Alberta Premier Danielle Smith avoided addressing the province’s separatist movement in her speech at Heritage Park in Calgary during an Alberta Day event. The remarks came ahead of the Oct. 19 referendum, in which Albertans will be asked whether they want to remain part of Canada or proceed with a second referendum on Alberta separation. Smith has already said she intends to vote for Alberta to remain in Canada. In her brief speech, she praised the province’s cultural diversity and said Canada recognizes Alberta’s economic and strategic importance. At the same time, Smith said the refer

A Sikh man was targeted in a suspected hate-motivated attack in Toronto, prompting police to assign the investigation to the Hate Crime Unit. The incident happened Saturday at around 7:30 p.m. in the waterfront area near Queens Quay and Lower Spadina Avenue. According to investigators, the victim was standing in the area when an unidentified man suddenly approached him without any apparent provocation. The suspect allegedly made racist remarks before pulling out a knife and attacking the victim in the leg. The victim was taken to hospital for treatment and is now reported to be out of danger.

Amid the ongoing trade tensions between Canada and the United States, Google has renamed Lake Ontario as “Lake America” for users in the U.S. The move comes after U.S. President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing the lake’s name to be changed in U.S. government databases. Google has clarified that it updates its maps in accordance with government directives. As a result, users located in the United States will now see the body of water listed as Lake America, while it will continue to appear as Lake Ontario for users in Canada. In other parts of the world, Google Maps will

B.C. Premier David Eby has called a byelection in the Abbotsford-Mission riding for Sept. 26, following the resignation of B.C. Conservative MLA Reine Gasper. Gasper recently stepped down from the legislature to run for the leadership of the B.C. Conservative Party, whose leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay does not currently hold a seat in the legislature. The governing B.C. NDP has nominated former agriculture minister Pam Alexis. Alexis lost to Gasper in the previous election by roughly 3,000 votes. Centre BC has also entered the race, naming Lakhwinder Jhajj as its candidate. Jhajj said the campaig

Lloydminster RCMP are asking for the public’s assistance in identifying a person of interest in connection with the attempted abduction of a nine-year-old girl. Police received a report of the incident on August 14 and immediately launched an investigation. No further details about the circumstances have been released. As part of the investigation, RCMP investigators worked with a forensic sketch artist to create a composite sketch of the person believed to be involved. Police say the suspect’s age is unknown and describe the individual as having short hair, a nose ring and a moustache. An

B.C. Opposition MLA Harman Bhangu has criticized Premier David Eby and the NDP government after the Elections Department approved the launch of a petition seeking to repeal the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA). Bhangu welcomed the approval, accusing the Eby government of failing to take action on what he described as a controversial law. He said British Columbians now have a direct opportunity to push for the repeal of the legislation, which he claims has raised significant concerns about jobs, land rights and the province’s future. Bhangu said the B.C. Conservativ

The B.C. government says provinces and territories have reached agreements on several measures aimed at removing internal trade barriers across Canada amid ongoing trade uncertainty with the United States. Jobs and Economic Development Minister Adrian Dix said the federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for internal trade met Thursday and approved key changes to the Canadian Free Trade Agreement. Under the changes, a 30-day service standard will be introduced for labour mobility applications across Canada. Ministers also agreed to approve free trade in services nationwide by

A shooting incident has been reported in Abbotsford. According to police, shots were fired around 6:10 a.m. Wednesday in an outdoor parking lot in the 2400 block of Clearbrook Road. Both the suspect and the victim had fled the scene before officers arrived. After several hours of investigation, detectives traced three suspects to a home in the 2300 block of Westerly Street. With assistance from the Lower Mainland Emergency Response Team, police arrested 33-year-old Ryan Sawatsky, 28-year-old Lucas Bezanson, and 34-year-old Kyle Korneik. Police later located the victim. Major Crime detectives a

The Canadian government has confirmed that 32 Canadians are among 1,924 people reported missing following the devastating floods and landslides along the Nepal-Tibet border. Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand and Minister for International Development Randeep Sarai said Canada’s ambassador to Nepal has provided the latest information to Global Affairs Canada. Authorities have recovered 579 bodies from the debris so far, but Nepalese authorities have not officially identified any of the recovered victims as Canadian citizens. Anand warned that the number of missing Canadians could be even h