Hospice services are once again available locally to residents of Delta, B.C., as Fraser Health officially opens the Irene Thomas Hospice. The launch ends a bitter and lengthy battle between the province and a provincially funded society that formerly operated the hospice, but refused to provide medical assistance in dying. Members of the former Delta Hospice Society objected on religious grounds to a requirement to offer medically assisted deaths, prompting legal action, removal of provincial funding and an order for the society to vacate the facility. Fraser Health took possession of the 10

Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole is pitching a $20-per-tonne carbon price for consumers in his party's $5-billion plan to tackle climate change.The move represents a major policy shift for the party, which has long campaigned to scrap the carbon price introduced by the Liberals under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.The 15-page document, obtained by The Canadian Press, is set to be announced by O'Toole later this morning and outlines how carbon pricing would work under the Conservatives.It says the price would start at $20 per tonne and rise to no higher than $50 per tonne.The party, which did n

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday inaugurated Indian Air Force Commanders' Conference at Air Headquarters (Vayu Bhawan) here.The conference is aimed at addressing the issues of IAF's operational capabilities in the times to come, the Defence Ministry said in a statement.A series of discussions would be conducted over three days to address strategies and policies related to capabilities that would give IAF a significant edge over its adversaries."Various welfare and human resource (HR) measures to improve the administrative efficiency will also be discussed," the spokesperson added.

Amid the ongoing farmers protest and rise in COVID-19 cases, Delhi Traffic Police informed that Ghazipur, Singhu, Mungeshpur, Harewali and Tikri borders have been closed for traffic movement."The following borders are closed for traffic movement: Ghazipur Border (Ghaziabad towards Delhi), Singhu Border, Mungeshpur, Harewali Border and Tikri Border," Delhi Traffic Police tweeted on Thursday.Farmers have been protesting at different borders of the national capital since November 26 last year against the three newly enacted farm laws: Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitatio

British Columbia health officials are strongly encouraging everyone who is eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine to get one as hospitalizations linked to the disease reached a new record. The province confirmed 1,168 new cases and six more deaths Wednesday. There are 397 people in hospital, 120 of whom are in intensive care. Almost 1.2 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in B.C., 87,820 of which are second doses. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix say in a joint statement that everyone 55 and older is now eligible to get a shot. They also

We've seen some bizarre things people were caught doing on Zoom calls since the pandemic began, but nothing like what seems to have happened with an Ottawa MP. A Canadian Parliament member was caught stark naked in a virtual meeting of the House of Commons. Liberal William Amos, who has represented the Quebec riding of Pontiac since 2015, appeared on the screens of his fellow MPs completely naked today. William Amos appeared on the screens of his fellow lawmakers completely naked Wednesday. The pandemic has meant many Canadian lawmakers participate in sessions via video conference instead of

Federal Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino says his department is creating a new means to permanent residency for 90,000 essential workers and international graduates. Those people are already in Canada. Mendicino says the new policy will grant permanent status to temporary workers and graduates who possess the skills and experience the country needs. Mendicino says health care and other eligible essential workers must have at least one year of Canadian work experience to apply, while international graduates must have completed an eligible Canadian post-secondary program within the last fou

There are calls for more action on safe drug supplies and recovery programs from British Columbia's chief coroner and the top doctor as the province marks the fifth anniversary of the overdose crisis. Chief coroner Lisa Lapointe says 7,024 people have died from illicit drug overdoses since the public health emergency was declared in April 2016 and expanded treatment options are needed immediately. She says illicit drug overdoses now rank as the fourth highest cause of death in B-C, with 43 being the average age of people dying of overdoses. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says gove

Nearly $17,000 in fines have been handed out by RCMP in Surrey, B.C., in the last week to a growing number of people who police say are ignoring COVID-19 health orders. RCMP say in a statement that most of the fines were issued over large gatherings, including a $2,300 fine for the host of a wedding where 22 people attended against the provincial health officer's orders. Sgt. Tyler Wickware, with Surrey RCMP's COVID-19 Compliance and Enforcement Team, says officers have seen the number of people and businesses ignoring the health orders "creeping up." Mounties say the majority of the fines an