The Asian Star June 25 2022

www.theasianstar.com Vol 22 - Issue 21

Inflation hits 7.7%, largest increase since 1983 A man convicted of drunk and dangerous driving causing the death of an RCMP officer in Langford has been freed again on statutory release with a warning to stay away from drugs and alcohol and get counselling. Ken Fenton was convicted of crashing into Const.

Sara Beckett’s cruiser after running a red light at Goldstream Avenue and Peatt Continued on page 7

Incentives rejected by new family doctors They say more attention needs to be paid to overhead costs, physician burnout and long-term strategy.

Family-medicine residents studying at the University of B.C. have written to health-care leaders to say a twoyear deal they’ve been offered fails to address soaring overhead costs,

Saturday, June 25, 2022

Tel:604-591-5423

China may have tried to discourage Canadians from voting Conservative: federal unit

Save Old Growth organizer from Pakistan turns himself in to Canada Border Services Agency

A federal research unit detected what might be a Chinese Communist Party information operation that aimed to discourage Canadians of Chinese heritage from voting for the Conservatives in the last federal election.

The Sept. 13, 2021, analysis by Rapid Response Mechanism Canada, which tracks foreign interference, says researchers Continued on page 8

A friend of Save Old Growth organizer Zain Haq wrote her phone number on his arm with a black Sharpie just in case he was allowed to make a phone call if he was detained on Tuesday by the Canada Border Services Agency.

It turned out to be a necessary move.

Haq — an international student leading a civil resistance Continued on page 7

Canada only country in G-7 not to remove gas taxes If U.S. President Joe Biden is successful in his bid to pause gas taxes in the U.S., Canada will be the only G7 country not to bring in a tax cut or subsidy to help deal with prices at the pump. Biden on Wednesday called on Congress to suspend federal gasoline and diesel taxes for three months. Meanwhile, the U.K., Italy, and Germany (lower taxes), France (a consumer rebate) and Japan (a subsidy to wholesalers) have all taken similar action.

As inflation — headlined by gasoline price hikes — hits highs not seen since Billie Jean was topping the Billboard charts and Return of the Jedi was in theatres, will Canada follow suit? Should it?

Continued on page 4

Taxpayers billed $80,000 for flight catering You won’t believe how the governor general blew your money this time. Governor General Mary Simon, 29 fellow passengers and crew spent $80,000 on in-flight catering during a trip to the Middle East in March. What do you think they spent the money on? Taxpayers don’t know because the governor general doesn’t have to publish her receipts.

Continued on page 4

Kapil Sharma in Vancouver

In the photo shared by Kapil on Instagram, we see Krushna Abhishek, Kiku Sharda, Chandan Prabhakar, Rajiv Thakur and Sumona Chakravarti laughingtheir hearts out in Vancouver. Do not miss the show at PNE today.

See story on page 12

Truckers to vote on work stoppage over Vancouver port’s ‘penalizing’ rolling age program More than 1,000 members of British Columbia’s United Truckers Association are planning to vote on a “work stoppage” next month over incoming regulations at the Port of Vancouver.

On Sept. 15, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority’s revised Rolling Truck Age Program takes effect, banning dieselContinued on page 7

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LOCAL / NATIONAL

Saturday, June 25, 2022

Real hot weather to hit Metro Vancovuer this weekend For a second day, Environment Canada is warning the public it’s going to get hot later this week, and that most of B.C. will be impacted.

Billing it as the first hot stretch of summer for the province, the national weather agency says the weather system will first hit eastern Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland on Friday before moving inland.

The only areas not under a special weather statement for hot weather are western Vancouver Island, the Central and North Coast, Haida Gwaii and areas bordering the Yukon and Northwest Territories.

Temperatures for eastern Vancouver Island, along with Victoria, are expected to hit the upper 20s on Friday, while the South Coast will see daytime highs rising into the low 30s. Temperatures are expected to stay hot until Tuesday. “There will be some respite from the elevated daytime temperatures as overnight lows fall into the mid-teens,” Environment Canada said. For the rest of the province, starting Saturday, slightly hotter temperatures are in store.

From the Fraser Valley through to the Okanagan and Kootenays, along with the Thompson, Cariboo, Chilcotin, Prince George, Bulkley Valley, Prince George and Peace River regions, the

Alleged driver, family member arrested after fatal hit-and-run in Vancouver 25-year-old man along with a 63-yearold family member have been arrested in connection with a hit-and-run incident in Kitsilano Sunday night that killed a young man.

