The Public Health Agency of Canada says the country is bending the curve on the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, but progress has recently slowed.Dr. Theresa Tam, the chief public health officer, says Canada could still see some "bumps in the trajectory" over the next few months.Some provinces, including Alberta and Saskatchewan, are still lagging behind the rest of the country.That has prolonged the heavy strain on the health system and critical-care capacity.Nationally, reported cases are now most commonly children under the age of 12.That age group does not yet qualify to be vaccinated

B.C. is reporting 596 new cases of COVID-19, including two epi-linked cases, for a total of 207,716 cases in the province.There are currently 4,451 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 200,749 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 438 individuals are in hospital and 130 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the past 24 hours, eight new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,200.The new deaths include:Fraser Health: threeVancouver Coastal Health: twoNorthern Health: threeThere have been two new he

British Columbia's government says it will introduce legislation in the spring aimed at giving homebuyers a chance to change their mind on the purchase of a home. The so-called cooling-off period would allow purchasers to back out with no or diminished legal consequences. The B.C. Financial Services Authority also will be consulting with those in the real estate industry and other experts on more ways to protect consumers, including a review of the blind bidding system, which can significantly raise the price of purchase. Finance Minister Selina Robinson says the COVID-19 pandemic has impacte

Alberta is planning a set day for future provincial elections.A bill introduced by Justice Minister Kaycee Madu proposes that the last Monday in May, every four years, be the day Albertans go to the polls.Legislation passed a decade ago set the time frame for elections at a three-month period in the spring every four years. If the bill passes, the next vote would be held on May 29, 2023 _ but that could end up not being the next polling day.Alberta premiers always have the option to call an election for extenuating circumstances, including if they are seeking a mandate on consequential changes

For the second time in less than a month, a pedestrian has been hit and killed while walking along Highway 1 in Abbotsford. Police say it happened last night just before 8 p.m. as the unnamed person walked in the eastbound lanes of the busy route. The driver stayed at the scene and few other details have been released. A pedestrian walking in the westbound lands of the highway in roughly the same area was hit by a transport truck on October 20th and died a short time later.

The former leader of Alberta's right-of-centre Wildrose Party wants to jump back into politics.Brian Jean says on social media that he is seeking the United Conservative nomination for the constituency of Fort McMurray-Lac LaBiche.He says something must be done so that the N-D-P doesn't win the next provincial election slated for 2023.Jean led the Wildrose before it merged in 2018 with the Progressive Conservative Party to form the United Conservative Party He then lost the U-C-P leadership to Jason Kenney.

A backbench member of the United Conservative government is calling for a public inquiry into what he calls the harms caused byAlberta's COVID-19 restrictions on children and young adults. Jason Stephan, the member for Red Deer-South, made the statement in the Alberta legislature this week. Stephan says young Albertans are not overwhelming the health-care system.He says Alberta Health Services is well funded and should have more I-C-U beds.Alberta Health Services says it has been successful in increasing hospital and I-C-U capacity throughout the pandemic

Delta Police are releasing video that shows the last known location and direction of travel of missing person Anmol JAGAT. He was last captured on video at 12:42 am, October 24 walking northbound in the 8100 block of 112A in North Delta. He is believed to have headed northbound on 112th after this. Any individuals or businesses with CCTV or dashcam which could have captured Anmol walking in this area are urged to please review their footage.South Fraser Search and Rescue was deployed October 30 in an effort to help locate Anmol. Search and Rescue personnel conducted an extensive search along t

Premier John Horgan has released the following statement regarding the latest state of his health:"The surgery and biopsy that were done last week were successful and I am grateful to the amazing health-care team for all the support I’ve received. The pathology confirmed that the growth in my throat was cancerous."My prognosis is good and I expect to make a full recovery. In the next couple of weeks I will need to start radiation treatment, which will conclude toward the end of December. "During that time, I will continue to participate virtually in briefings, cabinet meetings, and other imp