Quebec Health Minister Christian Dube says the situation in his province is critical, so new restrictions are necessary. Dube has announced the complete closure of bars and casinos and says restaurants can open only between 5 and 10 pm. Schools will also close as of today and until January 10th. Quebec reported a single-day record of 4,571 new COVID-19 infections today. Ontario reported 3,784 new cases today as many newly-eligible residents 18 and up scrambled to try to book a vaccine booster shot.

Ontario is reintroducing capacity limits at restaurants, bars and retailers, and capping indoor social gatherings at 10 people in an effort to slow the spread of the Omicron variant. The province is also limiting outdoor gatherings to 25, and prohibiting food and drink consumption at sports arenas, cinemas and other large venues. The new rules come into effect first thing Sunday morning, and don't apply to facilities hosting weddings, funerals or religious services. Premier Doug Ford is making the announcement a day after the province's science advisers said a ramped-up booster campaign would

Canada's chief public health officer says all confirmed cases of the Omicron variant in Canada are mild or asymptomatic. But Dr. Theresa Tam says most of the 300 plus Canadians who have contracted the variant are younger, and even a milder version of COVID-19 version could wreak havoc at a societal level. Tam says both vaccinated and unvaccinated people have tested positive for the Omicron variant. But she stresses that being fully vaccinated and then getting a booster is expected to provide reasonable protection against infection and likely strong protection against severe illness.

Health Minister Jean Yves Duclos says with the evolving situation and the overwhelming evidence of Omicron transmission around the world, Canada is lifting its travel restrictions on the 10 African countries it had earlier established in response to the emergence of the new variant. He says this is effective tomorrow.As of Tuesday, Canada will reinstate the requirement for a pre-arrival negative P-C-R test result for all travellers entering the country, even if they are returning to Canada after being away for under 72 hours.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has announced it will be waiving fees for BC residents who need to replace documents that were destroyed in the floods that displaced nearly 15,000 people last month. Minister of Immigration Sean Fraser says the special measures will cover submissions from November 15th until May 31st for passports, refugee travel documents, certificates of identity, citizenship certificates and permanent resident cards. He says this will allow Canadians and permanent residents time to sort out what documents they need to replace and to apply at no cost. Immigratio

The Canadian military confirmed today that 21 of its 23 Cyclone helicopters have cracks in their tails. Cracks were first detected in one of the maritime helicopters during a routine inspection on Nov. 26 at 443 Maritime Helicopter Squadron at Patricia Bay, B.C. By Dec. 5, the Air Force said it had discovered damage in the same general area on a total of 19 helicopters. At the time, the military said two Cyclones did not appear to have any tail defects, and the remaining two in the fleet were receiving longer-term maintenance and would be inspected at a later date. As of today, cracks on six

Canada has surpassed a grim milestone, recording its 30,000th COVID-19 death since the pandemic began in early 2020.Ontario reported nine additional deaths attributed to the virus on Thursday, pushing Canada's overall total to more than 30,000 as experts warned of fresh threats posed by the more transmissible Omicron variant.Canada reached 10,000 COVID-19 deaths last November, and surpassed 20,000 deaths two months later in January, 2021 — a leap that occurred before enough vaccines were administered to have an impact.Experts say vaccines have significantly limited the number of people dying

Ontario is expanding COVID-19 vaccine booster eligibility to all adults, provided it's been three months since they got their second dose. Residents 18 and over will be able to book their vaccines starting Monday, and Premier Doug Ford says the new push will require all hands on deck. Booster appointments opened up for Ontarians 50 and older just two days ago, and Ford is urging them to book immediately, because they're most at risk of serious illness from the Omicron variant. Ontario Premier Doug Ford has introduced a slate of new measures meant to curb the spread of the highly contagious Omi

The government now advises against all non-essential international travel in the face of the rapidly spreading Omicron variant of COVID-19. Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos made the announcement Wednesday, following a Tuesday evening meeting between premiers and the prime minister. The health minister says the highly transmissible variant is now spreading in Canadian communities, and just about anywhere else in the world. Ottawa agreed to send shipments of booster doses and rapid tests to provinces and territories to quickly ramp up vaccination campaigns to combat the virus at home. Minister