The victim, 24, was walking close to his home around 11:30 p.m. Sunday when he was struck and killed by a vehicle that was allegedly speeding near West 4th Avenue and Arbutus Street, Vancouver police said. “We asked for help to solve this crime, and after receiving significant information from the public, VPD officers identified the suspected driver and arrested him yesterday at his home in Vancouver for the fatal hit-and-run,” Sgt. Steve Addison said in a release. “We also arrested one of the driver’s family members and are investigating whether that person acted as an accomplice after the fatal collision.”

The alleged driver and family member were taken into custody without incident Monday, police said. Charges have not yet been approved and the investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with information who has not yet come forward is asked to call VPD’s Collision Investigation Unit at 604-717-3012

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mercury is projected to hit the upper 20s before spiking into the mid-30s.

“The B.C. Interior will experience its first stretch of warmer than average temperatures beginning this weekend,” Environment Canada said.

“On Saturday, temperatures will reach into the upper 20s. For the remainder of the weekend and early next week, temperatures will rise into the low-to-mid 30s.

Overnight lows will fall to the mid-teens.”

Looking past Tuesday, the national weather agency says temperatures are expected to return to near-normal values by the middle of next week as a cooler, unsettled airmass pushes onshore.

3

BC offers cash to entice graduates to work as family doctors About 175 new family practice resident graduates are being offered lucrative contracts, loan forgiveness, and $25,000 signing bonuses if they sign on by September to work as family doctors in B.C. “I think people want action and this is action,” B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix said Monday. At a time when one in five British Columbians or close to one million say they do not have a family doctor, Dix said the province is stepping up with urgency to give new doctors the contracts many want to stay and work in the province.

“This demonstrates our willingness to move quickly to attract future physicians to family medicine,” said Dix. Interested residents who sign on to a full-time contract

will immediately receive a “new to practice” contract valued at $295,457 for the first year — what was formerly a second-year rate. The new family doctors will also receive a $25,000 signing bonus as well as a phased medical training debt-forgiveness plan — up to $50,000 for the first year and up to $20,000 in medical training debt forgiveness for each year of two through five. Dix called the debt forgiveness one of the most significant incentives.

“We wanted to encourage them as much as possible to to consider fullservice family practice, and that’s why this proposal was made,” said Dix. The new contracts don’t solve every problem in B.C.’s health-care system with respect to family practice.

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Saturday, June 25, 2022

OPINION From page 1

So far, the answer from Ottawa is: not at this time. Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said earlier this week the federal government has no immediate plans to cut prices at the pump with a temporary reprieve from the federal gas tax.

Canada only country in G-7 not to remove gas taxes Canada is instead looking to stabilize global oil prices by increasing supply, something Wilkinson said is starting to happen. He also said aid for Canadian families is, in the meantime, focused on areas Finance Minister Chrystia

Freeland highlighted in a speech last week: increases to federal benefit cheques, cuts to child-care costs and upcoming increases to Old Age Security and the Canada Workers Benefit.

Conservatives have called on the Liberals for months to cut gas taxes, including lifting the GST from gasoline, temporarily suspending the carbon price, or lifting the 10 cents per litre federal excise tax.

The opposition parties are among those urging the federal government to take action on soaring gas prices.

Taxpayers billed $80,000 for flight catering If they spent $80,000 on inflight catering, how much do you think they spent on hotels and meals while they were in Dubai?

The governor general hasn’t posted the detailed receipts from her trip to the Middle East. If the prime minister has to release receipts, then why can’t the governor general?

You deserve transparency from Rideau Hall. You’re paying the bills and you deserve to know how the government spends your money.

Please email your member of Parliament and tell them to demand the governor general release a full and detailed list of every penny that was spent on this trip to the Middle East.

According to our records, your postal code is: V3S 2P4 which means your MP is Ken Hardie. You can email your MP at this address: ken.hardie@parl.gc.ca If this is not correct, you can find your MP here: https://www. ourcommons.ca/members/en

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LOCAL / NATIONAL

Saturday, June 25, 2022

Burnaby woman bought winning Lotto 649 ticket while passing time waiting for tardy friend A Burnaby woman’s choice to pass the time while waiting on a tardy friend has made her a multi-millionaire.

Trang Dang of Burnaby had picked up a Lotto 649 ticket at a grocery store in New Westminster while waiting for a friend who was late to meet her for dinner. The $10.9-million draw took place on May 28.

