A much anticipated new phase in the COVID-19 pandemic starts today with several provinces beginning the process of slowly loosening some of their lockdown restrictions.Quebec, which accounts for more than half of Canada's coronavirus cases, including deaths from the illness, is reopening retail stores outside Montreal while those in the greater Montreal area are to reopen on May 11.Ontario, the other epicentre for the virus, is allowing a small list of mostly seasonal businesses to reopen, including garden centres with curbside pick-ups, lawn care and landscaping companies, and automatic car w

The RCMP say the bodies of two children have been recovered after an accident in a rural part of Chilliwack, B.C.Sgt. Krista Vrolyk said police were called Sunday afternoon after a side-by-side vehicle went off Foley Creek Forest Service Road, east of downtown.She said five people, all believed to be related, were in the vehicle when it became submerged in water about 4.5 metres deep.Two adults and a child escaped from the vehicle, but two youths went missing, and a dive team was sent in to search for them.In a statement issued late Sunday night, Sgt. Vrolyk said ``It is with deep sorrow, tha

The federal government is investing millions to boost online access to health services and to support a Vancouver biological company's research into treatment and prevention of COVID-19. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the new funding during his daily news conference in Ottawa this morning as provinces across the country prepare to start re-opening on Monday. The government is spending $240 million to boost access to online health services, including mental-health support and virtual access to doctors for primary care. Ottawa is also providing $175 million to AbCellera Biologics Inc.,

British Columbia is reporting another 33 cases of COVID-19 and one more death. The province has 2,145 cases of COVID-19 and 112 deaths since the pandemic began. The death occurred in the region covered by the Fraser Health authority, which has also seen the highest number of cases. The province says 1,357 people who tested positive for COVID-19 have recovered.

Finance Minister Carole James says thousands of people applied for British Columbia's $1,000 tax-free emergency benefit in the first minutes of the program going online today.She says more than 16,000 people registered to receive the one-time B.C. Emergency Benefit for Workers in the first 45 minutes. James says the program is part of the province's $5 billion plan to help people, businesses and organizations affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.It is also available to people in B.C. who are receiving the federal Canada Emergency Response Benefit of $2,000 a month.To get the B.C. benefit, people

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the federal government is banning a range of assault-style guns, with an order that takes effect immediately.He says the order has a two-year amnesty period for current owners, and there will be a compensation program.In an announcement this morning, he cites numerous mass shootings, from Ecole Polytechnique in 1989 to the killings in Nova Scotia last week, as the reasons for the move.Stricter controls on firearms were a promise in the Liberals' election campaign platform last fall.Trudeau has said the government was on the verge of bringing in stricter gun-

Tiff Macklem, a former second in command at the Bank of Canada, is coming back to the central bank to take over the top job. Macklem, the dean of the business school at the University of Toronto, will take over the reins of the central bank as governor in early June when Stephen Poloz's seven-year term ends. Finance Minister Bill Morneau says Macklem brings a deep knowledge of and expertise in financial markets and will serve the central bank well as it navigates the an economic crisis like no other. The bank controls the country's money supply, trying to support economic growth and stability

Provincial health officer Doctor Bonnie Henry is reporting 25 new cases of COVID-19 and two new deaths as the province marks a milestone in its updates. Henry says it's been 100 days since B.C. issued its first statement about the novel coronavirus. She says lives have changed dramatically since then but Premier John Horgan will outline what she is describing as a go forward plan next week. The new cases include another 12 inmates at the Mission Institution, bringing the total to 120 with Henry saying more are expected to develop symptoms.

A Nova Scotia man says his daughter Abbigail Cowbrough is one of the victims of the Canadian military helicopter crash in the Mediterranean. Shane Cowbrough posted a message on Facebook this morning saying his daughter died when the Cyclone helicopter went down in the sea on Wednesday during a NATO training exercise. A Baptist church in Dartmouth, N.S., followed, saying the church family had lost ``a wonderful woman'' who played the bagpipes at a Remembrance Day service last fall. Cyclone helicopters carry a crew of four, including two pilots, a tactical operator and a sensor operator, with s