Rural and Francophone minority communities are critical to Canada’s long-term growth, and regional immigration plays a key role in strengthening their economies. In particular, the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP) has been successful in connecting businesses and employers in remote communities with the skilled newcomers they need to thrive. That is why today, the Honourable Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, announced new pilots for rural and Francophone minority communities, as Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) continues work toward

New Democrats say they are pushing for the Liberal government to fund a national school food program in the upcoming federal budget. The party says it has already been talking to the Liberals about it and the minority government seems open to the idea. The Liberal government opened up roundtable talks in 2022 with teachers, parents, children and youth about a national school food policy. The New Democrats say lunch programs, like the ones that already exist in British Columbia under a provincial NDP government, can ensure that kids get a healthy meal each day. The NDP has agreed to support the

Joginder Singh Ugrahan has launched a sharp attack on Jagjit Singh Dallewal and Swaran Singh Pandher, the leaders who started the farmers' movement in Punjab. Addressing the workers of his organization, he said that Dallewal and Pandher have weakened the movement already underway in Punjab under the leadership of the United Farmers' Front by calling for a march to Delhi. He said that Dallewal and Pandher should realize their mistake. Ugrahan raised questions that why Dallewal broke the United Kisan Morcha and formed another Morcha? He said that there is a need to fight in the front by keeping

The Bank of Canada is set to announce its interest rate decision this morning. Economists widely expect the central bank to maintain its key interest rate at five per cent, despite signs inflation is cooling. Canada's inflation rate dropped to 2.9 per cent in January as price pressures eased across the economy. The Bank of Canada has signalled it wants to see sustained declines in inflation before pivoting to rate cuts. Forecasters expect the central bank to begin lowering interest rates around the middle of the year. The slowdown in the Canadian economy is expected to pave the way to lower in

U.S. authorities continue to investigate a plane crash in Tennessee that killed five Canadians. A single-engine plane crashed alongside a highway west of downtown Nashville on Monday, killing all five people aboard. Investigator Aaron McCarter of the National Transportation Safety Board says the flight originated in Ontario and three of the passengers were children. In a recording of radio transmissions, the pilot tells air traffic controllers that his engine has shut down, he has overflown John C. Tune airport and has circled around in an attempt to land. A runway is cleared at the airport, b

British Columbia's government says it is setting 10-year targets to substantially reduce poverty in the province, with a focus on lifting children and seniors above the poverty line. Sheila Malcolmson, social development and poverty reduction minister, says legislation introduced today changes three laws to set higher targets to cut poverty, ease employment requirements for people on income and disability assistance and provide more supports. She says the legislation commits B.C. to cut overall poverty by 60 per cent over the next decade, including reducing child poverty by 75 per cent, and fo

Ronald McHaffie said he had big plans to build a ski resort near Hope, 150 km east of Vancouver, ahead of the 2010 Olympics. He cut an unlikely figure, with a Grizzly Adams beard and no history of resort development. Yet the Bigfoot Ski Resort's website was full of promises world-class skiing, a golf course, a fishing lodge and an "antique train" carrying guests around the facility. The website, which now exists in archived form, purported to show endorsements from all three levels of government, and a range of permits. McHaffie gathered $642,000 from dozens of investors, telling them construc

British Columbia's longtime Environment Minister George Heyman says he's decided not to run in this fall's provincial election. Seventy-four-year-old Heyman says in a social media post that serving the people of his Vancouver-Fairview riding since 2013 has been a great honour, but he won't seek re-election in October. He says he will endorse former Vancouver city councillor Andrea Reimer to seek the NDP nomination in his riding. Heyman is a three-term member of the legislature who introduced the NDP government's Clean BC climate and economic plan to reduce carbon emissions while developing a g

The parliamentary budget officer is projecting inflation will return to the Bank of Canada's two per cent target by the end of the year and the federal deficit will grow amid weakening economic conditions. The budget watchdog released the latest economic and fiscal outlook today. The report predicts the central bank could begin cutting interest rates in April, given the expectation that inflation will fall back to target by the end of 2024. The PBO also anticipates the federal budget to grow to $46.8 billion for current fiscal year, which would exceed the government's fall projection of $40 bi