The COVID-19 pandemic has Canadians spending more time and money online. Statistics Canada says a survey conducted last month found that 44 per cent of Canadians had dropped more money on technology, including computers, laptops and tablets, and 42 per cent had sprung for more video streaming services. The survey also found about a third of Canadians say they've received attempted identity-theft attacks and 14 per cent reported at least one attack related to COVID-19 test results, a potential cure for the virus or about the Canada Emergency Response Benefit. Analyst Christopher Collins says t

WestJet's CEO says the lack of travel demand combined with domestic quarantines means the airline can no longer maintain its full Canadian network. In a video post, Ed Sims says WestJet is, ``out of runway,'' and is suspending operations to four cities in Atlantic Canada and slashing service to others in the region.WestJet says it will indefinitely halt routes to Fredericton and Moncton, New Brunswick, Sydney, Nova Scotia, and Charlottetown, while dramatically paring down service to Halifax and St. John's, Newfoundland. PEI Premier Dennis King is expressing ``deep disappointment'' that WestJe

Statistics Canada says vehicular traffic coming into Canada from the U.S. remains low as travel restrictions remain in place. The agency says the number of U.S. travellers who crossed into Canada by car in September is down 94 per cent, to a total of 64,700 trips, compared to the same time last year. Last month, it said U.S. residents made 72, 800 trips across the border.Statistics Canada also says the number of Canadians returning to the country in September was down 93 per cent, to 151,900, compared to the 2.2 million recorded in September 2019. Restrictions on non-essential travel due to CO

Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc says there is no magic legislative bullet to control objectionable content on social media.LeBlanc told a virtual conference on democracy today if there were a simple answer, many other western democracies would have already passed such laws. He says the internet and social-media platforms must be a home for free speech, a critical element of any democracy. However, LeBlanc adds, they should not be forums for hate speech, racism and disinformation. But he says citizens do not want governments to regulate content on the internet. LeBlanc prefe

The country's chief public health officer says a delay in Johnson & Johnson's clinical trials for its COVID-19 vaccine may signal a delay in getting a vaccine to the general public. She says everyone wants to see a vaccine ready as quickly as possible, but health and safety should never be compromised. Johnson & Johnson paused a clinical trial of its COVID-19 vaccine after finding an unexplained illness, which is normal in large-scale studies. These Phase 3 clinical trials involving human volunteers are supposed to wrap by November and December.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is denouncing Islamophobia and right-wing extremism. Trudeau says the government will do more to address the problem, but did not provide specifics. The National Council of Canadian Muslims says a downtown Toronto mosque received several emails on the weekend that contained threats of violence against Muslims. Following the fatal stabbing of a caretaker at a Toronto mosque last month, the council has called on the federal government to develop an action plan to dismantle white supremacy groups.

Canada's chief public health officer, Dr. Theresa Tam says trick-or-treating outside, with the right physical distancing and masks, will be safe in most places this Halloween. Treats could be prepackaged and handed out at the end of a hockey stick to avoid children rummaging through a bowl of goodies. Dr. Tam says Canadians don't want to see a yo-yoing effect from rounds of openings and closures, citing the need for a sustained rhythm that is more predictable for people. Marking holidays and celebrations is one way to preserve a sense of normalcy. But she says Canadians should observe the inst

A leading Canadian expert on government-funded basic incomes says the oft-debated idea could have averted much of the economic effects of COVID-19. Evelyn Forget says a basic income program would have automatically provided help to hard-hit Canadians instead of forcing governments to set up emergency aid in a rush. Basic income is essentially a no-strings attached benefit governments provide to citizens that sets a financial floor for individuals and families. Advocates of such a program have pointed to the Canada Emergency Response Benefit as an example of how the country could make basic in

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says opposition parties can keep digging into the WE Charity issue, but his government is focused on helping Canadians through the COVID-19 pandemic. Before Trudeau prorogued Parliament in August, two House of Commons committees spent months investigating a multimillion-dollar federal program for students awarded to WE Charity in the spring. But the federal Conservatives are calling for a new anticorruption committee to roll those two probes of the now-defunct Canada Student Services Grant into one. Sidestepping questions about whether he supports the creation of