“I was at home when I found out I won. I checked the draw results and questioned if these were the right numbers,” she said in a statement.

“I couldn’t sleep that night!”

Her mother, who’s a regular lotto player, was the first Trang shared the news with.

“My mom was very excited. She

plays the lottery even more than me!”

She added that being a lotto winner has changed things for the best.

Air Canada to launch seasonal flights to Mumbai via London Heathrow in October 2022 The planned service between Toronto and Mumbai via London-Heathrow will be operated with Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft featuring three cabins of service for customers to choose from, including lie-flat seats in Signature Class, Premium Economy and Economy Class. With the addition of this flight, Air Canada will have four routes operating to India: The addition of this flight will mean there will be a fifth-freedom flight offered for those flying between Mumbai and London Heathrow, as well as London Heathrow and Toronto. So, passengers on these routes could potentially hop on these flights as well to experience Air Canada’s hospitality.

Passengers will also be able to connect onwards on other Star Alliance carriers such as United to fly to the US and other markets as well, so this is a great route to be activated. In

all probability, this was done because of the Ukraine – Russia war, which does not allow Air Canada access to Russian overflight anymore, but this is a creative solution.

On the occasion, Mark Galardo, Senior Vice President, Network Planning and Revenue Management, at Air Canada, said, We are also excited to return to Mumbai, India’s largest city and an important financial, commercial, and entertainment hub, complementing our 13 weekly flights from Canada to Delhi. Our Mumbai services are scheduled to operate with a stop in London Heathrow, offering connectivity to more than a dozen Air Canada and Star Alliance partner United Airlines flights between North America and London, as well as additional options for travel between the UK and India.

Man arrested after glass smashed at Vancouver City Hall during ‘street sweep’ protest: Police One person was arrested and a glass door was smashed, as protesters opposed to so-called “street sweeps” descended on Vancouver City Hall Wednesday afternoon.

Demonstrators with the Stop the Sweeps Coalition rallied on the steps of city hall calling for an end to the practice, before police say they attempted to disrupt a meeting in progress inside.

City councillors were debating the controversial Broadway Plan on Wednesday.

The group “briefly occupied the building’s lobby,” before police escorted them outside, VPD spokesperson Sgt. Steve Addison said.

Police said one person was arrested for

mischief in relation to the smashed glass.

City Coun. Melissa De Genova took to Twitter to describe the protest as ” violence & vandalism and terrorizing staff or members of the public.” “The chanting ‘stop the sweeps’ outside Vancouver City Hall all day was fine until they started breaking doors and putting others in unsafe situations,” she wrote.

“Street sweeps” refer to how City of Vancouver engineering staff with support from Vancouver police regularly patrol the Downtown Eastside, gathering items from the sidewalks and removing them in dump trucks.

The protesters say the practice unfairly targets the street homeless and DTES

5

Premier Horgan gives in and scraps $789M Royal BC Museum rebuild Following an outpouring of public backlash, the BC government announced its plans to halt the $789-million rebuild of Victoria’s Royal BC Museum (RBCM) on Wednesday.

“We made choices based on the best information at hand, and we thought we had it right. Clearly, we did not,” said Premier John Horgan during a June 22nd press conference.

“I’ve heard the people of BC quite clearly that we were making the wrong decision at the wrong time.”

In mid-May, BC officials said the RBCM on Belleville Street would close this September to make way for a state-of-the-art, seismically safe building expected to open in 2030.

At the time, Horgan summed it up as a

“historic investment” to build a safer, more inclusive and accessible modern museum— replacing the aging facility people have flocked to for decades.

Now, Horgan says it’s “back to the drawing board.”

That means the RBCM, including the IMAX Theatre, gift shops and food trucks, will stay open to visitors as museum staff rethink long-term plans and lead a broad public engagement to consider all options for the facility’s future.

The announcement comes following a recently released poll that found out of 615 respondents, a majority of British Columbians, or 69%, weren’t behind new RBCM, including BC Liberals leader Kevin Falcon who called it a “vanity project.”

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Saturday, June 25, 2022 Ottawa touts $8.9-billion plan to help Canadians battered by inflation, as critics pan announcement as ‘unacceptable’ Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland is defending a stay-the-course approach to inflation in what she concedes is a highly unpredictable global economy, saying only that if things worsen, the government is ready “to do more.” In what her office had billed as a major speech Thursday — but which essentially repackaged previously announced budget items as an “affordability plan”— Freeland underlined some $8.9 billion in measures to help renters, seniors over 75, and lowincome workers that will flow this year.

