Health Minister Adrian Dix says BC has almost wiped out the backlog of surgeries that developed during the pandemic and was made worse by last summer's heat wave and November's catastrophic floods. Dix says 400 nurses and 100 technicians have been trained through the province's surgical renewal program and efforts are underway to increase hiring. He made the announcement at a news conference this morning, saying most of the surgeries postponed during the fifth wave of COVID-19 have now been performed. Dix says 1,7000 operating room hours were added last year, allowing completion of more than5

Canada has become one of the first countries in the world to require online crowdfunding platforms to report to its anti-money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog, government officials told a special committee examining the truck convoy protest and the steps the government took to end it. Finance department officials said new regulations went into effect last week, adding crowdfunding platforms and some payment processing companies to the list of companies obliged to report large or suspicious transactions to the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre, Canada's financial in

The RBI on Wednesday raised its key lending rate by 40 basis points to 4.40 per cent with immediate effect. The central bank also hiked the cash reserve ratio by 50 basis points. The decision was taken by the monetary policy committee (MPC) in an off-cycle meeting with the central board held May 2-4. RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said the decision was taken in view of rising inflation, geo-political tensions, high crude oil prices and shortage of commodities globally, which have impacted Indian economy. The RBI cautioned that the economy faces global spillovers risks from geopolitical tensions,

India reported 3,205 new coronavirus infections in a day, pushing the number of active cases to 19,509 and the overall tally to 4,30,88,118, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Wednesday. The data released at 8 am also showed that 31 fatalities - 29 of them from Kerala alone - were reported in a 24-hour span, taking the cumulative death toll to 5,23,920. One death each was recorded from Maharashtra and Delhi, the data showed. Patiala's National Law University becomes Covid hotspot with 46 more positive cases. As many as 60 positive cases of covid have been reported at the un

Police say an off-duty corrections officer who was gunned down in a Walmart parking lot in Delta, B.C., was killed in a case of mistaken identity. The Delta Police Department says investigators believe Bikramdeep Randhawa was shot because his killers thought he was part of the Lower Mainland gang conflict. Police also say they are confident they have identified the suspects involved in the murder. Deputy Chief Harj Sidhu says it's a tragedy to see an innocent person caught up in such senseless violence. Police say they are publicly relaying to Randhawa's family and B.C. Corrections Services t

A man who was fleeing arrest for a gang-related murder in Thailand has been confirmed as one of the victims of a plane crash in northwestern Ontario. The Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit of BC says in a release that Gene Lahrkamp, one of two men wanted for the February shooting of BC gang member Jimi Sandhu, died in the April 30th plane crash near Sioux Lookout. The CFSEU, which investigates gang-related crime in BC, says Lahrkamp and Mathew Dupre, who was arrested in February for Sandhu's slaying, both fled Thailand for Canada after the shooting. Lahrkamp was named late last month as

The latest report from the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver shows home sales in April calmed dramatically from the pace of last month and the records set last year. The Board says just over 3,200 homes were sold around Metro Vancouver in April, a drop of over 1,100 in just one month and a decline of more than 1,700 when compared with April of last year. Real estate board chair Daniel John says the cooler market gives would-be buyers more time to secure financing and arrange for inspections. But the board says while sales are down, so are new listings, meaning competition for available p

Sheila Malcolmson, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, has released the following statement regarding the BC Coroners Service’s report on illicit drug toxicity deaths for March 2022:"It’s tragic that 165 people lost their lives to the toxic drug crisis in March. My heart is with the families and friends who are grieving, and my thanks to the front-line workers and peers who tried to save them. "Every life lost is a tragedy. Our government remains committed to doing what it takes to turn the tide on this crisis. Almost every week, new mental-health and substance-use supports are added

``My Way'' played as Montreal Canadiens legend Guy Lafleur's funeral ended. Lafleur was remembered a father, a teammate and a person of exceptional generosity who inspired generations of Quebecers. Martin Lafleur described his father as someone who always made time for his family and who wanted to take care of everyone, including people he didn't know. Hockey hall of famers Yvon Cournoyer, Larry Robinson, Guy Carbonneau and Patrick Roy paid tribute to the Habs legend, who died last month at age 70 after battling lung cancer. Carbonneau talked about showing up at his first training camp and pi