People age 30 and older may now receive the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine in British Columbia, starting with hot spots for transmission. Health Minister Adrian Dix and provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry say in a statement on Tuesday the vaccine will be made available across the province as B.C. receives enough doses to add more pharmacy appointments. Canada's National Advisory Committee on Immunization recommended last week that the vaccine may be offered to people 30 and up who don't want to wait for an approved mRNA vaccine, and if certain other conditions are met. Those condi

A report by British Columbia's auditor general says the province is effectively managing its highway avalanche safety program, but improvements can still be made. Michael Pickup says in a statement the audit found avalanche deaths on B.C. highways are rare events and road closures due to avalanches are declining. He says the audit looked at the Transportation Ministry's management of highway safety and the efforts to keep avalanche-related road closures to a minimum. Pickup says there haven't been any avalanche-related deaths on B.C. highways in more than 20 years and avalanche events are now

British Columbia has introduced legislation to convert an investment initiative into a Crown corporation with the authority to make independent decisions aimed at spurring economic recovery after the pandemic. The $500-million InBC investment fund was created last September as a way for the province to invest alongside the private sector to support small and medium-sized companies, which make up 98 per cent of all businesses in the province. The purpose of the fund is to make investments that achieve a financial return by meeting the government's social, economic and environmental policy obje

Vancouver Police are warning the public about a sexual assault on a child last month by an art instructor who operates out of his home in South Vancouver."This is a very disturbing incident where a child was left under the care of an adult and that adult allegedly took advantage of her," says Constable Tania Visintin, VPD. On March 22, it is alleged that 50 year-old Shao Zhai Chen, while teaching art classes out of his home near East 64th Avenue and Prince Edward Street, sexually assaulted a nine-year-old student.Chen is Asian and five feet eight inches tall. He has black and white hair and we

Police in New Westminster say a 24-year-old man has pleaded guilty to charges related to a 2019 shooting that sent a woman to hospital. They say Carlos Monteith has remained in custody since his arrest after the November 2019 that injured the woman. Police say Monteith pleaded guilty this month to charges of discharging a firearm with intent and possession of a loaded prohibited firearm. They say he was sentenced to six-and-a-half years on the first charge and three years on the second. New Westminster Police Department on Twitter: Suspect pleads guilty to two charges related to Osborne Avenu

Uniformed police officers will no longer be assigned to Vancouver public schools after trustees voted to end its school liaison officer program.The program has been under review for almost a year due to concerns that uniformed officers make some students anxious or upset, including many identifying as Black, Indigenous or people of colour.Trustees voted eight to one Monday in favour of a motion to halt the program at the end of June.The decision is supported by several groups, including the Vancouver District Parent Advisory Council and associations representingelementary and secondary school

British Columbia's top doctor says the province has confirmed that COVID-19 was a factor in the death of an infant from the Interior Health region. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says the baby was being treated in hospital in January and the B.C. Coroners' Service has since determined COVID-19 was a factor in the baby's death. Dr. Henry reported the death while addressing concerns raised in Ontario that people are dying at home of COVID-19, saying the coroners' service in B.C. has a process in place to investigate whether the illness was a factor in any unexpected deaths. She says

The cabinet minister who helped set in motion British Columbia's money laundering inquiry says he was getting very different versions about suspicious cash at casinos from officials when he became the minister responsible for gaming in 2017. Attorney General David Eby told the Cullen Commission that there were significant information gaps about suspicious cash at casinos during separate briefings with him from officials at the BC Lottery Corporation and the Gaming Policy Enforcement Branch. Eby testified officials at the lottery corporation told him anti-money laundering efforts were working

British Columbia's mental health and addictions minister says the province will expand services for young children, school-aged youth and their families. Sheila Malcolmson says 60 new full-time family support workers will be added over the next three years to help deliver services for children with emotional, behavioural and developmental challenges. She says that would give families better access to mental health care during children's formative years. Five integrated child and youth teams currently exist, but the province is aiming to add more teams to another 15 communities by 2024, based o