Tag Archives: Provincial Politics

Response to COVID-19 escalates to provincial state of emergency in B.C.
NANAIMO - The ongoing announcements of emergencies in B.C. related to the COVID-19 crisis has taken another step. Public safety minister Mike Farnworth announced on Wednesday B.C. is now in a provinci...
Mar 18, 2020 Public safety minister Mike Farnworth announcing B.C. is now in a state of emergency

Long-in-the-works solid waste management plan approved for Regional District of Nanaimo
NANAIMO - The goal of diverting more waste from the Cedar landfill is closer than ever. B.C.'s ministry of environment approved on March 5, 2020 the solid waste management plan put forward by the Regi...
Mar 13, 2020 Work can now move ahead to divert 90 per cent of waste in the Regional District of Nanaimo. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

Supreme Court declines to hear appeal in Alberta public sector union case
OTTAWA - The Supreme Court won't hear a case involving the rights of public-sector workers in Alberta in a labour dispute with that province's government. The high court was deciding whether to h...
Mar 12, 2020

Nanaimo city council takes forward steps towards plastic bag ban
NANAIMO - It appears to be only a matter of time before shoppers in Nanaimo won't have the option to carry their goods away in plastic bags.Nanaimo councillors unanimously endorsed on Monday a motion ...
Mar 10, 2020 A ban on plastic bags is widely supported by Nanaimo councillors, who voted in favour of reworking existing bylaws and forwarding it to senior government for approval. (File photo/The Canadian Press)

Alberta economy, reeling from coronavirus, takes gut punch due to oil price war
Alberta's oil-based economy, already reeling by reduced demand due to the novel coronavirus, is now getting a gut punch from global prices.The spiral of oil prices has accelerated due to an all-out pr...
Mar 09, 2020

Coronavirus may force government to ditch balanced-budget plan: Kenney
EDMONTON - Premier Jason Kenney says the novel cornonavirus outbreak is hammering Alberta's economy and may force his government to abandon its core election promise to balance the books by 2023....
Mar 06, 2020

'Real change is required:' strategy for Indigenous criminal justice revealed
NANAIMO - A new strategy to reduce the number of Indigenous people caught in the justice system has been unveiled. Douglas White lll Kwul'a'sul'tun, chair of the BC First Nations Justice Council and S...
Mar 06, 2020 Doug White, chair of the BC First Nations Justice Council, announcing a way to create a just justice system. (Spencer Sterritt/NanaimoNewsNOW)

Officials searching for new glass, soft plastics recycling depot in Parksville after contract expires
PARKSVILLE - Unwanted glass, soft plastics and Styrofoam piling up around Oceanside homes could be a way of life unless a local solution is brokered to properly dispose of those items.The contract bet...
Mar 01, 2020 Parksville-Qualicum Beach residents no longer have a local option to properly get rid of glass, soft plastics and Styrofoam. Recycle BC said it is working to find a private operator in the Oceanside region to take the service over. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

Techies and travellers win in Alberta budget; vapers lose with new tax
EDMONTON - Alberta's United Conservative government tabled its 2020-21 budget Thursday. Here is a look at who might be pleased and who won't be so happy: WINNERS Techies: The province is investing $20...
Feb 27, 2020

Province spending $200,000 for one-day overdose and emergency response conference in Nanaimo
NANAIMO - Teams from all over B.C. directly responsible for tackling the ongoing overdose crisis will meet in the harbour city. Members from each of the 35 community actions teams across B.C. will att...
Feb 27, 2020 Members of the 35 community action teams across B.C. will meet in Nanaimo to share their experiences. (File photo/The Canadian Press)