The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has turned British Columbia's budget forecast from black to red. The government's final budget numbers show a deficit of $321 million from a projected surplus of $274 million for the 2019-20 budget.Finance Minister Carole James says that while the first three quarters of the fiscal year saw steady economic growth, the province's financial picture dimmed because of the pandemic.She says declines in tax revenues, losses at the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, and early measures to tackle the pandemic plunged the fiscal year into deficit.In a fiscal u

The Vancouver Aquarium is shutting down again because of the COVID-19 pandemic, forcing the elimination of 209 staff. The aquarium stays in a statement it is putting its programming on pause while it attempts to recovery from the financial devastation of COVID-19. Ocean Wise says it will close Sept. 7 and all animals on site will continue to receive care from 75 specialized staff.The Vancouver Aquarium reopened in June following a three-month closure at the start of the pandemic. Ocean Wise, the non-profit that runs the aquarium, says in a statement it will focus on transforming to a new model

Former Indian President Pranab Mukherjee passed away on Monday at the Army Hospital (Research and Referral) Hospital where he was admitted earlier this month and had undergone surgery for removal of a clot in his brain. His son and former MP Abhijit Mukherjee gave the information in a tweet. "With a Heavy Heart , this is to inform you that my father Shri PranabMukherjee has just passed away inspite of the best efforts of Doctors of RR Hospital prayers ,duas and prarthanas from people throughout India ! I thank all of You," he said. He was admitted to the Army Hospital here on August 10 and aft

The Liberals have announced an extension of the Canada Emergency Business Account until the end of October. Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland says the government is also working with financial institutions to expand eligibility to companies that have been shut out of the program. That would include those who use personal rather than business bank accounts. The government had said in mid-May that it was working to address that particular issue. Freeland says details about eligibility changes will be released in the coming days. The business loan program has provided more than 29 billion dolla

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the federal government has signed agreements with two more American suppliers to reserve millions of doses of their experimental COVID-19 vaccines for Canadians.Deals are now in place for Canada to get access to vaccines being tested by both Johnson & Johnson and Novavax.Earlier this month Ottawa signed similar deals with Pfizer and Moderna.The vaccines are still in either Phase 2 or 3 clinical trials and won't be purchased unless they are deemed safe and effective by Health Canada. Trudeau says the vaccines all show promising results and Canada is signi

Saturday night at 9:55 pm, Abbotsford Police patrol officers were called to the 33800 block of Mayfair Ave for a report of a shots fired. Upon arrival, officers spoke to the 22-year-old victim, who advised that he and his girlfriend were in their vehicle in the driveway, when the occupants of a dark pick-up fired a gun towards him, hitting their vehicle in the driveway and the residence. The occupants of the suspect vehicle fled the area. Fortunately, no one was injured. Investigators are in the preliminary stages of this investigation, while the motive is not known at this time, police do not

BC is reporting 124 new cases of COVID-19 and no new deaths, leaving the death toll at 204. In a joint news release, Health Minister Adrian Dix and provincial health officer Doctor Bonnie Henry say there are 974 active cases of the illness in the province. They say 2,796 people are being actively monitored by public health workers as a result of exposure to known cases. 23 people are hospitalized with the illness, including seven who are in intensive care, while 4,310 people who tested positive have recovered.

ICBC says it is adding more road test appointments over the coming weeks as new examiners start work and more test sites open. The insurance agency says those who have booked road tests should visit its online booking site to see if they can get an earlier appointment. ICBC says it has added a total of two thousand road test appointments for testing dates starting September 9th. Over the coming weeks, an additional six thousand new appointment slots will be added, with most of them available at testing locations in the Lower Mainland.

The federal government has once again extended travel restrictions to limit the spread of COVID-19. Public Safety Minister Bill Blair says existing restrictions on international travel to Canada will be extended one more month to September 30th. Blair says Canadian citizens and permanent residents who are returning home to Canada will continue to be subjected to strict quarantine measures. New arrivals are required to quarantine for 14 days if they don't have symptoms, or isolate for 14 days if they do.