Canada's chief public health officer says there has been a social, cultural shift around the wearing of masks during the COVID-19 pandemic. After first suggesting wearing a mask, Dr. Theresa Tam is now recommending covering your face when maintaining physical distance might not be possible. She says thinking it of as protecting each other from being exposed to the virus is a key concept for Canadians. Dr. Tam is again stressing that for summer, outside activities are better than inside and keeping a physical distance and hand washing will continue to be key.

Celestica Inc. has been contracted to build 7,500 ventilators in Newmarket, Ont., for a Canadian medical device company working on the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.Financial terms of its contract with StarFish Medical Inc. weren't announced.Celestica says it intends to deliver the medical devices for treating patients with breathing problems to Health Canada in the fourth quarter of 2020.Celestica is a Toronto-based company with a global business that manufactures equipment for a variety of industries including health care, aerospace and information technology.Starfish is one of several

Large companies that receive bridge financing through a new federal loan program will have to give the government the option to take an ownership stake, or provide a cash equivalent.Finance Minister Bill Morneau says the terms will be the same for any company asking for help through the program that opens for applications today.He says the terms are designed to make sure companies using the program receive bridge loans, not bailouts, to get through COVID-19's economic disruptions.The Liberals have said the loans would be on commercial terms, and require companies to have already gone to banks

There are 79,112 confirmed and presumptive cases in Canada. Quebec: 44,197 confirmed (including 3,647 deaths, 12,497 resolved) Ontario: 23,384 confirmed (including 1,919 deaths, 17,898 resolved) Alberta: 6,716 confirmed (including 128 deaths, 5,584 resolved) British Columbia: 2,446 confirmed (including 146 deaths, 1,975 resolved) Nova Scotia: 1,044 confirmed (including 56 deaths, 95 resolved) Saskatchewan: 599 confirmed (including 6 deaths, 470 resolved) Manitoba: 279 confirmed (including 7 deaths, 257 resolved), 11 presumptive Newfoundland and Labrador: 260 confirmed (including 3 deaths, 250

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the re-opening of Canada amid the COVID-19 pandemic needs to be cautious and responsible, and that goes for the resumption of the House of Commons too. Opposition leader Andrew Scheer has repeatedly called for a return to in-person sittings, saying the existing thrice-weekly meetings of a special COVID-19 committee aren't enough to properly scrutinize the government's handling of the pandemic. Trudeau says the two virtual sittings combined with a single, reduced in-person sitting have been very effective in allowing MPs from across the country to participate

The Canadian Armed Forces is turning to the U.S. military for assistance in recovering the downed Cyclone helicopter off the coast of Greece.The helicopter crashed on April 29 within sight of the Halifax-class frigate HMCS Fredericton while participating in a NATO training mission.The remains of two Armed Forces members on board have been recovered, while four others are missing and presumed dead.While the voice and flight-data recorder were recovered, the main wreckage is beneath about 3,000 metres of water.Lt.-Gen. Mike Rouleau, who overseas all Canadian military missions at home and abroad,

A new study finds Canada's greenhouse gas emissions have fallen by about 20 per cent during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the research published today in the journal Nature points out that percentage is less than many countries such as Great Britain or the US. Co-author Corinne Le Quere says that's because Canada brought in mobility restrictions later and those were also less-strict than other countries. Globally, emissions have dropped 17 per cent.

Facebook will pay a $9-million penalty after the federal Competition Bureau found the company made false or misleading claims about the privacy of Canadians' personal information.The social media firm will pay an additional $500,000 to cover the costs of the bureau's investigation.In a settlement registered today, the company has agreed not to make misleading representations about the extent to which users can control access to their personal data on Facebook and the Messenger app.Following an investigation that took into account Facebook's practices between August 2012 and June 2018, the bure

The United States has agreed to Canada's request to extend the mutual ban on non-essential cross-border travel until June 21.Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed the extension today.He calls it an important decision that will protect citizens in both countries.The deal, which prohibits discretionary travel while permitting trade shipments, commerce and essential workers to continue to move in both directions, was first reached in mid-March and extended for 30 days last month.Officials and stakeholders on both sides of the border have hailed the agreement as a successful measure in curbing t