Officials from various levels of government are set to gather with police and industry leaders in Ottawa today to brainstorm on fighting the scourge of automobile theft. The federal government says an estimated 90,000 cars are stolen annually in Canada, resulting in about $1 billion in costs to Canadian insurance policy-holders and taxpayers. It says auto theft increasingly involves organized crime groups, and the proceeds of these crimes are used to fund other illegal activities. Ottawa says most stolen autos shipped abroad are destined for Africa and the Middle East. On Wednesday, the govern

Surrey Police Service is deploying 11 more police officers for frontline policing for the safety of city residents.With this, the total number of Surrey Police Service officers in the city has increased to 200.Among the newly deployed officers are four sergeants and seven constables, who have good experience in frontline policing.This is the first batch of officers deployed by the Surrey Police Service in 2024 and will continue to be deployed this year for policing change.Surrey Police Service also hopes to be approved soon to deploy its own staff sergeants and inspectors to support frontline

The federal government will continue to ban foreign nationals from buying homes in Canada for another two years as housing affordability concerns continue to trouble cities across the country. Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland made the announcement today, saying Canada is extending its foreign homebuyer ban up until 2027. Under the ban, which first came into effect in 2022, non-Canadian people, including permanent residents, and commercial enterprises are prevented from buying homes here. Freeland issued a statement saying the extension will ensure houses are used for homes for Canadians and

The Liberal government has delayed the Medical Assistance in Dying program until 2027 for people whose only illness is mental illness.Health Minister Mark Holland introduced the Bill in this regard in the House of Commons this morning.Holland said this would give the parliamentary committee another two years to assess whether the health system is ready for this.Holland and Justice Minister Arif Virani said they agree with a recent parliamentary committee report that Canada's medical experts are not yet ready.The current deadline for the implementation of the Medical Assistance in Dying Program

Statistics Canada says the country’s fertility rate reached an all-time low of 1.33 children per woman in 2022. The federal agency says that's part of a downward trend that began in 2009. The COVID-19 pandemic appeared to have temporarily disrupted the trend when the fertility rate rose in both 2020 and 2021. According to the report, other countries had a similar experience during those years. The decline in the fertility rate between 2021 and 2022 is the largest observed since the baby bust in the early 1970s. StatCan says it puts Canada in the middle of the pack of 10 high-income countries

The federal ethics watchdog is asking parliamentarians and the public to read between the lines about advice he gave to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau before his recent holiday trip. Konrad von Finckenstein told a House of Commons ethics committee today that under the Conflict of Interest Act, he can't publicly disclose conversations he's had with politicians. But he says that if Trudeau's stay at a family friend's property in Jamaica had been unacceptable, it would've been recorded on his office's website and nothing is there. Trudeau's office said earlier this month that the family's stay was

The BC government has imposed a 2-year ban on new colleges admitting international students.Provincial Minister of Post-Secondary Education Selina Robinson confirmed that no new institutions in British Columbia will be allowed to admit international students for two years.Robinson issued a statement today saying that many students are being exploited and that such schools will be regularly inspected to ensure standards are being met.Robinson added that the province is implementing minimum language requirements so that international students are better prepared before coming to BC.This step has

Housing Minister Sean Fraser says post-secondary institutions will be able to apply for low-interest loans to build student housing starting this fall. Post-secondary institutions will have access to a pre-existing program that offers developers low-cost financing to build rental apartments. The Apartment Construction Loan Program was topped up with an additional $15 billion this fall, bringing the total funding available to $40 billion. Fraser is making the announcement today alongside other cabinet ministers as the House of Commons returns after a winter break. The announcement comes as the

BC Premier David Eby announced on Friday that the use of cellphones in BC classrooms will soon be restricted. Eby announced this measure as part of new actions to keep kids safe and healthy from "online threats." He said that other efforts include services to remove images from the internet and legislation to hold social media companies for any harm being caused to students.