuations:Evacuation orders: 46 (-2)Evacuation alerts: 90 (-6)Properties:Numbe

The Canadian Armed Forces is confirming that all of its members still in Afghanistan are safe and accounted for after two suicide bombers and gunmen targeted crowds gathered near the Kabul airport. Most Canadian soldiers left the country on the last of Ottawa's evacuation flights earlier in the day, leaving behind an unknown number of Canadian citizens and Afghans who assisted the Canadian military. Russian officials are reporting the attacks killed at least 13 people and wounded 15 others. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid says his group strongly condemns the attack, which he pointed out