Mayor Ken Sim says he's moving to abolish Vancouver's elected Park Board, which is the only such body in any British Columbia city. Sim says at a news conference at City Hall that he'll be moving a motion next week to ask the province to amend the Vancouver Charter to bring its parks under city council control. He says this would involve eliminating the requirement for an elected Park Board, calling it a ``long overdue'' step representing a ``new level of accountability.'' He says the move will ensure long-term viability and growth of parks and recreation services, and the current system ``ju

It will no longer be easy for repeat offenders to get bail in Canada, after the government's opposition-backed bail reform bill has received royal assent. Justice Minister Arif Virani gave this information.He said that these changes are coming into effect from January 4, 2024. Bail system for repeat offenders involved in serious violent offenses under the Criminal Code Amendments Getting bail has been made more difficult.These amendments focus on reverse onus provisions, which means that the accused will be held in custody before trial unless he proves that his release would not pose a danger

The department has not provided more information about the deaths on the Caribbean island, citing privacy considerations, but it says consular officials are providing assistance and are in contact with local authorities to get more information. Local media outlets are reporting that a Canadian woman and child died in rough waters last week. The Canadian Press has not independently verified the reports. The Antigua and Barbuda Defence Force said in a press release that a 911 call came in on Nov. 30 at around 6:45 a.m. about a woman and child entering the water at a rock formation locally kno

The Bank of Canada is keeping its key interest rate at five per cent because higher interest rates are clearly restraining spending. The central bank says the combination of weaker growth and a cooling job market suggests demand is no longer outpacing supply in the economy and that this slowdown is necessary to restore price stability. However, the Bank of Canada isn't ruling out future rate hikes just yet, saying it is still concerned about risks to the outlook for inflation and remains prepared to raise rates further if needed

Health Canada has authorized an updated COVID-19 vaccine from Novavax that targets the XBB.1.5 variant. The new vaccine is called Nuvaxovid and is approved for people 12 years of age and over. Nuvaxovid is a protein subunit vaccine, meaning it contains harmless pieces of virus. The other two XBB vaccines currently authorized in Canada are mRNA vaccines, manufactured by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. The mRNA options remain the only XBB vaccines approved for children under 12. The National Advisory Committee on Immunization recommends that everyone six months of age and older get the XBB.1.5 vacc

Parts of southwestern British Columbia remain under a rainfall warning as a potent atmospheric river made landfall along the province's coast Monday, bringing ample rain and high winds while disrupting roads and utilities. Environment Canada says the weather system brought as much as 132 millimetres of rain in the last 24 hours, reported at the Kennedy Lake on Vancouver Island.The highest precipitation recorded in the Lower Mainland and southwestern B.C. was in Port Mellon on the Sunshine Coast with 102 millimetres, followed by Mission, Porteau Cove and Pitt Meadows with 97, 91 and 90 millimet

To overcome the housing crisis in Canada, the government may relax immigration for skilled workers.Housing Minister Sean Fraser said Tuesday that Canada is going to face troubles getting homes built if it doesn’t address the severe labour shortage facing the construction industry. He said there needs to be a focus on training and attracting workers.The Housing Minister said he is working with Minister Miller on immigration to bring in skilled workers who are hard to find in Canada in the short term to build homes. Sean Fraser also announced that the federal government will invest $71 million

House of Commons Speaker Greg Fergus is apologizing after a video message he recorded in thanks of the departing interim leader of the Ontario Liberal party, John Fraser, was played at the party's leadership convention. Now he's facing calls to step down from the Bloc Quebecois and Conservatives. His apology came after Conservative House leader Andrew Scheer gave notice that he planned to raise a question of privilege, given the Speaker is supposed to play an explicitly non-partisan role At Queen's Park on Monday, Fraser defended the message as personal and non-partisan. Fergus also defe

The Royal Bank of Canada is facing a 7.4-million-dollar penalty for non-compliance with anti-money laundering and terrorist financing measures. The Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada handed down the penalty, saying the R-B-C's violations include failing to submit suspicious transaction reports where there were reasonable grounds to suspect ties to money laundering. Fintrac tries to pinpoint money linked to illegal activities by electronically sifting through millions of pieces of information each year from banks, insurance companies, money service businesses and o