BC is reporting 564 new cases of COVID-19 and four additional deaths. A total of 1,376 people have now died in the province due to the pandemic. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry is also reporting 46 new cases of COVID variants of concern, raising the total to 246. The bulk of the cases, 218 are the variant first seen in the UK and the remaining 28 cases are the South Africa variant. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says BC will deploy the newly-approved AstraZeneca vaccine to first responders and other essential workers. Dr. Henry says doing so will move up the vaccination

A Canadian justice department lawyer says comments made by former U.S. President Donald Trump do not meet the standard to halt an extradition hearing of a senior executive for Chinese communications giant Huawei Technologies. Canada arrested Meng Wanzhou, the daughter of Huawei's founder and the company's chief financial officer, at Vancouver's airport in late 2018. The U.S. wants her extradited to face fraud charges. Her arrest infuriated Beijing, which sees it as a political move designed to prevent China's rise. In a 2018 interview, Trump said he would "intervene (in the case) if I thought

Canada's premiers are again demanding Ottawa increase annual health care transfer payments to provinces and territories. The premiers are unanimous in their call for the federal government to hike the transfers by 28 billion dollars this year, and then by five per cent each year thereafter. They argue the federal government shoulders only 22 per cent of the cost of health care. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has acknowledged that the federal government's share must eventually increase, but he's told premiers that will have to wait until after the COVID-19 pandemic is over. Manitoba Premier Bri

Chilliwack RCMP and BC Coroners Service investigating found bodyCriminality is not suspected in the death of a man in his early 20s that was discovered in Chilliwack on Thursday morning.At approximately 0845 am on Thursday, March 4th, Chilliwack RCMP were called to the area of the Hope River bridge on Menzies Street after receiving a report of a found body. The area was cordoned off while police investigators and the BC Coroners Service conducted their preliminary investigation. The death is not being considered suspicious.No criminality is suspected in this death. BC Coroners Service is condu

On March 2nd at approximately 1:00 pm New Westminster Police Department officers responded to a report of a serious assault inside a residence on Princess Street. The victim was transported to hospital, where she remains in critical condition. A nearby school was temporarily sheltering in place as a precaution while NWPD officers secured the scene. That same afternoon, and with the assistance of the Vancouver Police Department, a suspect was safely taken into custody. It is believed the suspect and the victim are known to each other. At this time, Andywele Mullings a 42 year old New Westminste

A panel of experts says up to 80 per cent of Canadians over 16 could get a single dose of COVID-19 vaccine by the end of June, if governments extend the interval between the two doses to four months. Deputy federal public health officer Doctor Howard Njoo says the move is based on the most recent data on how vaccines are working.Canada is now on track to receive a total of 6.5 million vaccine doses by the end of this month. That's 500,000 more than originally forecast. Health officials in Alberta, BC and Newfoundland and Labrador have said they are extending that interval to four months, while

The mayor of the small BC village of Pouce Coupe says she won't resign as Indigenous leaders claim her "shocking and unacceptable behavior" makes it impossible for them to work with her in her mayoral role moving forward. Lorraine Michetti has been criticized for social media posts that critics deemed racist and anti-Semitic. Members of the Treaty 8 Tribal Association, which represents six First Nations in northeastern BC, issued a letter denouncing Michetti's actions and comments and demanding her immediate resignation earlier this week. Michetti says she won't resign as she has other projec

Unifor president Jerry Dias says Air Canada is promising to refund passengers whose flights were cancelled during the COVID-19 pandemic.Dias says the airline has made the commitment repeatedly during negotiations with the federal government over an aid package for the battered sector.He says he spoke with Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau last night, confirming the pledge.Dias says roughly 4,000 of the union's 15,000 aviation workers remain fully employed a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, lending urgency to discussions in Ottawa.Air Canada and the Finance Department did not respond immediately

Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Thursday asserted that new farm laws will enhance farmers' income adding that agricultural is the backbone of the country's economic growth. "Under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-Kisan) Yojana, about 1.15 lakh crore rupees are deposited in the bank accounts of about 1.75 crore farmers. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has the vision to increase the income of farmers and the development of the agricultural sector. We understand that, if we don't have prosperous farmers, we can't develop a good economy of the country." Tomar said while sp