British Columbians are invited to have their say on three proposed options for permanent paid sick leave shaped by their responses to the first phase of consultation. "Over the past several weeks, thousands of workers and employers have completed surveys to give us valuable information on their current sick-leave benefits, if any, and what is needed," said Harry Bains, Minister of Labour. "Informed by those surveys, we are inviting British Columbians to once again have their say."Between Aug. 5 and Sept. 14, 2021, more than 26,000 surveys were completed by workers and employers. Feedback from

B.C. is reporting 525 new cases of COVID-19, for a total of 180,178 cases in the province.Note: The numbers of total and new cases are provisional due to a delayed data refresh and will be verified once confirmed.There are currently 5,282 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 172,624 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 332 individuals are currently in hospital and 155 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the past 24 hours, one new death (Vancouver Coastal Health) has been reported, for a total of 1,900.There

British Columbians are waking up to a shift in the province's federal political landscape after last night's election saw both the Liberals and NDP pick up seats from the Conservatives. The Conservatives had hoped to make inroads in some of the battleground ridings around Metro Vancouver but instead saw their 17 seat lead drop by four. Meanwhile, incumbent candidates from all three parties will be returning to Parliament, including cabinet ministers Harjit Sajjan, Carla Qualtrough and Jonathan Wilkinson. NDP leader Jagmeet Singh held onto his Burnaby South seat, former Green Party leader Eliz

Polls opened at 7 a.m. today in most of BC and will close at seven tonight as residents in this province cast their ballots in the federal election. Sixty-seven per cent of eligible BC voters turned out in the last federal election in 2019. Voter turnout was strong on the first day of advance polling this time around, but the ongoing pandemic has the potential to affect overall numbers. 42 ridings are up for grabs in BC including seats represented by federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh in Burnaby South and former Green Party Leader Elizabeth May in Saanich-Gulf Islands.

B.C. is reporting 768 new cases of COVID-19, including 19 epi-linked cases, for a total of 177,954 cases in the province.There are currently 6,031 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 169,653 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 298 individuals are in hospital and 135 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the past 24 hours, 11 new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 1,888.From Sept. 9-15, people not fully vaccinated accounted for 75.9% of cases and from Sept. 2-15 they accounted for 86.2% of ho

Residents across British Columbia are being advised to prepare a well-stocked emergency kit for what BC Hydro warns could be a stormy fall and winter made worse by the effects of a severe summer drought. The latest report from the Crown utility says record-breaking heat between June and August in many parts of the province killed trees or weakened their root systems. It says unstable trees, combined with predicted stormier La Nina weather conditions, create the potential for more power outages if they topple across power lines. BC Hydro says conditions heading into the fall mirror those in 20

B.C. is reporting 706 new cases of COVID-19, including three epi-linked cases, for a total of 177,186 cases in the province.There are 5,844 active cases of COVID-19 in the province and 169,083 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 291 individuals are in hospital and 134 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation. In the past 24 hours, four new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 1,877.The new deaths include:Fraser Health: threeNorthern Health: one From Sept. 8-14, people not fully vaccinated accounted for 76.1%

A man has been shot and killed in what Vancouver police say was a targeted attack. It happened at around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday in the parkade of the Fairmont Pacific Rim hotel on Vancouver's inner harbour. Const. Tania Visintin says the victim has been identified as 35 year old Amandeep Manj. She says officers were also called to a vehicle fire in east Vancouver early Thursday and are trying to determine if there is any connection between that arson and the murder. A statement from Visintin issued Wednesday called the slaying ``brazen.'' She says no arrests have been made.

B.C. is reporting 661 new cases of COVID-19, including two epi-linked cases, for a total of 176,480 cases in the province.There are currently 5,791 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 168,459 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 288 individuals are in hospital and 137 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation. In the past 24 hours, seven new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 1,873.The new deaths include:Vancouver Coastal Health: twoInterior Health: threeIsland Health: two From Sept. 7-13, people no