Several British Columbia communities are cleaning up and digging out after a storm swept over the southern part of the province on Friday, prompting flooding and landslides. Local states of emergency were declared in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island and the District of Kent in the Fraser Valley. Both areas were overwhelmed with up to 140 millimetres of rain Friday that washed out or flooded major roads and forced the evacuation of dozens of people. Kent Mayor Sylvia Pranger says about 40 homes were evacuated north of Harrison Hot Springs when Rockwell Drive washed away. As many as 500

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday exuded confidence that budget 2020-21 will fulfil the country's current needs and also the expectations from this decade."I am confident that this budget will increase income and investment, demand and consumption and bring new vigour in financial system and credit flow," said Prime Minister Modi in an address after budget presentation. "This budget will fulfill the current needs of the country as well as the future expectations from this decade," he said.Stressing on major highlights of the 90th Union Budget, Modi said several tax concessions have been

The proposed ride-hailing Inter-Municipal Business Licence (IMBL) that is supported by virtually all of Mayors’ Council takes a major step forward in addressing the unfair advantage that ride-hailing companies currently have over taxi companies. The following was approved almost unanimously by the Mayors’ Council: Endorse the principles and framework for establishing and administering an interim Inter-Municipal Business Licence (IMBL); Urge municipalities within Region 1 to adopt the associated interim IMBL bylaw as quickly as possible; Urge municipalities within Region 1 to harmonize

The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak of new virus from China a global emergency after the number of infected people spiked more than tenfold in a week. The United Nations health agency made the determination on Thursday as more cases of human-to-human transmission were being reported worldwide. To date, China has reported more than 7,700 cases, including 170 deaths. Eighteen other countries have reported cases, as scientists race to understand how exactly the virus is spreading and how severe it is.

Premier John Horgan says Surrey Mayor Doug McCallum is putting up unnecessary roadblocks to ride-hailing and should listen to citizens in his community who want to see competition. The premier made the comments after the mayor alleged Uber was operating illegally in his city and threatened to issue 500 dollar tickets to drivers. Uber has responded by filing a court injunction to block the city from issuing the fines, which it says are illegal. The company says it holds a provincial permit to operate and Surrey has not created its own business licence for ride-hailing, so there is no bylaw t

New Brunswick MP John Williamson is exploring a bid for leadership of the federal Conservatives, he said Wednesday. Williamson's announcement emerged as many Tories are grappling with whom to support in the contest now that some high-powered candidates have left the field, including former interim leader Rona Ambrose and longtime Tory MP Pierre Poilievre. "The race is wide open and there is room, I believe, for a movement Conservative candidate and those are the waters that I'm testing right now," he said.Former Conservative cabinet ministers Peter MacKay and Erin O'Toole are the only declare

Health officials say a case of corona virus has been identified in B.C. But provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says the first case is not unexpected. She says a man in his 40s returned to the Metro Vancouver area last week from a trip to Wuhan, China and began showing symptoms of the virus a day or two later. Henry says the man had already self-isolated himself so any contact was primarily limited to family members but none of them have shown symptoms and the man is recovering in isolation at home. Health officials say the risk of spread remains low in B.C.

Sonia Furstenau, a Green member of the British Columbia legislature known for her fight against a contaminated-soil quarry in her community, is running for the party's leadership. Furstenau, who represents the Cowichan Valley riding on Vancouver Island, promised at a news conference Monday to build on her party's progress and set it up for another election breakthrough. Former leader Andrew Weaver was the lone Green member of the legislature until Furstenau and Adam Olsen joined him following the 2017 election, marking a historic moment for the party. The three-member caucus signed a deal to s

It is expected to take several days for officials to recover the bodies of former NBA star Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter and seven others from a helicopter crash outside Los Angeles. LA County Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Jonathan Lucas says the next priority after recovery is identification and notifying the families involved. The Bryants were on the flight with Orange Coast College coach John Altobelli, his wife, Keri and daughter, Alyssa, who was about 13 and played on the same basketball team as Bryant's daughter, Gianna.