The announcement was immediately panned as “unacceptable” by the Liberal government’s political critics, with the Bloc Québécois summing up Freeland’s speech as “more verbal inflation than anything else.”

Freeland, however, told reporters it is “a feature and not a bug that these measures are

in place already.” “The measures that we have set in motion already, I think, do a pretty good job of reaching precisely those people in Canada who have the biggest challenges with affordability,” she said.

She boasted that with the measures in the past two federal budgets, it means much needed money is flowing immediately and it does not necessitate new spending or borrowing, allowing the government to stay within its fiscal framework. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland takes part in the Special Joint Committee on the Declaration of Emergency surrounding the government’s use of the Emergencies Act in Ottawa on Tuesday, June 14, 2022. Freeland continued to blame cost-of-living increases that are worrying ordinary Canadians on global pressures, but

51% of Vancouver voters support amalgamating all Metro Vancouver cities into one mega-city: survey Metro Vancouver is Canada’s thirdlargest urban region in terms of population, just after the regions of Toronto and Montreal, but it is by far the smallest region geographically. This region technically has a land area of about 2,900 sq km, but most of this accounts for the North Shore mountains, reservoir watershed areas, forests, parks, and the protected agricultural land reserve. Only about 850 sq km of the region’s land area can be used for any urban development, including residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional uses.

This means the entirety of Metro Vancouver’s urban area is comparable to the entirety of the City of Toronto’s

total land area of 630 sq km, with Metro Toronto as a whole reaching 5,900 sq km.

The City of Vancouver on its own is only 115 sq km — under 20% the size of the City of Toronto. But it was not too long ago that the City of Toronto was smaller than the City of Vancouver. In 1998, the Ontario provincial government forced an amalgamation of Toronto — then only 97 sq km in size — with a handful of other adjacent municipalities, such as York, North York, Etobicoke, and Scarborough to create the City of Toronto that we know today.

As of 2021, Vancouver’s population is just under 700,000 out of Metro Vancouver’s total population of about 2.6 million.

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Saturday, June 25, 2022 From page 1

Inflation hits 7.7%, largest increase since 1983

Peatt Road in April 2016 and was sentenced to five and a half years in prison.

Fenton’s release was suspended in April when he admitted to overmedicating on prescription drugs in response to anxiety of the looming anniversary of the crash. The decision from the Parole Board of Canada released on Tuesday said a urine test also showed illegal drugs, and his release was suspended.

It said Fenton has spent long periods of time in the community without problems, found full-time work and has the support of a girlfriend and family members. In reversing the suspension, the board said it is concerned he can’t follow the rules

of his prescription marijuana program and negative feelings have him turning to alcohol but because he’s near the end of the sentence, having access to support is essential so he can reintegrate into society. Fenton told the board he felt he had come a long way since his conviction.

“You have also written a letter to the board explaining how your addictions to alcohol developed during your adolescence and young adulthood,” the decision said. “You expressed remorse of the harm you have done to the victim and her family and say that being successful on parole and recovering from your addiction issues are your top priorities.”

Save Old Growth organizer from Pakistan turns himself in to Canada Border Services Agency to end old-growth logging in B.C. — was taken into custody in Vancouver and moved to an immigration holding centre in Surrey where he’ll remain until at least Thursday when he has a hearing scheduled, said SOG spokesperson Ian Weber. * No details are available yet on the reasons why CBSA took Haq into custody, Weber said.

The 21-year-old from Pakistan turned himself over to the border agency after it issued an arrest warrant for the co-founder of the protest group.

A third-year history major at Simon Fraser University, Haq is in Canada on a study permit, a document issued by Immigration Canada that is conditional on obeying the law and the absence of a criminal record.

When he got a summons from CBSA last week, Haq feared the border agency intended to deport him because of his activist work.

Incentives rejected by new family doctors fails to increase fees physicians can charge for services, neglects the issue of physician burnout, and lacks collaboration and a long-term strategy.

The province, at a June 15 meeting, offered a contract to family-medicine doctors with a $25,000 signing bonus and student-debt forgiveness in an effort to address a shortage of family doctors.

“We ask that both the Ministry of Health and Doctors of B.C. meet with UBC Family Medicine resident representatives directly to discuss solutions that will be presented to the graduating class of residents,” says the June 20 letter signed

by Dr. Ana Boskovic, representing residents, and Dr. Romina Moradi, representing international residents.

