On March 24, 1975, the beaver officially became Canada's national symbol, and it all started because of a beef with our neighbours to the south.

While Loto-Québec says it is adopting the self-checkout to offer customers more convenience, gambling addiction and public health experts argue that increasing access to gambling isn’t helpful.

Yukon Party Leader Currie Dixon largely sidestepped an opportunity to defend his health critic on Thursday after the premier launched an attack on Brad Cathers’s record leading the file.

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The City of Toronto is set to open its warming centres at 5 p.m. on Saturday as temperatures are expected to drop below zero overnight.

The Liberal Party of Canada lined up two new candidates in Newfoundland and Labrador yesterday. Tom Osborne won the nominate vote for Cape Spear, and Don Bradshaw was acclaimed as the candidate for the Long Range Mountains.

The executive director of a facility in St. John’s which is a weekend ritual for thousands says it’s more than just a farmer’s market.

The bells rang this morning at 9:00 to open the market on the heels of close to $400,000 in funding from the provincial government over the next three years to diversify revenue streams and build partnerships.

Some 300 businesses operate out of the Freshwater Road building. With 200,000 visitors each year, executive director Pam Anstey says the potential is enormous.

(She says they have a unique and flexible facility that can host a wide range of events from large to small – up to 700 people. They also have a rentable commercial kitchen. Anstey says the money from government will help them move even further as a hub for small business and community events.

Nova Scotia has become the latest province to scrap electrical vehicle rebates for Teslas due to the CEO’s association with the U.S. administration and its trade war on Canada.

The Progressive Conservative government joined with the NDP and Liberal opposition parties in a vote dropping the electric automaker from the rebate program, which provides subsidies that range from $2,000 to $3,000 per purchase.

The Canadian government has updated its travel advisory for those heading south of the border, noting the U.S. requires that visitors register if staying more than 30 days.

The Taylor Swift Eras Tour is a distant memory but the charges keep piling up for Denise Tisor of Burlington who faces multiple new charges in a fake ticket scam related to the tour. In the latest development Halton Regional Police Service have arrested Tisor and a male suspect and laid multiple charges in relation to a series of Taylor Swift ticket frauds.

News of a ticket scam broke in November between Swift’s two concert appearances in Toronto when Halton Police reported 40 fake ticket complaints totaling roughly $70,000. CTV reported at the time that there might have been as many as 400 people defrauded of a total of $300,000. At that time Tisor told CTV News that she too had been defrauded and had filed a complaint with police.

Since November the HRPS Financial Crimes Unit has been conducting an intensive investigation as they continued to receive additional complaints from victims located inside and outside Halton Region both during and following the Toronto concert series. As the investigation unfolded the Financial Crimes Unit received 75 complaints and confirmed 55 incidents of fraud connected to the third party vendor which totalled approximately $140,000 in losses.

Thursday HRPS executed a Criminal Code search warrant at a residence in Burlington where they seized laptop computers, cell phones and paper documents. Denise Tisor and 54-year-old David Blake, both of Burlington face fraud and money laundering charges. faces

Tisor and Blake have both been released on an Undertaking with a future court date in Milton. The two were already facing multiple ticket scam charges laid by Toronto  Police.

Anyone with information regarding this investigation is asked to contact the Financial Crimes Unit at 905-825-4777 ext. 8739

Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers. ” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca.

A Rothesay family sometimes has to split themselves in half to cheer on their kids — all three play hockey on different teams.

Maddox Schultz was given exceptional status at the age of 14 to play up in the U18 AAA Hockey League. The league's top scorer, who just turned 15, is expected to be the No 1. pick in the upcoming Western Hockey League draft but he is not seeking exceptional status this time around. That's because under a new Hockey Canada rule, he can stay with the U18 AAA Regina Pat Canadians and still be allowed to play 34 games in the WHL next year.

Quiz time! Let’s see who has been paying attention to the news this week.

1. Health Minister John Main says he’s frustrated by the federal government’s “delay tactics and for the refusal to come to the negotiating table” to reach a new funding agreement for the Non-Insured Health Benefits program that pays some expenses, including medical travel for Nunavummiut. What does he suggest he might have to do?

A. Get Nunavut to fund the program itself.
B. Start sending patients to U.S. hospitals and send the bills to Ottawa.
C. Hand the program back to the federal government to run.

2. When Prime Minister Mark Carney visited Iqaluit on Tuesday, Nunavut Premier P.J. Akeeagok greeted him by saying “welcome home.” Where was Carney born?

A. Yukon
B. Northwest Territories
C. Alberta

3. Parents and students might notice a change when they return to school in Nunavut in the fall. What’s happening in the schools?

A. Inuit language education will become available for students in kindergarten through Grade 12.
B. A new curriculum will be rolled out for kindergarten and Grade 1.
C. School days will start and end one hour later, to accommodate bus schedules.

4. A landmark court ruling means Nunavut will get a share of a $32.5-billion settlement. What was the lawsuit all about?

A. Getting large tobacco companies to pay up for harms caused by smoking.
B. Suing pharmaceutical companies over harms from opioid-related deaths.
C. Seeking damages from beer and alcohol producers over the effects of alcoholism.

5. It was a whirlwind first week in office for Carney — he was sworn in as prime minister and named his new cabinet on March 14, then jetted off to England and France and made it back to Iqaluit by March 18. Who is the Crown-Indigenous relations and northern affairs minister in Carney’s new cabinet?

