Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the federal government will provide direct help to businesses to help them offset the cost of rent.He says a revamped commercial rent-relief program will cover up to 65 per cent of eligible expenses for companies, and up to 90 per cent for those subject to localized lockdowns.The government also says today that it will cover up to 65 per cent of eligible wages through its subsidy program, but only until the end of December, and expand a well-used loan program by providing an additional $10,000 that could be forgivable.

Vancouver city council has unanimously approved an emergency fund of up to $30 million to help hundreds of homeless residents.The money will be used to buy or lease vacant hotels, apartments and single-room occupancy buildings and to provide other services to support as many as 750 people who lack safe shelter.Many of the potential sites will need renovation, so council also approved plans for the immediate use of a city-owned motel and a hostel on Vancouver's west side.It's expected that residents of an unsanctioned encampment in Strathcona Park will begin moving to those sites soon.The deci

British Columbia's provincial health officer is urging businesses to ensure they are in compliance with health and safety standards to protect employees from COVID-19. Dr. Bonnie Henry says public health teams would provide guidance if a worker contracts the illness but it's up to businesses to make it easy for anyone who is unwell to stay away. Dr. Henry says employees should be screened daily, tracked for where they're working and who they're with, and meet virtually as much as possible. She says businesses should contact WorkSafeBC with any concerns about what is expected of them and get g

One man has suffered non-life-threatening gunshot wounds and a second man is injured after an attempted arrest in Langley. The Independent Investigations Office investigates all matters of officer-related injury or death and confirms it has been called. A statement from Delta police says its officers had tracked the men to Langley as part of a Delta-related case and the injuries occurred last night as the arrest was underway, but it doesn't say how the second man was hurt. The IIO is appealing for any witnesses to the arrest while Delta police say the criminal case against the men has been ta

Officers with B.C.'s police watchdog are trying to determine if police actions played a part in an early morning shooting that left a man seriously hurt. A statement issued by the RCMP says the Independent Investigations Office was called after a man turned a gun on himself just as Mounties arrived at a call of a possible robbery. The police statement says Surrey Mounties were responding to a report of a man with a knife allegedly trying to rob people, but the man shot at police as the first cruiser arrived and then shot and seriously wounded himself. The officer was not hurt but RCMP say the

Police are investigating an attack by a man armed with a pellet gun in the Metro Vancouver city of Port Moody. Police say in a news release that officers learned the attack followed a minor dispute on the street Wednesday between a 22 year old man and a male suspect that he knows. The suspect followed the victim to his home, where police say he was shot several times in the back with a pellet gun before he could make it safely inside. He was taken to hospital by ambulance for treatment because the pellets had penetrated his skin. Police say the man is expected to make a full recovery. The rel

Fifty-one people were arrested during protests after a former Minneapolis police officer charged in the death of George Floyd was released on bail. Derek Chauvin had been in a Minnesota prison for months as he awaits trial on charges of murder and other counts. He was released Wednesday after posting $1 million bond. About 300 people later marched peacefully near the site where Floyd was pinned to the ground by Chauvin, but tensions rose later outside a police station. Police spokesman John Elder said 49 of the arrests were for misdemeanours. Many were cited for unlawful assembly. One person

Six people have been charged in federal court with plotting to kidnap Michigan Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer at her vacation home. Separately, seven more people have been charged with trying to target police and the Michigan Capitol. US Attorney Matthew Schneider says political disagreements should never escalate to the point of violence. Whitmer has been praised but also deeply criticized for the state's response to COVID-19. FBI Assistant Special Agent In Charge Josh Hauxhurst says members and affiliates of a militia group are facing charges in an alleged terrorist plot.

Union Minister and founder of Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) leader Ram Vilas Paswan passed away on Thursday following illness. He was 74. Chirag Paswan, MP, paid condolences to his father. "Papa, you are no more in this world now but I know that wherever you are, you are with me. Miss you Papa," Chirag Paswan said in a tweet. Ram Vilas Paswan was Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution in the Narendra Modi government. He was also a minister in the previous NDA government. He had undergone heart surgery in a Delhi hospital.Paswan was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1977 o