“This meeting must occur before our June 30th, 2022 graduation,” it says, supported with the names of 168 residents from throughout B.C. After completing medical school, graduates are matched with residency programs for further training.

The University of B.C.’s program produces about 400 resident graduates a year, with about 175 in a two-year familymedicine program and the remainder in specialities such as surgeons.

The “new to practice” contract the province is offering, valued at $295,457 for the first year, offers a $25,000 signing bonus valid until Sept. 30 and about $130,000 over five years in medical training debt-forgiveness.

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Saturday, June 25, 2022

The world’s most liveable cities in 2022 This new survey has ranked 173 places according to factors including healthcare, political stability and access to green space Here are the ten most liveable cities in the world, according to the EIU: 1. Vienna, Austria 2. Copenhagen, Denmark 3. Zurich, Switzerland 4. Calgary, Canada 5. Vancouver, Canada 6. Geneva, Switzerland 7. Frankfurt, Germany 8. Toronto, Canada 9. Amsterdam, Netherlands 10. Osaka, Japan and Melbourne, Australia Looking for a fresh start? Like, abroad and that? It can pretty difficult to know where to start when looking for somewhere new to call home. So much so that we wouldn’t blame you for giving up after a few cursory

From page 1

Google searches – there are simply too many great options out there. Handily, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) has just released its annual ‘liveability’ study of 173 cities, ranking them according to things like healthcare, political stability, infrastructure and access to green space. And the best place to move in 2022? It’s... Vienna, which was praised for its notably good infrastructure, excellent healthcare and culture and entertainment options. Europe actually dominates the top of the list, with Copenhagen and Zurich in second and third place (political stability and strong education systems apparently contributed in both cases). Geneva, Frankfurt and Amsterdam also make the top ten.

Canada does particularly well in the rankings, too, with Calgary, Vancouver and Toronto all in the top ten.

RCMP seek man who allegedly ‘inappropriately touched’ girls in Saanich RCMP on Vancouver Island are asking for the public’s help to identify a man they say allegedly “ i n appropr i at e l y touched” two underaged girls in Central Saanich.

In a media release Wednesday, Sidney/ North Saanich RCMP said the incident happened on June 13 at a restaurant on Mt. Newton Cross Road near the Patricia Bay Highway.

According to police, the man spoke with the two girls before he touched them.

He then left in a grey Dodge Ram pickup truck with damage to the

right-side chrome running boards.

He then left in a grey Dodge Ram pickup truck with damage to the right-side chrome running boards.

The man is described as about 40 years old and Caucasian with short, lighthairandathinbuild.

Story continues below advertisement He was wearing glasses and a faded green baseball cap, a black long-sleeved shirt, blue jeans and blue and grey Nike running shoes.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Sidney/ North Saanich RCMP at 250-656-3931.

China may have tried to discourage Canadians from voting Conservative: federal unit

Communist party media accounts on Chinese social media platform Douyin widely sharing a narrative that the Conservatives would all but sever diplomatic relations with Beijing.

The report, obtained by The Canadian Press through the Access to Information Act, was prepared just a week before Canadians went to the polls.

Justin Trudeau’s Liberals emerged from the Sept. 20 national ballot with a renewed minority mandate, while the Conservatives, led by Erin O’Toole, formed the official Opposition.

O’Toole, who is no longer leader, claimed on a podcast recorded this month that the Conservatives lost eight or nine

seats to foreign interference from China.

Its work supports the G7 RRM, an initiative to strengthen co-ordination to identify and respond to threats to the major industrial democracies.

The analysis of messaging about the Conservative party was part of RRM Canada’s effort to monitor the digital information environment for signs of foreign state-sponsored information manipulation in the general election.

Conservative MP Michael Chong, the party’s foreign affairs critic, said in an interview the analysis is “another piece of evidence that the Communist leadership in Beijing interfered in the last general election by spreading disinformation.”

Covid-19 cases in BC hospitals hold steady After several weeks of marked declines, the number of people with COVID-19 in British Columbia hospitals held nearly steady over the past week, but the number of admissions appears to be trending steadily downward. As of Thursday there were 273 cases in hospital, a one-week decline of just three, and 28 cases in intensive care, a oneweek increase of nine, according to the B.C. Centre for Disease Control. Under B.C.’s “census” reporting model, all positive cases are counted regardless of the reason the patient was admitted to hospital. The BCCDC also reported 642 cases for the week ending June 18, though due to restrictions on PCR

testing the true figure is likely significantly higher. Just over 12,200 tests were performed the week ending June 18, and the provincewide test positivity rate was 7.3 per cent.

