More public sector organizations in BC are now protected under the Public Interest Disclosure Act, better known as the Whistleblower act. A statement from the Ministry of the Attorney General says employees at B-C's tribunals and certain agencies, boards and commissions are now covered. It means workers can confidentially speak to designated officers or BC's ombudsperson and share details about a serious wrongdoing that affects the public interest, while being protected from reprisals, such as demotion or firing. Whistleblower laws currently only cover government ministry staff and independen

A Metro Vancouver-based Olympic swimmer is retiring again. Swimming Canada says Brent Hayden, the former 100-metre freestyle world champion and bronze medallist at the 2012 London Olympics, made the announcement this morning. Hayden came out of retirement in 2019 and rejoined the national team in time for the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo. At the age of 37 he was also the oldest swimmer in Canadian history, but he helped the team to 4th in the 4x100 metre freestyle and his leadoff leg of 47.99 seconds made him the oldest person to ever swim 100 metres under 48 seconds.

British Columbians are embracing zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) faster than any other jurisdiction in North America, with ZEVs representing 13% of all new light-duty vehicle sales in B.C. last year, according to the province’s 2021 Zero-Emission Vehicle Update. "With the highest reported uptake rate of ZEVs in North America, B.C. is quickly becoming a leader in the ZEV industry," said Bruce Ralston, Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation. "The annual ZEV update shows that people and businesses in B.C. are eager to make the switch to cleaner energy, and we’re helping people make

Canada will face Belgium, Morocco and Croatia in Group F in the opening group stage of the World Cup in Qatar this November. The Canadian men are ranked 38th in the world compared to No. 2 for Belgium, No. 16 for Croatia and No, 24 Morocco. Canada was the last ball taken in the draw. The Canadians drew France, Hungary and the Soviet Union as first-round opponents in their only other visit to soccer's showcase, Mexico '86. Canada lost all three matches and was outscored 5-0. Friday's draw had Canada in Pot 4, which featured the lowest-ranked qualified teams. Rules of the draw meant that the Ca

It’s not the news we want to hear on the COVID front. Canada's chief public health officer says we are seeing a steady increase in the B-A-2 variant of the virus. Dr. Theresa Tam says the rising numbers are totally expected because anytime we relax public health measures and increase in-person activities then cases are going to go up. She also says the B-A-2 variant is more transmissible and that will significantly impact people who aren’t up to date with their COVID vaccinations. Dr. Tam’s parting message at her briefing today was, Get your booster.

This has been an emotional day for Indigenous Canadians, who have finally received an apology from the Roman Catholic Church for itsrole in the residential school system.Pope Francis made the historic apology at the Vatican, begging forgiveness and telling about 190 Indigenous delegates that he hopes to visit Canada around the Feast of St. Anna, which falls on July 26th.Chief Gerald Antoine says Francis recognized the cultural genocide that was inflicted on Indigenous children, calling today a first step on the path of reconciliation.Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says today wouldn't have happe

B.C. is reporting 249 new cases of COVID-19, including one epi-linked case, for a total of 356,501 cases in the province.There are 281 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19 and 42 are in intensive care.In the past 24 hours, two new deaths (Fraser Health) have been reported, for an overall total of 2,998.There have been two new health-care facility outbreaks at Parkview Place and Monahsee Mews (Interior Health), for a total of nine facilities with ongoing outbreaks. From March 23-29, people not fully vaccinated accounted for 17.3% of cases and from March 16-29 they accounted for 21.9% of hospi

In an effort to better protect the health and safety of women and girls, the Alberta government is working to strengthen legislation banning female genital mutilation (FGM) in the province. Bill 10, the Health Professions (Protecting Women and Girls) Amendment Act 2022, if passed, will mean health professionals and practitioners who perform or facilitate FGM would be removed from practicing medicine. Further, under Bill 10, if a health professional is convicted of having practiced FGM in another jurisdiction, they would not be allowed to practice in Alberta. Those who are witness to conduct r

Alberta's police watchdog says four Edmonton police officers shot and killed a suspect last week after shocking him twice with a stun gun. The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team says the 55 year old man had two potential improvised firearms and one modified imitation firearm. Investigators say officers first noticed him sitting at a picnic table and holding what appeared to be a handgun in front of Edmonton Police Service headquarters. The man is the fourth person to die in Edmonton police shootings since the start of the year.