Longtime diplomat Jennifer May will work to rebuild Ottawa's relationship with Beijing as Canada's new ambassador to China. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has named May to the post, saying she will be advancing Canada's work to stand up for democratic values, human rights and the rule of law. The post has been vacant since last December, when Dominic Barton stepped down following the release of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig. The ``two Michaels'' had been detained in China for nearly three years in what was widely seen as political retaliation after Canadian authorities arrested Huawei exec

Atlantic Canada is preparing for hurricane-force winds, heavy rainfall and potential power outages this weekend. Hurricane Fiona is poised to become a ``very powerful'' post-tropical storm by the time it makes landfall in eastern Nova Scotia. The Canadian Hurricane Centre says the storm will pass through Cape Breton early tomorrow before making its way to Quebec's Lower North Shore and southeastern Labrador early Sunday. The prime minister says the federal government is standing by, ready to help as hurricane Fiona approaches the Maritimes. The storm could be the biggest to ever hit Canada, a

A nurse in BC has been suspended for a year after engaging in an intimate relationship with a ``vulnerable'' former patient. The BC College of Nurses and Midwives says the Chilliwack-based nurse signed a consent agreement on September 17th to address her professional misconduct that occurred between April 2021 and February 2022. The college says in a summary the nurse had an intimate relationship with the client, approximately two months after the termination of the nurse-client relationship. The college says the nurse also won't be able to work alone in the 12 months after her suspension has

Child-care fees in British Columbia are set to drop by up to $550 a month starting in December for children in licensed care for those in kindergarten and younger. Jennifer Whiteside, B.C.'s minister of education and child care, says the reductions will mean families of 96 per cent of children in eligible care, or about69,000 kids, will automatically receive the lower fees. She says the savings for families are on top of earlier reductions of $350 per month for children under three years old in group care, which will cut fees by $900 a month. Whiteside says families with children in kindergar

On Thursday, September 23, 2022, at approximately 3:15 p.m., Peel Police officers were alerted to a white Jeep driving erratically near Queen Street West and Chinguacousy Road in the City of Brampton. Officers located the vehicle, and during its attempts to evade police, the driver struck two trees, three civilian vehicles and several police cruisers. Officers took the driver into custody a short time later near Chinguacousy Road and Drinkwater Road in Brampton. No physical injuries were sustained to pedestrians, police or involved occupants of the vehicle. Yudhbir Randhawa, a 31-year-old man

Alberta criminal defence lawyers are taking another step in their dispute with the provincial government over the amount of compensation paid by Legal Aid Alberta. Four organizations representing lawyers in Edmonton, Calgary, Red Deer and southern Alberta began job action August 8th by refusing to accept certain bail and duty counsel files from legal aid. Beginning Monday, the lawyers will refuse to take any new legal aid certificates. Kelsey Sitar, vice-president of the Criminal Defence Lawyers Association in Calgary says she realizes the move is drastic but it's important to get the Alberta

Punjab Bhartiya Janata Party chief Ashwani Sharma met former chief minister of Punjab Amarinder Singh, who recently joined the party and also merged his Punjab Lok Congress (PLC) with it. Former chief minister Amarinder Singh had formally joined the BJP on Monday at the party headquarters in presence of Union ministers Narendra Singh Tomar and Kiren Rijiju. Calling it a courtesy meet, Sharma said, "I came here today to talk about the current political situation in Punjab with Captain Amarinder Singh as he has a rich political experience. " " I have invited Captain Amarinder Singh to come to t

The seven candidates running to be the next United Conservative Party leader and premier are split on whether Alberta should bring in its own provincial police force. Four of them told a debate in Calgary that it's not a plan they would pursue now. Rebecca Schulz says she is not hearing about it on doorsteps, and notes the vast majority of municipalities don't want it. Rajan Sawhney (RAW'-jun SAW'-nee) says it's a solution in search of a problem and a larger discussion is needed on how to best reduce crime and keep people safer. Leela Aheer (LEE'-luh uh-HEER') says the province has not made it

This past July, the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit of British Columbia (CFSEU-BC) led a month-long initiative in collaboration with the Kelowna, Kamloops, Vernon-North Okanagan, and Penticton RCMP Detachments, as well as BC Highway Patrol, in an effort to reduce opportunities for gang violence in identified high-risk places and times. The intent was to mitigate, disrupt, and suppress violence through proactive and high visibility enforcement.Gang and organized crime-related activities and violence impacts every community in British Columbia. CFSEU-BC regularly leads proactive initiat