That’s less than a third of at the peak of the sixth wave, but still higher than any other time in the pandemic than around the 2021 new year or March to April, 2021. British Columbia’s weekly data reporting regime also provides information on hospital admissions and deaths, though both metrics are only current as of June 18, and are typically revised upward significantly in following weeks.

More than 225,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine set to expire in BC in July The B.C. government will not make major changes to its vaccination policy, even though more than 225,000 doses COVID-19 vaccine are set to expire at the end of July.

The province is focused on reaching more than 1 million British Columbians currently eligible for a third shot, rather than changing eligibility requirements for a fourth shot, in order to use up the doses, according to Dr. Bonnie Henry.

The 226,824 doses of Moderna’s Spikevax will expire either on July 21 or July 24. “This is a reminder for people, especially (with) what we know about Omicron, that we need to get our booster,” the provincial health officer told Global News. “There is vaccine out there for you, go out and get it now.”

“We know there is going to be

increased waste when you have many more providers,” Henry added.

Another 430,000 of Pfizer’s Comirnaty doses are set to expire before Nov. 30, and close 40,000 of its pediatric vaccine doses will expire before Sept. 30.

To date, about 53 per cent of British Columbians have received a third shot of COVID-19 vaccine, meaning around 1.2 million people still eligible to receive one.

“Our first line of defense is vaccine,” said infectious disease control expert Dr. Brian Conway. “Forty per cent of you haven’t gotten it. We have vaccine expiring.

I would really make that prominent.”

Compared to other provinces, B.C. has a restrictive policy around fourth doses.

LOCAL / NATIONAL

Saturday, June 25, 2022

Vancouver could see heat dome-like weather within the next week

Drunk driver who killed West Shore RCMP officer is out again on statutory release A man convicted of drunk and dangerous driving causing the death of an RCMP officer in Langford has been freed again on statutory release with a warning to stay away from drugs and alcohol and get counselling.

Ken Fenton was convicted of crashing into Const. Sara Beckett’s cruiser after running a red light at Goldstream Avenue and Peatt Road in April 2016 and was sentenced to five and a half years in prison.

Fenton’s release was suspended in April when he admitted to overmedicating on prescription drugs in response to anxiety of the looming anniversary of the crash.

The decision from the Parole Board of Canada released on Tuesday said a urine test also showed illegal drugs, and his release was

suspended. It said Fenton has spent long periods of time in the community without problems, found full-time work and has the support of a girlfriend and family members.

In reversing the suspension, the board said it is concerned he can’t follow the rules of his prescription marijuana program and negative feelings have him turning to alcohol but because he’s near the end of the sentence, having access to support is essential so he can reintegrate into society. Fenton told the board he felt he had come a long way since his conviction.

“You have also written a letter to the board explaining how your addictions to alcohol developed during your adolescence and young adulthood,” the decision said.

New Westminster police investigate racist graffiti written on vehicles New Westminster police are hoping the public can help them identify suspects responsible for racist graffiti in two separate incidents.

Police said the first incident is expected to have occurred overnight between June 5 and June 6 when someone reported finding racist messages scratched into his vehicle.

The vehicle was parked in the area of South Dyke Road in the Queensborough neighbourhood, police said.

The second incident happened on June 17 at approximately midnight, when a resident called police to say that he was witnessing two suspects spray painting racist graffiti on buildings in the 400 block of East Columbia Street, police said.

Story continues below advertisement When officers arrived, no one matching the suspect’s description could be found but police said they did find five vehicles had also been

spray-painted with graffiti. Officers searched the area for CCTV footage and evidence.

“When I saw this graffiti I was disgusted with what I was reading,” Sgt. Justine Thom said in a release. “Racist incidents are taken seriously by the New Westminster Police Department. This investigation is ongoing and we’re asking anyone with information who has not yet spoken to officers to call us.”

The New Westminster Police Department has an officer seconded to the Provincial Hate Crime Unit, and these incidents have been shared with this unit, police confirmed.

The suspects in the June 17 incident are described as men, approximately 20 to 30 years old, standing each approximately five feet seven inches tall. One of the suspects was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, the other was wearing a red hooded sweatshirt, police said. © 2022 Global News, a division

9

According to the latest forecast from The Weather Network, things are going to be heating up in Vancouver — and quickly.

