Councillors in Vancouver have voted unanimously to ask the federal government to decriminalize possession of small amounts of illicit drugs. Mayor Kennedy Stewart put forward the motion earlier this month saying it is time to develop a ``health-focused'' approach to substance use and end the stigma against drug users. In a statement issued late Wednesday after the vote, Stewart thanked groups such as the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users, which he says have pursued decriminalization for years. In the same process used to create its first supervised injection clinic almost two decades ago,

Provincial health officials say they are working on British Columbia's plan to handle COVID-19 vaccines. Dr. Bonnie Henry, the provincial health officer, says Dr. Ross Brown of Vancouver Coastal Health will join the group working to organize the logistics around the distribution of vaccines. B.C. recorded another 13 deaths and 738 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, bringing the total to 29,086. The province also issued a correction for nine days of case totals in the Fraser Health region, revising Tuesday's COVID-19 case count to 706 instead of 941. Dr. Henry says front-line workers as well

Argentine soccer ``Golden Boy'' Diego Maradona has died at the age of 60. A person close to Maradona said he died Wednesday of a heart attack. Maradona died two weeks after being released from a Buenos Aires hospital following brain surgery. Maradona was among the best players in history and led his country to the 1986 World Cup title before later struggling with cocaine use and other health problems. He captivated fans over a two-decade career and famously made the ``Hand of God'' goal in which he punched the ball into England's net during the 1986 World Cup quarter-finals. Former Brazilian

Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet is blasting the prime minister's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, calling Justin Trudeau's pledge that vaccines will start to arrive in the coming months "unacceptable."Trudeau sought to reassure Canadians yesterday even as he acknowledged that some other countries are likely to start inoculating their citizens first, citing Canada's low capacity to churn out vaccines.Blanchet says the federal government should have moved sooner to help obtain manufacturing rights and beef up production capacity on Canadian soil.The United States, Britain and Ger

British Columbia health officials are reporting a dramatic spike in COVID-19 cases, while they order a pause indoor physical activities. B.C. recorded 941 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday and 10 deaths. There are 7,732 active COVID-19 cases in B.C., and 284 people are in hospital. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix say in a joint statement that residents need to support B.C.'s health-care workers by slowing the spread of COVID-19. The latest peak in numbers comes as health officials ordered dance studios, yoga studios and other indoor physical activity s

Dr. Theresa Tam says wrestling COVID-19 back under control depends heavily on individual Canadians restricting their activities. Canada's chief public health officer says the country is facing outbreaks in places that didn't have them during the first wave of the pandemic in the spring. And after the current second wave hit younger adults first, more and more cases are being reported in older, more vulnerable people. The Public Health Agency of Canada says on an average day in the past week, more than 2,000 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 and 70 people died. Dr. Tam says we know more n

Statistics Canada says a preliminary estimate shows manufacturing sales rose 0.6 percent in October. The agency says the growth came due to higher sales in the petroleum and coal products, paper, primary metals and wood products industries. The flash estimate for October follows a rise of 1.5 percent to $53.8 billion in September.Statistics Canada cautioned that it is continuing to collect October data and that the early indicator is subject to a higher revision rate than its regular monthly release.The early estimate was calculated based on a weighted response rate of 57.8 per cent. It says

British Columbia health officials are working to clear up confusion surrounding COVID-19 restriction guidelines announced last week. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix spent part of their news conference Monday explaining what counts as an event or social gathering. Non-essential travel is not recommended across the province, and worship services along with community and social events have been suspended. Dr. Henry and Dix announced 1,933 new cases of COVID-19 over the past three days, along with 17 additional deaths for a total of 348 people since the p

Businesses struggling to pay the bills because of the COVID-19 pandemic will be able to start applying today for a long-awaited new commercial rent-relief program offered by the federal government.The new Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy replaces an earlier rent-support program for businesses introduced in the spring that saw little pickup because it relied on landlords to apply for help.The new program will cover up to 65 per cent of rent or commercial mortgage interest on a sliding scale based on revenue declines, with an extra 25 per cent available to the hardest-hit firms.Federal cabinet min