Vancouver's city council has decided to halt the development of new supportive housing projects. The proposal, introduced by Mayor Ken Sim, was approved with a 6-3 vote on Wednesday evening. The mayor expressed concerns that other cities in Metro Vancouver are not doing enough to support their homeless populations. Mayor Sim pointed out that Vancouver provides 77 percent of the region's support services, including assisted living and shelters, despite the city representing only 25 percent of the region's population. He stated that the halt on new supportive housing units will remain in place

An overnight windstorm along British Columbia's south coast has knocked out power for thousands. BC Hydro is reporting more 7,000 people along southern Vancouver Island woke up to outages on Tuesday. More than 20,000 had power knocked out during the storm across the island and the Lower Mainland although it had been restored to most by 9 a.m. Environment Canada says peak winds were felt along the coast, with Discovery Island off Victoria seeing the highest gusts of up to 96 km/h. Other locations, including Victoria and Tsawwassen, also reported high winds, but all Environment Canada wind warni

Another earthquake has struck off the British Columbia coast. A post on X from Emergency Info BC Monday night said a 5.2-magnitude earthquake struck west of Port Alice, a community on northwest Vancouver Island. The agency added there was no risk of a tsunami, and there have been no reports of damage or injuries. This is the second earthquake in British Columbia in four days, after a 4.7-magnitude temblor struck the southwest coast on Friday, northeast of Sechelt. Tremors were felt on the Sunshine Coast, Metro Vancouver as well as Vancouver Island. Though several smaller aftershocks came from

British Columbia Opposition Leader John Rustad is proposing a "carbon tax" on U.S. thermal coal that is shipped out of B.C. ports to use as leverage against threats of American tariffs on Canadian softwood lumber. Rustad says such a tax would be a "tool to fight back" on softwood tariffs and duties proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump, which Forests Minister Ravi Parmar said last week could increase to more than 50 per cent. He says that until "unfair and unwarranted" U.S. duties on B.C. softwood are removed, the province needs "to be ready to hit the Americans where it hurts.” The B.C. C

Delta Hospital in British Columbia closed its emergency room for the second consecutive night on Sunday due to a shortage of doctors. Fraser Health issued a notice around 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, announcing the temporary closure of emergency room services from 9:30 p.m. Sunday to 6:30 a.m. Monday. Patients who had already been admitted were attended to before the doctor on duty left at 1:30 a.m. It is worth noting that the emergency room had also been closed on Saturday night due to the same issue. During these closures, nurses provided first aid to patients and assisted in transferring them to n

LifeLabs workers have initiated a phased strike across British Columbia, with 18 LifeLabs centres closed on the first day of the strike, Thursday. Leaders of the BC General Employees Union (BCGEU) have warned that protests may escalate if the issues of wages, benefits, and working conditions are not addressed through negotiations with the US-based company. Union president Paul Finch warned that workers are prepared to expand the strike to more than 100 centres. Speaking to supporters outside Vancouver’s Cityview LifeLabs, he stated that the fight would continue until their demands are met.

LifeLabs in British Columbia says some of its more than 100 centres in the province will be subject to rotating temporary closures starting on Thursday as part of job action taken by the union. The B.C. General Employees' Union, which represents about 1,200 LifeLab workers, issued a strike notice on Sunday after what it said was months of negotiations and LifeLabs' refusal to bring wages and benefits in line with the cost of living. LifeLabs, a lab testing service provider, says in a statement that as a designated essential service, it will continue to operate and do everything in its control

The British Columbia government says the province's lowest-paid workers are getting a wage boost to keep pace with inflation. The Ministry of Labour says the minimum wage will increase from $17.40 to $17.85 per hour starting in June. It says the 2.6 per cent increase follows changes made last spring to the Employment Standards Act, which mandated yearly wage rises. Labour Minister Jennifer Whiteside says those adjustments were made last year because minimum-wage workers are most vulnerable to jumps in prices for living expenses like groceries, rent and gas. The province says the changes align

British Columbia's latest snow and water supply bulletin says it was "extremely dry" across much of the province last month, with average snowpack measuring 28 per cent below normal as of Feb. 1. The latest snow pack figures released Tuesday come after the province started the year with a snowpack at 13 per cent below normal. The bulletin, release by from the Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship, says last month fell within the top 10 driest Januaries across much of the province, while Abbotsford, Penticton, Kelowna, Vernon, Cranbrook and Chetwynd were in the top five since record-