Quebec health officials have confirmed a case of the Omicron variant of COVID-19. Health Minister Christian Dubé made the announcement today at a news conference. Dubé says 115 people who recently travelled to the province, principally from countries in southern Africa, have been asked to take a PCR test and to isolate. Ontario reported Canada's first two cases of the Omicron variant of concern on the weekend. The province said today the two infected people were recently in Nigeria and were tested for the virus in Montreal before travelling on to Ottawa.

Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s provincial health officer, and Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, have issued the following statement regarding a new variant of concern (VOC), Omicron:"We support the measures taken today by the federal government in response to the newly identified variant of concern, Omicron. We do not yet know the impact this new VOC will have on transmission or of severity of illness, but taking this immediate precautionary action is prudent. We will continue to closely monitor developments around the world."At this time, there is no evidence that this variant has been introduced i

B.C. is reporting 424 new cases of COVID-19, including one epi-linked case, for a total of 216,758 cases in the province.There are currently 3,061 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 211,202 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 295 individuals are in hospital and 112 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the past 24 hours, three new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,316.The new deaths include:Fraser Health: twoInterior Health: oneThere have been two new health-care facility outbreaks at Ri

General Wayne Eyre has been officially appointed Canada's next chief of the defence staff. He had been filling in for Admiral Art McDonald, who stepped down in August because of an investigation into alleged sexual misconduct. No charges were laid by police and McDonald wanted to be reinstated as CDS. Today, Defence Minister Anita Anand announced the permanent promotion for Eyre. McDonald has been put on leave for now.

Workers in British Columbia will be eligible for a minimum of five paid sick days a year starting in January. The new sick leave policy goes into effect Jan. 1 and affects all workers covered by the province's Employment Standards Act. Labour Minister Harry Bains says the five paid days are fair and were determined following a consultation period that generated 60,000 responses. Bains says the government heard from some who suggested three paid days was an appropriate amount while others wanted 10 days or more. The government says more than one million workers in B.C. don't have paid sick lea

Over a three-day period, B.C. is reporting 1,052 new cases of COVID-19, including three epi-linked cases, for a total of 215,688 cases in the province:Nov. 19-20: 390 new casesNov. 20-21: 332 new casesNov. 21-22: 330 new casesThere are 3,132 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 210,070 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 337 individuals are in hospital and 115 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the last 72 hours, 10 new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,303.The new deaths include:Fraser

The federal government says BC residents displaced or left jobless due to extreme flooding should immediately apply for employment insurance benefits. Federal employment Minister Carla Qualtrough says the federal government is waiving the requirement for applicants to show a record of employment, recognizing that it may be difficult for many to obtain the proper documentation right now. She says the government is looking at the possibility that people may have exhausted their EI due to receiving pandemic benefits. Qualtrough says the government will figure out a solution and Ottawa will help

B.C. is reporting 468 new cases of COVID-19, including five epi-linked cases, for a total of 214,150 cases in the province.There are 3,345 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 208,284 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 355 individuals are currently in hospital and 110 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the last 24 hours, nine new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,290.The new deaths include:Fraser Health: fiveInterior Health: oneNorthern Health: twoIsland Health: oneFrom Nov. 10-16, peo

The BC government is offering aid to eligible BC residents whose homes, properties or businesses have been affected by recent floods or landslides. The Public Safety Ministry says disaster financial assistance is available for residents in the southwest, central and southeastern parts of the province. The ministry says homeowners, residential tenants, business owners, local governments, Indigenous communities, farmers and charitable organizations that could not get insurance to cover disaster-related losses can receive up to 80 per cent of eligible damage, to a maximum of 300,000 dollars. Cla