Vancouver police say the latest statistics suggest an uptick in crime across the city. A report comparing numbers for the first six months of 2020 to the same period last year suggests an increase in violent crime by more than five per cent. Police noted increases in all areas of the city but they say areas including Strathcona, downtown and Yaletown recorded particularly high numbers. Deputy Chief Constable Howard Chow says police are, ``very concerned about the increase in the most serious crimes across the city.''

Three people have been killed in what Vancouver police say are two separate homicides in the city. Const. Tania Visintin says two people were found unresponsive in a hotel room in the Downtown Eastside at about 7 p.m. Wednesday. She says one died at the scene while the other died later in hospital. Officers were called to a southeast Vancouver neighbourhood about 30 minutes later for a report of shots fired. One person was found dead in front of a home. Visintin says the shooting and the two hotel deaths are not linked and the public is not believed to be at risk.

British Columbia's minister of mental health and addictions says she won't seek re-election, joining a string of senior cabinet ministers who are bowing out of provincial politics. Judy Darcy, who represents New Westminster in the legislature, says in a statement that it's been an ``enormous privilege'' to serve as B.C.'s first-ever minister of mental health and addictions. She added that she's proud of the way B.C. has worked to tackle both the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing overdose crisis. Before being elected as a New Democrat to represent New Westminster in 2013, Darcy worked for the C

Two hundred British Columbia firefighters are heading to Oregon to help with devastating wildfires in that state.A joint statement from the premier's office and the Ministry of Forests says the firefighters and related personnel are being sent to Redmond, Ore. 'It also says discussions are underway with officials in Oregon and Washington state regarding deployment of another 200-member contingent from B.C. All the firefighters are BC Wildfire Service employees and officials say they will work separately from U.S. crews given the challenge posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.Premier John Horgan says

The British Columbia government is expected to reveal how it plans to stimulate an economic rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic. Premier John Horgan and Finance Minister Carole James are scheduled to release details today of the $1.5-billion economic recovery plan.Last week, James announced the province's most recent financial numbers from April to June project an economic decline of 6.7 per cent for this year.She said the budget is forecast to post a deficit of almost $13 billion for the 2020-21 fiscal year.The Opposition Liberals have accused the NDP government of being too slow in respondin

Families with school-age children in British Columbia will soon be able to go to the B.C. Centre for Disease Control website for information about COVID-19 outbreaks and exposure events at schools. A joint statement from provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix says the site already links to notifications from Fraser Health and other health authorities will follow. Dr. Elizabeth Brodkin, Fraser Health's interim chief medical health officer, says the new page that reports COVID-19 exposures in schools is part of an effort to correct inaccurate details on social

Just a day after the CEO of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project said the 12.6-billion dollar development was on time and on budget, protesters are claiming they've slowed it down. Demonstrators occupying a grove of trees in Burnaby say in a statement that they have prevented Trans Mountain from working in that area, pushing the project's completion date to 2023. CEO Ian Anderson says the pipeline, which more than triples the amount of bitumen moving from the Edmonton-area to port in Burnaby, has overcome many hurdles and will wrap up by 2022. A spokesman for the protesters says cour

Lower prices for gas and air travel helped push the cost of living down last month, keeping inflation pegged at 0.1 per cent across Canada in August, the same as July. BC's rate also stayed static in August at 0.2%, identical to the July setting. The cost of living in Victoria edged down to 0.1 per cent in August from 0.3 % in July but inflation in Vancouver remained in negative territory at -0.2 up from -0.3 per cent the month earlier. Sluggish inflation means the Bank of Canada will hold its interest rate at 0.25% the lowest possible, in hopes people will borrow and spend, propelling the cos

Registered and psychiatric nurses in British Columbia will be able to prescribe safer drugs for people at risk of overdose under a new public health order. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry's order comes as B.C. experiences a record number of monthly overdose deaths with border closings during the COVID-19 pandemic being blamed for putting more toxic drugs on the streets. Henry says new nursing standards will be introduced, along with training, education and access to expert consultation.More than 5,000 people have fatally overdosed in B.C. since the province declared a public health