Canada's unemployment rate has hit 6.9% as tariffs hit manufacturing sector. That's the highest unemployment rate in 8 years excluding COVID. April is the third consecutive month that the Canadian economy has seen either little change in employment or job losses. It's also the first month that the impact of tariffs on auto, steel, aluminum and other sectors has been more pronounced. According to Statistics Canada, the manufacturing sector lost 31,000 jobs last month, the biggest decline since January 2009, excluding the 2020 COVID crisis. According to the Statistics Department, the econom

Canada's first mini nuclear power plant is to be built in Ontario. Premier Doug Ford's government has given the green light to the province's Power Generation to start this plant. This small modular reactor will generate 300 megawatts of electricity, which can power about 300,000 homes. The plant will be the first of four small modular reactors that Ontario Power Generation wants to install, which will cost $20.9 billion. The aim is to meet the demand for a huge increase in electricity demand. The estimated cost of installing the first mini nuclear power plant is said to be $7.7 billion. O

Residents from a rural area north of Edmonton who fled an active wildfire this week can now return to their homes. A social media post from Athabasca County says evacuation orders were lifted for the Village of Boyle and some nearby parts of the county. People living on Highway 831 south of Boyle are still under evacuation orders and are not to return at this time as the wildfire is still burning, but is being held. Some residents of Thorhild County, about 90 kilometres northeast of Edmonton, can also return home, but are to stay prepared to leave within a moment's notice if condi

Sex charges have been laid after two youths were reported missing from a town east of Edmonton and later found in the company of a man. Police say the two youths were reported missing from the Two Hills area on Tuesday and located in Leduc, south of Edmonton. A 40-year-old man from Two Hills was arrested and faces charges that include two counts each of sexual interference, sexual assault and possession of child pornography, and three counts of child luring.

The City of Surrey says it filed a civil lawsuit against a former employee, looking to recover $2.5 million worth of ``irregular transactions.'' A statement from city manager Rob Costanzo Thursday says the lawsuit was filed last year after staff identified problems dating back to 2017 involving dormant development-deposit accounts. Costanzo says staff first spotted irregularities in early 2024 and the city conducted an internal review, engaged external forensic specialists, and reported the situation to the RCMP. He says police are conducting a criminal investigation and the cit

Police in Vancouver have arrested a man who they say is a member of the Zone 43 gang and was wanted nationwide for drugs and firearms offences. They say the 31-year-old was convicted of 10 different charges after an investigation by the Ottawa Police Service, but fled and has been operating in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside neighbourhood for more than a year. The department says an arrest warrant was issued in Ontario, but VPD officers were unable to enforce it because it was only valid within a 400-kilometre radius of Ottawa. It says the VPD Metro Team worked with the Ottawa Poli

Health officials say measles infected 197 more people in Ontario over the last week as the highly contagious disease emerged in new parts of the country. That brings the province’s tally of probable and confirmed cases to 1,440 since an outbreak began in October. Public Health Ontario’s measles report says there have been 101 hospitalizations, including 75 children. Eight patients have been in intensive care. Nova Scotia and Northwest Territories each reported measles cases earlier this week, marking their first since this outbreak began. Alberta reported yesterday that its overall case co

Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke has asked Premier Mark Carney to give the MP from Surrey a seat in his cabinet. She said that Surrey is about to become the first city in BC to reach a population of 1 million and it also borders the United States, so given the city’s development needs, we believe that Surrey should have a strong voice in the federal cabinet. The mayor said that I believe this will be an important step to support and ensure the continued growth of Surrey. She said that the city is growing by an average of 28 residents per day.

The Bank of Canada has warned that the trade war poses a major threat to the Canadian economy, which could increase risks to Canadian financial stability, which would damage banks and other financial institutions and make it difficult for households and businesses to repay loans. In its annual Financial Stability Report released on Thursday, the central bank said that if it had not been for Trump's trade war, the Canadian economy would currently be in a strong position, but now there are concerns that the high level of uncertainty about US trade policy could derail financial markets. The rep