British Columbians subject to birth alerts can now apply to receive compensation as part of a proposed settlement of $66 million. In B.C., birth alerts happened between 1980 and 2019. Child welfare workers with the Ministry of Children and Family Development, or a delegated Indigenous agency, reached out to hospitals ahead of a pregnant person […]
Read MoreIndigenous community members have encouraged federal officials to reflect on how the Order of Canada can overcome its “deep colonial symbolism and associations,” says an internal government presentation on efforts to modernize the Canadian honours system. The April presentation, prepared for the Order of Canada Advisory Council, says recent feedback indicates that accepting the honour […]
Read MoreIndigenous people have long called for greater accountability following police-involved deaths, misconduct and concerns that existing oversight systems have failed to deliver justice to them. Governments have responded with inquiries, commissions and reviews. Police agencies have introduced reforms. Yet Indigenous leaders say many of their people continue to find complaints processes intimidating, difficult to navigate […]
Read MoreMuslim groups and Culture Minister Marc Miller are decrying an alleged attack on an imam of a mosque in Victoria on Thursday night. Miller said in a tweet that the reported assault is “appalling and vile” and that such violence and Islamophobia have no place in Canada. The BC Muslim Association said in a statement […]
Read MoreThe British Columbia Securities Commission says it has paid out $25,000 in its first whistleblower award. The commission says in a news release that the information contributed to an ongoing enforcement action of suspected misconduct. Commission chair Brenda Leong says the payout shows that when people come forward with information, it can make a real […]
Read MoreThree days after the February mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., government officials warned Prime Minister Mark Carney that online sentiment was shifting from collective grief toward “emerging accountability narratives” — including questions about mental health intervention, firearms access and whether warning signs were missed. The memo to Carney from the Privy Council Office said […]
Read MoreSporting a black T-shirt and slacks, artificial-intelligence startup worker Sigrid Jin walked onstage for a live interview last Monday in front of the few thousand tech workers, founders and investors gathered in Vancouver. The startup software worker — initially famous for being one of the top users of Anthropic’s coding assistant, Claude Code — had […]
Read MoreA man convicted of sexual assault in 2024 lost his constitutional challenge against a judge’s order requiring him to register as a sex offender and report his whereabouts to police for life. A jury found Wayne Michael James Dick guilty, and BC Supreme Court Justice Andrew Majawa sentenced him last July to three and a […]
Read MoreBritish Columbia’s Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner says the City of Vancouver is required to refuse to disclose addresses of short-term rental operators because it would reveal where “they live their private lives.” An adjudicator’s ruling this week is the latest decision in a years-long freedom of information dispute with housing advocate Rohana […]
Read MoreBritish Columbia conservation biologist Chris Shepherd has spent more than three decades, oftentimes undercover, inside wildlife markets across the globe. The gruesome sights he has witnessed make it hard to believe that “outbreaks like COVID don’t happen far more often”. In the early 90s, Shepherd had just completed high school, unaware of the world he […]
Read MoreHundreds of patients are having non-fatal overdoses at Surrey Memorial Hospital every year, according to data obtained through a freedom of information request. But fatal overdoses are rare. According to the BC Coroners Service, four people died after taking illicit, unregulated drugs while they were patients at Surrey Memorial between 2020 and 2025. These deaths […]
Read MoreLNG Canada has been ordered to identify the root causes of “black smoke flaring” from its facility in Kitimat, B.C., and implement measures to prevent it by October. The British Columbia Energy Regulator issued the order Wednesday after an inspection revealed at least two instances of non-compliance with the company’s permit, which limits the emission […]
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