The Weather Network is predicting that the temperature could feel hotter than 30˚C by this upcoming weekend.

While the next few days are forecast to be much the same as it has been since early May, beginning on Friday, June 24, the temperature will be hotter than it has been all year, with an expected high of 24˚C. The temperature ramps up significantly on Saturday and Sunday, when things could feel as hot as 33˚C. However, as

you’ve likely experienced if you’ve ever compared forecasts with different weather agencies, Environment Canada’s current forecast suggests it will indeed be warmer than it has been, but not quite as warm as what The Weather Network is predicting.

Environment Canada’s current forecast suggests Friday, Saturday, and Sunday will see Vancouver reach temperatures of 22˚C, 23˚C, and 24˚C respectively. Still a lot warmer than it has been in recent weeks, but not quite as extreme as the weather we saw around this time last year.

The deadly heat dome around the region

More than $500K worth of drugs, cash seized in investigation with ties to Alberta, British Columbia A number of suspects have been identified in an interprovincial drug investigation that began last year in Lloydminster, Alta., and ended with more than half a million dollars worth of drugs being seized.

The Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams said Thursday morning that an investigation began in Lloydminster in May 2021, following an initial drug seizure in the border city.

ALERT then launched Project Deception, which involved partnerships with Lloydminster RCMP, British Columbia’s combined forces special enforcement unit (CFSEU-BC) and the

RCMP’s federal serious and organized crime.

The goal of Project Deception was to “work up the drug supply line and uproot the Edmonton and Kelowna-based suppliers,” ALERT said in a news release Thursday.

Over the course of the investigation, ALERT said drug seizures took place in Lloydminster, Edmonton and Springbrook, Alta., as well as Kelowna and Vernon, B.C. On June 1, 2022, a number of homes were also searched.

“Drug trafficking doesn’t occur in isolation. It is deep-rooted and presents a multitude of threats that ultimately impact many communities,” said

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LOCAL / NATIONAL

Saturday, June 25, 2022

Petition launched to save Surrey farm from being developed for industrial use A petition has been launched by Surrey’s Heppell’s Potato Farm to save their land from being sold and becoming industrial property by the federal government.

Located on 192 Street and 36 Avenue, the Heppell family has been running their farm on the 220-acre plot of land for 50 years, according to a news release from Surrey First

Coun. Linda Annis on Tuesday (June 21).

“If you’ve tasted fresh B.C. field vegetables (think nugget potatoes, carrots, cabbage) in the summer – between May-Long and Canada Day – there’s a good chance they were produced on this farmland parcel,” the farm states under its petition.

Man faces slew of charges after 7 women sexually assaulted in Metro Vancouver A 27-year-old man is facing a slew of charges related to sexual assaults against seven women in Metro Vancouver.

A A A The incidents took place over a three-day spree between March 31 and April 2 in Burnaby and Vancouver, according to Burnaby RCMP. Police said five women reported being groped by a stranger in the Metrotown area. Afterward, police say the suspect assaulted two more women and committed an indecent act in Vancouver.

“This was a serious and traumatic series

of events that impacted the feeling of safety and security in our community,” Cpl. Alexa Hodgins said in a Tuesday news release.

“We appreciate the assistance and cooperation of our policing partners from Vancouver Police and Metro Vancouver Transit Police for helping advance this multi-jurisdictional sexual assault investigation.”In a previous news release, Mounties said the first assault was inside the Metrotown Superstore around 1 p.m. on March 31.

As BC health-care system ‘teetering,’ health minister angers doctors again The rocky relationship between the provincial government and B.C.’s physicians appears further damaged in the wake of a surprise offer to new doctors graduating medical school.

What most attendees understood to be an information and feedback session on the future of family medicine last week instead saw Health Minister Adrian Dix make a surprise

presentation offering a controversial contract and debt-forgiveness pitch in exchange for practising medicine in B.C. Doctors who graduated last year or will graduate medical school this year are being offered a $295,000 fixed salary, $24,000 signing bonus and up to $150,000 in student loan debt forgiveness if they work in the province for five years.

More than 90% of BCGEU public service members vote to strike, citing inflation Close to 95 per cent of BC General Employees’ Union members employed in the public service have voted to strike, citing skyrocketing inflation and the need for cost of living-based wage protection.

The vote involved some 33,000 members, including B.C. firefighters, correctional officers, administration staff, government employees and workers at the BC Liquor and Cannabis stores.

