British Columbia recorded 656 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday as officials urged residents not to bend public health rules. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix say in a joint statement that an additional 16 people have died, pushing B.C.'s death toll to 457. The new positive tests bring the total confirmed cases in the province since the pandemic began to 33,894, while about 70 per cent of those are considered recovered. The statement says there are 8,796 active cases in the province and another 10,123 people exposed to known cases are under active public heal

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the vote on the tens of billions in new spending measures in the fall economic statement will be a confidence measure. That means the minority Liberal government could fall, sending the country into a winter pandemic election if at least one of the opposition parties don't support it. Trudeau doesn't think anyone wants an election now. He says he's confident of opposition support given the need for many of the proposed measures. PM says, 80 per cent of the money spent to support Canadians during the pandemic has come from the federal government Prime Ministe

The Oscar-nominated Canadian star of the film "Juno" has come out as transgender. The Halifax-raised Elliot Page, formerly known as Ellen Page, made the announcement in a powerful post on social media. The star of the Toronto-shot Netflix series "The Umbrella Academy" says his preferred pronouns are he/they. Page's letter thanks those who have supported him along the journey, and addresses the trauma trans people face from discrimination, hateful acts, and a lack of rights. He says it feels remarkable "to finally love" who he is enough to pursue his "authentic self." And he's been "endlessly

Finance Minister Selina Robinson says insurers in BC have agreed to end a practice that helped contribute to skyrocketing condo insurance rates. Robinson says insurers have agreed to end the practice known a "best terms pricing" by January 1st. It developed when multiple insurers would each agree to submit their own bid to carry a portion of the total risk related to insuring a strata property, but the final premium paid by strata owners would usually be based on the highest of those bids, even if the majority of quotes were lower. An interim report from the BC Financial Services Authority sa

Procurement Minister Anita Anand says there has been significant misinformation about the doses of COVID-19 vaccines the government has procured and when they will start arriving. Anand says Canada was one of the first countries to sign a deal to get doses of Moderna's vaccine candidate, and the fourth to sign a deal with Pfizer. Health Canada is currently reviewing four potential COVID-19 vaccines. Pending regulatory approval, Anand says vaccine doses will begin arriving in the new year.

Police in Vancouver and Victoria say they are still breaking up parties despite COVID-19 protocols prohibiting them. Vancouver Police say the gave out fines up to 2,300 dollars each when they found parties with 16, 15, and eight to 10 people this weekend. Patrol officers in Victoria say they busted two parties, including one where they found people hiding in a closet and at the foot of a bed. A provincial health order prohibits gatherings at residences that include anyone who isn't part of that household.

British Columbia's parliamentary secretary for anti-racism initiatives says the government will engage residents to create a new anti-racism act. Rachna Singh says in a statement that the government also plans to work with the province's human rights commissioner and others to pave the way for race-based data collection. She says the goal is to reduce systemic discrimination in various sectors, including health care. Singh issued the statement following the release of a report by former judge Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond that found 84 per cent of Indigenous respondents reported some form of discr

It has been exactly two years since Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou arrived at Vancouver's airport for a flight layover and instead was taken to a police station in handcuffs. Meng was arrested at the behest of US law enforcement, who have charged her with fraud based on allegations that both she and Huawei deny. She remains in Vancouver where hearings are ongoing in her extradition case. The arrest soured Canada's relationship with China and has been linked to the ongoing detention of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, two Canadians in China.

Statistics Canada says the economy grew at a record annualized pace of 40.5 percent in the third quarter as businesses came out of COVID-19 lockdowns.Financial data firm Refinitiv says the average economist estimate was for an annualized growth rate of 47.6 per cent for the quarter.The rebound over July, August and September was a sharp turnaround from the preceding three-month stretch saw a record drop. Driving the bounce-back were the further rolling back of public health restrictions that allowed businesses to reopen.Statistics Canada also says there was a substantial increase in the housi