The Ottawa police are deploying a ``surge'' of about 150 extra police officers to the areas of the city most affected by the protest against COVID-19 mandates that has been going on for days. Police Chief Peter Sloly says the patrolling officers will be focused on dealing with mischief, hate, harassment, threats and other intimidating behaviours. Late Thursday, federal Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said the RCMP had approved Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson's request for Mounties to support city police. Mendicino said the convoy has caused significant disruptions to local residents including

Statistics Canada says the economy lost 200,000 jobs in January amid stricter public health rules put in place to slow the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19. The decrease marks the largest drop since January 2021, when the economy shed 207,800 jobs. The loss also pushed the unemployment rate to 6.5 per cent in January compared with 6.0 per cent in December. As Omicron spread across the country, governments reintroduced capacity limits and closures for workplaces such as restaurants and gyms. Statistics Canada says the bulk of the job losses were in Ontario and Quebec, which impleme

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says a military response to the ongoing Ottawa protest against COVID-19 measures isn’t on the table at the moment. He says there were questions a few years ago regarding using the military to end other protests that were blocking critical infrastructure. He says his answer is the same today as it was then.Trudeau adds there has been no such request made to the federal government for military intervention. Trudeau says the federal priority remains "being there for the citizens of Ottawa." Trudeau says one must be "very, very cautious" about deploying troops on Ca

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he looks forward to speaking with Conservative MP Candice Bergen and congratulating her on her new role as the party's interim leader. But Trudeau says he also plans to highlight the importance of cross-party co-operation and support for public health measures. Bergen's predecessor, ousted Tory leader Erin O'Toole, struggled to bring his caucus together on issues like vaccine mandates. Manitoba MP Candice Bergen is the new interim leader of the Conservative Party of Canada. Conservative MPs chose Bergen for the role in a secret ballot Wednesday night after vo

Manitoba MP Candice Bergen is the new interim leader of the Conservative Party of Canada. Conservative MPs chose Bergen for the role in a secret ballot Wednesday night after voting to remove Erin O'Toole from the top job earlier in the day. She will serve as interim leader until the party membership chooses a new permanent leader. This will be the third leadership race since former prime minister Stephen Harper stepped down after losing to the Liberals in the 2015 election.

Erin O'Toole says it's been the honour of a lifetime to lead the party of Sir John A. MacDonald and Confederation. Speaking this evening he says he believes the Conservative party needs to be both an intellectual force and a governing force. Erin O'Toole was ousted today by his caucus in a strong vote against his leadership. But he intends to remain as a sitting MP, saying, ``there is not a bad seat in the House of Commons, from the back corner where he first sat, to the front rows.'' Erin O'Toole has headed the party since August of 2020 after Andrew Scheer was pushed out as leader. Click th

There were tributes in the House of Commons today after Erin O'Toole was turfed from his leadership job by his own Conservative caucus. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he may have had his differences with the Opposition leader, but he appreciates his work and the toll it takes on family. NDP leader Jagmeet Singh thanked Erin O'toole for his services. The 119 Conservative members of Parliament met via video conference to cast secret ballots after about one-third of them signed a notice that triggered a leadership review.

Erin O'Toole has been ousted as Conservative Party of Canada leader after 73 members of the Tory caucus voted to replace him. 45 endorsed O'Toole's leadership. Caucus members are now going to choose an interim leader and New Brunswick MP John Williamson was quick to post on social media that he'd like to have the job. The party's members of Parliament met virtually today to cast secret ballots after about one-third of them signed a notice that triggered a leadership review. Quebec MP Pierre Paul-Hus says the party is more united than ever after this morning's vote and want to move forward so

A protest blocking the highway at Alberta's main border crossing into the United States has thinned out but remains in place, a day after Mounties tried to disperse truckers and others who want COVID-19 restrictions dropped. About 40 vehicles are jamming up the southbound lane near Coutts and another 60 or so are tying up the northbound lane. The numbers are fewer than on Tuesday when some truckers left after police said they would begin making arrests. That threat of arrests prompted chaos in another location: a number of vehicles north of the blockade breached a police barricade to race dow