Police in British Columbia say they've seized more than 27 tonnes of contraband cigarettes worth more than $24 million in a pair of investigations over the past year. Assistant RCMP Commissioner David Teboul says the investigations involved collaboration with tax fraud investigators from the B.C. Ministry of Finance, calling the seizures of 133,000 cartons of cigarettes a " major blow to numerous organized crime groups." Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth says the most recent raids in Mission and Maple Ridge on Feb. 28, involving 67,500 cartons, represent the largest one-time seizure of con

Former British Columbia cabinet minister Selina Robinson has quit the NDP, citing antisemitism in the ruling party's caucus. Robinson, who is Jewish, says she can no longer remain in the party because it is not properly addressing antisemitism in the province or among her former colleagues. Robinson told an impromptu news conference in a hallway of the B.C. legislature that she will now sit as an Independent. She resigned her cabinet post as minister of post-secondary education last month after saying modern Israel was founded on "a crappy piece of land." The Jan. 30 remarks sparked an outcry

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

Six skiers have been rescued in two separate operations in the mountains in southwestern British Columbia. North Shore Rescue says on its Facebook page that five skiers were reported lost Sunday night by Whistler Search and Rescue, and a helicopter was used to help find and bring out them out. Rescuers say the lost skiers had to spend the night outside before they could get them out on Monday. In a separate operation by North Shore Rescue, a team went out late Sunday when a skier called in to report they were lost near Cypress Mountain. Rescuers say the man was found below the Howe Sound Crest

British MP Preet Kaur Gill has alleged that Indian agents are targeting Sikhs living in the UK. She has raised this issue in the British Parliament. Preet Kaur Gill claimed that Sikhs living in Britain are on the hit list of agents associated with India. She has mentioned the alleged assassination conspiracies against Sikhs abroad. She also asked Minister for Security Tom Tugendhat what the government is doing to protect British Sikhs. In response, Tugendhat said that if there is any threat to any British citizen from abroad, they will take immediate action. He said that Sikhs have the right

Police on Vancouver Island say a hit-and-run crash has killed a 90-year-old woman. A statement from Nanaimo RCMP says a passing driver called police at around 8:50 p.m. Saturday after finding the woman lying unconscious on the road. They say the woman was pronounced dead at the scene "despite the valiant efforts of bystanders who administered emergency first aid and first responders." Police say the crash is being investigated as a hit-and-run based on evidence gathered by traffic services officers and an RCMP collision analyst. The Mounties are appealing to the public for help in finding the

McGill University and Concordia University are suing the Quebec government over its decision to hike tuition for out-of-province students by about 30 per cent. In separate lawsuits, the two Montreal universities say the government's decision constitutes discrimination under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and that the hikes have damaged the schools' reputations. Tuition is set to rise to roughly $12,000 from about $9,000 for out-of-province students next fall, except for Quebec's only other English university Bishop's which was exempted it is outside Montreal. The Quebec government