Asylum seekers working on the front-lines of the COVID-19 crisis are getting an early chance at permanent residency in Canada.Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino announced the program today in response to public demand that the so-called "Guardian Angels" many in Quebec be recognized for their work in the health-care sector during the pandemic.Ordinarily, asylum seekers must wait for their claims to be accepted before they can become permanent residents, but the new program waives that requirement.To apply for residency now, they must have claimed asylum in Canada prior to March 13 and have

There are 121,234 confirmed cases in Canada. Quebec: 60,917 confirmed (including 5,715 deaths, 53,441 resolved) Ontario: 40,367 confirmed (including 2,787 deaths, 36,689 resolved) Alberta: 11,969 confirmed (including 220 deaths, 10,713 resolved) British Columbia: 4,274 confirmed (including 196 deaths, 3,500 resolved) Saskatchewan: 1,511 confirmed (including 20 deaths, 1,325 resolved) Nova Scotia: 1,071 confirmed (including 64 deaths, 1,007 resolved) Manitoba: 588 confirmed (including 8 deaths, 377 resolved), 15 presumptive Newfoundland and Labrador: 268 confirmed (including 3 deaths, 263 reso

The RCMP says there has been an increase in the number of threats made against the prime minister and cabinet ministers. From January to July 2019, protective policing opened 100 investigations into threats, while from January to last month it launched about 130 investigations. That doesn't include the investigation police launched this week into an incident where a man yelled obscenities at a staff member at Infrastructure Minister Catherine McKenna's Ottawa office. Ottawa MPP Lisa MacLeod was reportedly put under police protection this week when she was threatened after speaking out against

WE Charity is scaling back its operations, making dozens of layoffs in Canada and the United Kingdom and looking to sell some of its real estate holdings in Toronto. WE Charity's U-K operations will be centralized in Canada, which means 19 full-time and contract employees in London will be laid off. At its global headquarters in Toronto, 16 full-time employees will be laid off and another 51 employees working on fixed-term contracts won't have them renewed. All this follows the uproar over the Liberal government's decision to award WE a sole-source contract to manage its student jobs program,

The Bank of Canada has cut its benchmark five-year mortgage rate to 4.79 per cent, the second cut in three months. The central bank in May had trimmed the rate to 4.94 per cent from 5.04 per cent. Three-year rates now dropped to 3.75 per cent and one-year rates remained unchanged at 3.09 per cent. The Big Six banks had already cut their advertised five-year fixed mortgage rates to the same level, though some special offers reduce rates to as little as 2.19 per cent. Lower rates risk propelling housing demand higher. The Bank of Canada's governor, Tiff Macklem, indicated about a month ago that

Canada's official fiscal watchdog says the federal wage subsidy program might cost $14 billion less than the government predicted. A new report today by Parliamentary Budget Office analyst Ben Segel-Brown estimates subsidizing wages for companies during the COVID-19 pandemic will cost $67.9 billion through the end of December.Finance Minister Bill Morneau estimated in his July fiscal report it would cost $82.3 billion.Segel-Brown says that figure was prudent at the time because of economic uncertainty and ongoing work to update the program's rules.The Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy encourages

There are 120,844 confirmed cases in Canada. Quebec: 60,813 confirmed (including 5,709 deaths, 53,270 resolved) Ontario: 40,289 confirmed (including 2,787 deaths, 36,590 resolved) Alberta: 11,893 confirmed (including 217 deaths, 10,632 resolved) British Columbia: 4,196 confirmed (including 196 deaths, 3,469 resolved) Saskatchewan: 1,484 confirmed (including 20 deaths, 1,314 resolved) Nova Scotia: 1,071 confirmed (including 64 deaths, 1,007 resolved) Manitoba: 563 confirmed (including 8 deaths, 368 resolved), 15 presumptive Newfoundland and Labrador: 268 confirmed (including 3 deaths, 263 reso

The federal government has announced an additional $305 million to help Indigenous Peoples combat COVID-19.Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller says the money is meant to help Indigenous communities prepare for emergencies and prevent the spread of the new coronavirus.He says communities can also use the money for a variety of other measures, including helping elders and vulnerable people, food insecurity, educational and other supports for children and mental health assistance.The new money will flow through the Indigenous community support fund, bringing the total amount to $685 million

The leader of the Bloc Quebecois is demanding the resignations of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Finance Minister Bill Morneau and Trudeau's chief of staff, Katie Telford. Yves-Francois Blanchet says he will try to trigger an election in October if the three don't step down. Blanchet says the WE controversy and new details about a contract for small-business rent relief that went to a company employing Telford's husband, have shown that the Liberal government is no longer trustworthy. The Bloc leader says he has not yet had discussions with other opposition leaders to see if he would have the