The vote was unanimous, 306 for and none against, as MP's passed legislation authorizing new pandemic benefits for workers still struggling in the COVID-19 era.Bill C-4 includes a replacement program for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit reworking the existing employment insurance program to be more flexible and generous.The Senate is expected to gather today to debate and pass the emergency aid legislation swiftly. Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet says Parliament unanimously passed a COVID-19 aid bill for workers in what he calls a ``shut up'' procedure.Blanchet says M-Ps wer

The federal government has reached an agreement with American company Abbott to buy 7.9 million rapid-test devices once they are approved by Health Canada. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, meanwhile, is pushing back against calls for Ottawa to quickly approve rapid tests for COVID-19, saying the decision is ultimately up to federal scientists. Canada's chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam says rolling out inaccurate COVID-19 tests can lead to further infections if there is a large number of false negatives. Public Procurement Minister Anita Anand says with the numbers of COVID-19 cases r

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada will commit an additional $400 million in development and humanitarian spending to combat COVID-19. Trudeau says the new money will go to trusted partners that are fighting COVID-19 around the world.Trudeau made the pledge during a videoconference at the United Nations that he co-hosted with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Jamaica's Prime Minister Andrew Holness.It was the second time since the spring the three held a meeting of the UN’s High-Level Event on Financing for Development in the Era of COVID-19 and Beyond.Trudeau says Canada will i

Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole and Bloc Quebecois chief Yves-Francois Blanchet are expected to take their seats in the House of Commons this week after being benched due to COVID-19.The two opposition leaders were absent from the Commons last week as both were in isolation after contracting COVID-19.Their formal replies to the Liberals' speech from the throne will come as Parliament is set to debate new COVID-19 relief measures over the coming days and potentially pass them into law.The government plans to set up a new pandemic-benefits regime under the umbrella of the existing employment i

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he is very disappointed that Sikh RCMP officers have been reassigned during the pandemic because their religiously mandated facial hair makes it difficult to properly wear a face covering. The World Sikh Organization of Canada says officers have been placed on desk duty for almost six months, as the RCMP found the N100 mask does not seal with facial hair. The organization says no attempt has been made to accommodate Sikh officers with other protective coverings that would work with facial hair. Trudeau says health and safety regulations are extremely importan

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will join Canada's top public health officers today for their daily update on the worsening COVID-19 health crisis.Trudeau is expected to have an announcement about his government's ongoing efforts to protect Canadians and combat the novel coronavirus.But he's also expected to start joining chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam and her deputy, Howard Njoo more regularly at their daily briefings.It's a sign of how serious the second wave of COVID-19 has already become. During the first wave, Trudeau held daily news conferences outside his home, Rideau Cottag

BC is reporting 148 new cases of COVID-19 as well as two more deaths. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says both deaths were in the Fraser Health region and she also revealed an Indigenous elder died last weekend in the northern region. Dr. Henry acknowledged it's taken some time to develop a consistent reporting system of all cases in schools and says she has full confidence in reporting by Vancouver Coastal Health. British Columbia's top doctor is thanking supporters after revealing she has faced abuse and death threats related to her public health orders during the COVID-19 pand

The fate of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberal government hangs in the balance as Parliament resumes all normal operations today for the first time in six months.Opposition parties will give their official responses to Wednesday's speech from the throne but they've already signalled that Trudeau can't count on support from any of them to survive the eventual confidence vote and avoid plunging the country into an election in the midst of a second wave of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic.The Conservatives were unequivocal: they will not support the throne speech.The Bloc Quebecois was

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the second wave of COVID-19 is already underway across the country. He says the numbers are clear with more than a thousand new cases yesterday. Trudeau says families won't likely be able to gather for Thanksgiving, but it's not too late to save Christmas. He says we need to keep wearing masks, use the government's exposure-alert app and obey public health instructions. Trudeau made his comments after the throne speech in an address to Canadians on the state of the pandemic.