A. Patty Hajdu
B. Jenna Sudds
C. Gary Anandasangaree

Kugluktuk’s elementary school is seen in this file photo. A change is coming starting this fall for some students at Nunavut schools. (File photo by Dustin Patar)

Answers

1. C — Main, who is Nunavut’s health minister, says the Government of Nunavut might hand the program back to the feds if the current funding agreement isn’t renewed after March 31.
2. B — Carney was born in Fort Smith, N.W.T., and was raised in Alberta. Akeeagok said he welcomed the new prime minister as a “fellow northerner” during Monday’s visit.
3. B — It’s a new curriculum. Education Minister Pamela Gross called it “an important milestone” for the elementary education system, and it’s expected to be expanded all the way to Grade 12 by 2036.
4. A — It’s the tobacco producers that were targeted by the provinces and territories in the lawsuit. Nunavut will receive $97 million from the $32.5-billion settlement.
5. C — Gary Anandasangaree returns as minister for northern affairs and Crown-Indigenous relations.

Some of the residents at Alderwood Retirement Centre in Witless Bay remember voting in favour of Confederation. Amid all the political unrest with our American neighbours, the proud Canadians gathered for a show of patriotism.

Watch the Ottawa Charge visit the New York Sirens for a match at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

The wave of smash-and-grab jewelry store robberies in the region continues. In the most recent incident Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) is seeking the public’s assistance to identify three suspects involved in an Oakville jewelry store robbery in which they left empty-handed.

Wednesday, over the noon hour, HRPS officers were called to Oakville Jewelry in response to a smash and grab robbery. Three suspects entered the store; one suspect held the door while the remaining two suspects smashed display cases with a hammer. Store employees intervened before any jewelry was taken and the suspects fled the area in a black Nissan Altima.

One store employee was struck in the shoulder with a hammer and suffered a minor injury.

Investigation located the Nissan Altima abandoned in the area of Lakeshore Road and Trafalgar Road in Oakville. A search of the area was conducted however the suspects were not located.

Investigation determined the Nissan Altima was stolen from Peel Region.

Suspects are described as

1)      Male, larger build, long black hair (possibly a wig), wearing a black jacket, black pants, black and white runners, and a face covering. Carrying a hammer.

2)      Male, medium to thin build, wearing a black hooded winter jacket, black pants, black and checkered patterned toque, and a face covering. Carrying a black bag and a hammer.

3)      Female, thin build, wearing a black hooded winter jacket, blue jeans, black shirt, white winter hat, brown winter boots, and a face covering.

Anyone with information regarding this investigation, including any security or dash cam video from the area between the hours of 12:30 pm and 1:00 pm is asked to contact the 2 District Criminal Investigations Bureau at 905-825-4777 ext. 2216.

Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers. at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca.

More than 200 new spaces for children are coming to rural parts due to provincial funding trickling down.

According to a press release from the Nova Scotia government, it is providing $5.3 million in funding to support three child-care operators. This, the province says, will add more than 200 new spaces for children in Annapolis Valley and the South Shore.

“Investments in child care are investments in families to participate in the workforce and grow our economy,” Brendan Maguire, Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development, said in the release.

The three recipients are:

• Dare to Dream, New Minas, N.S.; 78 new spaces
• Coldbrook YMCA, Coldbrook, N.S.; 62 new spaces
• Small World Learning Centre, Bridgewater, N.S.; 86 new spaces

The New Minas and Coldbrook centres are expected to open this fall, the release notes. The Small World Learning Centre is the second location of an already established operator set to open in 2026.

The province is funding the spaces through the Canada-Nova Scotia $ 10-a-day child care agreement, which is set to last five years. The funding from the federal government will increase by 3 per cent each year starting in 2027.

“We have seen first-hand the positive impact of affordable, high-quality licensed child care and believe all children and families across Nova Scotia should have what they need to achieve their best start and thrive,” Yvonne Smith, CEO, YMCA of Southwest Nova Scotia, said in the release.

This comes after another investment in child care to the Halifax area and East Hants where the government gave more than $7.6 million to six operators in the region.

Former federal minister and outgoing MP Seamus O’Regan has joined Stewart McKelvey as a senior business advisor.

O’Regan, who represented St. John’s South-Mount Pearl, held several ministerial roles during his time in office, including Minister of Labour, Natural Resources, and Indigenous Services. He announced in 2024 that he would not seek re-election.

Before entering politics, O’Regan was a journalist and served in various roles with the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. At Stewart McKelvey, he will provide strategic advice to clients in areas such as natural resources, Indigenous relations, and public policy.

Three people are vying to replace O’Regan: former provincial minister Tom Osborne for the Liberals, Corey Curtis for the Conservatives and Mike Peach of the Animal Protection Party of Canada. There have been no other confirmed candidates for other parties.

Oleg Gordievsky, a high-ranking KGB officer who spied for the West during the height of the Cold War, has died in England at the age of 86.

OTTAWA — The federal health minister says that as of May, all eligible Canadians will be able to apply for the federal dental care program.

The program was launched initially for seniors in December 2023 and has been expanded in phases to cover children and people with disabilities.

In May, the program will open to other Canadians who have household incomes of less than $90,000 and don’t have private insurance.

The government says coverage will start as early as June 1.

The announcement comes a day before Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected to call a federal election.

The federal Conservatives have not said whether they would keep funding the program, which was the product of a supply-and-confidence agreement between the Liberals and the NDP.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 22, 2024.

The Canadian Press

The party with the majority on Vancouver city council is being criticized for avoiding all-candidate meetings and running the police union boss as one of its byelection candidates, and now says it is having its signs stolen.

Canada's Evan Dunfee set a world record in the men's 35-kilometre event at the World Athletics Race Walking Tour Gold meeting in Dunidice, Slovakia.

The Canadian government has updated its travel advisory for those heading south of the border, noting the U.S. requires that visitors register if staying more than 30 days.

The updated advisory says the registration requirement applies to Canadians and other foreign nationals travelling to the U.S.