The BC Teachers' Federation says it wants smaller classes and mandatory masks whereever possible as part of the provincial back-to-school plan amid the pandemic. A statement from president Teri Mooring says the restart plan for Kindergarten to Grade 12 has made no change to classroom density and it's impossible to physical distance with 30 people in a classroom. The union also wants dedicated funding for heating, ventilation and air conditioning equipment and expanding mandatory mask use for children aged 10 and older. The provincial government has said masks will be required whenever student

Following a TV station's release of an altercation during the NBA finals last June, Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri has filed a counter-suit. The Raptors say the video proves Ujiri wasn't the aggressor in a dispute with a sheriff's deputy after the team won the NBA title at Oracle Arena. Deputy Alan Strickland filed a $75,000 suit against Ujiri, the Raptors, Raptors owner Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment and the NBA claiming he suffered physical, mental, emotional and economic injuries. Raptors coach Nick Nurse says the video is self-explanatory.

Opposition parties are taking issue with the black ink applied to many of the thousands of pages of newly released documents about the WE Charity controversy. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau ordered the documents released to MPs on the House of Commons finance committee Tuesday as he announced the prorogation of Parliament. They contain numerous email exchanges between federal civil servants, political staff and WE Charity officials about the plan to have the organization run a multimillion-dollar student-volunteer program. Yet many of the more than 5,000 pages have been either partly or fully r

India's COVID-19 count reached 27,67,274 and the recoveries crossed the 2 million mark on Wednesday, according to the Union Health Ministry. On Wednesday, the country reported a single-day spike of 64,531 cases and highest ever single day recoveries of 60,091, added the ministry. In the last 24 hours, 1,092 fatalities were reported across the country. The ministry stated that the COVID-19 count includes 6,76,514 active cases, 20,37,871 discharged/migrated patients and 52,889 deaths. Maharashtra continues to be the worst-affected state from the infection with 1,60,413 active cases. 13,165 new C

Vancouver Coastal Health is opening another COVID-19 assessment centre in preparation for a potential increase in cases as the cold and flu season approaches.The new site is at the north parking lot of Vancouver Community College on East 7th Avenue. It will be from 9 a-m to 7:30 p-m and will take both walk-in and drive-through clients. The authority says an additional centre in North Vancouver is expected to open in the next couple of weeks and operating hours in Richmond and other locations will also be increasing.

Hundreds of residents just south of Penticton have been ordered out of their homes and thousands more are on evacuation alert as an aggressive wildfire burns nearby. The Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen issued an evacuation order for more than 300 properties in the Heritage Hills area yesterday afternoon. The City of Penticton has warned residents of nearly 3700 properties on its southeast side to be ready to leave on short notice, and 116 properties in the Upper Carmi area are also on alert. A separate 18 hectare fire near Beverdell south of Carmi has also prompted an evacuation al

Conservative MPs say Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is engaged in a massive cover up of his government's intent to funnel millions to friends at WE Charity through a pandemic aid program for students.But Conservatives won't yet commit to bringing down the government next month by voting against the throne speech.Trudeau announced yesterday that Parliament is prorogued until Sept. 23, a move that has the effect of ending the current work of Commons committees investigating the WE Charity debacle.Thousands of pages of documents detailing what went into awarding them a major government contract w

Thousands of pages of newly released documents back up the Trudeau government's contention that it was federal public servants who recommended a student service grant program be administered by WE Charity.They also suggest bureaucrats may have been nudged to look in that direction by their political masters. The five-thousand-plus pages of government documents were tabled with the finance committee almost two weeks ago.They had not been released to committee members because legal counsel was still vetting them to ensure there were no breaches of cabinet confidences or personal privacy.The doc

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Tuesday said that there is a need to look at the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal issue from a national security perspective and that Punjab will burn if a decision is taken to go ahead with the link canal. Singh made these remarks during a meeting via video-conferencing with Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on SYL canal issue. "You have to look at the issue from the national security perspective. If you decide to go ahead with SYL, Punjab will burn and it will become a national prob