Canada

An Interlake-area man is being hailed a Hometown Hero for taking his neighbours into Winnipeg for medical appointments and other important life moments.

Kenn Shier moved out to the Petersfield, Man., area three years ago after he retired. Shortly after he made the move, he said his dog Boo died, and he suddenly found himself with a lot of time on his hands.

He told CTV News he first noticed the need for transportation on social media. He said there is no bus service, and the local taxi services are also limited. So he sat down and planned a way to make a ride into the city as affordable, accessible and safe as possible.

Two years later, he's still running strong. Shier will pick someone up at home, wait with them at clinics and chauffer them around the city before driving them home. All he charges is the cost of gas.

The federal government's Canadian Dental Care Plan (CDCP) has been gradually expanding eligibility for subsidized dental care to low- and middle-income Canadian residents who don't have private insurance. On June 27, people with disabilities were told they could apply.

But advocates say only a fraction of people with disabilities will be covered.

A recent parliamentary budget officer report said up to 1.4 million severely disabled Canadians could be eligible for the proposed Canada Disability Benefit — a statistic advocates say indicates how many people with disabilities ought to have access to the CDCP.

The problem, advocates say, is that Ottawa is using its disability tax credit to decide whether someone qualifies for programs like the CDCP or the Canada Disability Benefit.

"The disability tax credit is increasingly becoming a gateway to social programs and it was never designed to be that," said Michelle Hewitt, board chair for the advocacy organization Disability Without Poverty.

Northern B.C. has been hit hard by emergency closures again this summer. Between July 22 to July 28, there was at least one ER service interruption per day in the northern half of the province, prompting rallies in parts of the region.

The ER at the largest hospital in the area — serving nearly 30,000 residents — was shuttered five times in just one week.

But the crisis is also playing out country-wide, with no clear solutions in sight.

"There continue to be just unprecedented numbers of emergency department closures," said Natalie Mehra, executive director of the Ontario Health Coalition, an advocacy group that released last year's headline-making tally of shutdowns in the province.

Canadian Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon has rejected a request by Canadian National Railway to initiate binding arbitration in a labor dispute with the Teamsters union, a spokesman for the minister said on Thursday.

In a letter to CN Rail's lawyers, MacKinnon said it was the shared responsibility of the company and the union to negotiate in good faith. The letter, sent on Wednesday, was released by the Teamsters.

Talks between CN Railway and Canadian Pacific Kansas City - the country's two largest rail companies - and the Teamsters are deadlocked, with each side blaming the other.

CN Rail said it was disappointed by MacKinnon's decision, saying he would have to reconsider if the union did not "get serious and engage meaningfully at the negotiating table".

One point Arya does not mention is that the Public Inquiry into Foreign Interference which took place earlier this year also revealed India likely used “clandestine activities” to interfere with Canada’s 2021 federal election.

Arya’s suggestion that India fund and support right-wing think tanks and political actors in Canada echo intelligence reports that came to light during the inquiry, including one report which stated Canada’s spy agency has a “body of intelligence” indicating Indian “proxy agents may have attempted to interfere in democratic processes,” something that reportedly includes “the clandestine provision of illicit financial support to various Canadian politicians.”

The report suggests the secret funds are designed to “secure the election of pro-(Government of India) candidates or gaining influence over candidates who take office.”

Leaders in Edmonton’s Black and African communities say they’re frustrated after learning the police officer who shot Mathios Arkangelo has resumed work.

Edmonton police confirmed Wednesday that the unidentified officer has completed a “reintegration” program following the deadly shooting “and has returned to active duty.”

EPS spokeswoman Cheryl Sheppard acknowledged the “tragedy of this incident” but urged family and community members to trust the independent investigation process.

I've been receiving 3-4 phonecalls per week from call centers where the caller is always Indian and they're all calling about a special promotion from one of the big three telecom companies.

I actually registered my phone on the no call list from the federal government. I'm not even a customer of the big three. (Videotron in Quebec ftw) So I shouldn't be receiving these calls. I've also asked multiple times not to be called again. But they still call.

Has anyone else had this issue? How did you deal with it?

A Florida-based company is facing multiple proposed class actions, after a massive data breach that one suit claims leaked nearly three billion files containing personal data on people in Canada, the U.S. and the U.K., including names and home addresses.

One of the first suit to be reported on was a proposed class action filed Aug. 1 by California resident Christopher Hofmann in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. It alleges that a hacking group called USDoD posted a database on April 8 called "National Public Data" on a dark web forum claiming to have the personal data of 2.9 billion individuals, and attempted to sell it for $3.5 million US.

Tech site Bleeping Computer reported that a hacker then leaked a version of the stolen data for free on a hacking forum on Aug. 6.

At least six complaints have been filed against the company, National Public Data, this month.

The Israeli military says it’s looking into what happened last month when its soldiers were filmed planting explosives and destroying a water-processing facility in the city of Rafah, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are sheltering.

Two B.C. landlords whose costs have skyrocketed – due to their variable-rate mortgage – have been allowed to impose huge rent hikes on their tenants to offset their financial losses.

In a recent ruling, an arbitrator with the province's Residential Tenancy Branch approved increases totalling 23.5 per cent over two years for each of the landlords' four rental units.

That's on top of the 3.5 per cent annual increase previously approved by the B.C. government for 2024.

"The landlords experienced dramatic interest rate increases which have made managing the property unsustainable," reads the ruling, which was published in May.

The Calgary Humane Society is investigating after a dead kitten was found in the southwest community of Kingsland on Monday.

Peace officers found the feline zip-tied to a fence.

A necropsy determined the animal suffered blunt force trauma to its head and abdomen.

Officials say seven kittens in total, all in the range of six to eight weeks old, have been found in public spaces in "various states of distress" since May 30. Of those, two are dead.

"In several of these cases, kittens’ paws have been bound and they have been covered in a tar-like substance," said the humane society.

The Jasper re-entry on Friday will now be for residents only, officials announced Wednesday.

Previously, the incident management team had said there was no way to keep non-residents from returning to town on Friday.

They have now walked that statement back.

"Re-entry on Aug. 16 is for residents only," Parks Canada said in a post on its website on Wednesday.

"Resident security concerns have been heard. Your safe return is our priority. We are in this together."