As the vote held between May 16 and June 22 wrapped up, the employer asked

BCGEU back to the bargaining table, the union said in a Wednesday news release.

“I couldn’t be happier with this strong result,” said Stephanie Smith, BCGEU president and chair of its bargaining committee. “But it was the lead-up — the five weeks of intensive organizing, pop-up voting sites and mailin ballot-collecting — that really forced the public service agency to change its tune.”

The parties will return to the negotiating table on June 27.

2 Canadians found dead of knife wounds in Mexico resort

BC not suspending vaccine mandate for public sector, health-care workers British Columbia will continue with a requirement for workers in public service jobs to be vaccinated, which is a departure from what is being done at the federal level.

The decision by the province will ensure everyone working in hospitals and longterm care is vaccinated against COVID-19.

The mandate also includes government workers and liquor store employees

but does not include teachers or those working in extended healthcare like dentists and physiotherapists.

“Here in B.C., the public service has made the decision to take the initiative.

It is at 99 per cent. I think it is totally reasonable to continue down the course and especially in health-care settings,”

Two Canadians — one of them sought

by Interpol — have been found dead of knife wounds in Mexico’s Caribbean coast resort town of Playa del Carmen, the state prosecutor’s office said Tuesday.

Prosecutors in Quintana Roo state, also home to resort cities of Cancun and Tulum, said the man and the woman were found dead Monday at a hotel or condominium in the troubled resort, and a third person was reported injured.There was no

immediate information on their names or hometowns. “Global Affairs Canada is aware of the death of two Canadian citizens in Mexico,” the ministry said in a statement.

But prosecutors confirmed the male victim wasonanInterpolwantedlistforfraudcharges.

Playa del Carmen has been hit by several instances of violence involving foreigners, most recently in January, when two Canadians were killed at a local resort, apparently because of debts between international drug and weapons trafficking gangs.

Saturday, June 25, 2022

Vancouver City Council approves controversial 30-year Broadway Plan After multiple marathon meetings stretched across weeks, hundreds of speakers and dozens of amendments, Vancouver city council approved the controversial Broadway Plan Wednesday evening.

The final vote broke seven to four, Mayor Kennedy Stewart and councillors Adrianne Carr, Pete Fry, Christine Boyle, Lisa Dominato, Sarah Kirby-Yung and Rebecca Bligh in favour.

Councillors Melissa De Genova, Jean Swanson, Colleen Hardwick and Michael Wiebe were opposed.

Councillors approved more than two dozen amendments to the plan, including Stewart’s ambitious renter protection plan, and a separated bike line proposed by Boyle.

The 30-year plan to turn the bustling Broadway corridor between Clark

Drive and Vine Street into Vancouver’s “second downtown” will create new housing, jobs and amenities around the $2.38-billion extension of the Millennium Line, slated for completion in 2025.

“Change is always difficult, but change is happening,” Coun.

Pete Fry said earlier Wednesday.

“We’re a small city with a lot of density and we are seeing more and more people arriving, so there is going to be the inevitability of tower form in that area.” The approved plan will allow redevelopment within nearly 500 city blocks in an area that is already considered the province’s second-largest employment corridor, and home to about a quarter of Vancouver’s existing purpose-built rentals.

Canada will spend $40B over 20 years to upgrade NORAD defences amid ‘new threats’ Canadian Defence Minister Anita Anand unveiled major details of a new $4.9-billion plan to upgrade Canada’s NORAD continental defence systems amid what she described as “new threats” from autocratic regimes and new weapons being developed by other countries.

The $4.9 billion will be spent over the coming six years but the funding is part of a longer-term plan that will see the government spend $40 billion over the next 20 years to beef up continental defence.

“More than six decades ago, against the backdrop of the Cold War and the threat of a Soviet-era air attack, Canada and the United States established the world’s only binational military command,” Anand said,

describing a “pressing need” to respond to threats like hypersonic and cruise missiles.

Anand said there are new threats emerging on a “seemingly monthly” basis.

She spoke with reporters from CFB Trenton to make the announcement on Monday, but the details of specific spending commitments were not provided to media.

Anand said the precise breakdown of how the money will be spent is being finalized, and said it will focus on five specific areas.

Those will include a new northern approaches surveillance system, an Arctic over-the-horizon radar system for early warning radar coverage from the Canada-U.S. border to the Arctic Circle,

BC directs pharmacies to keep some types of baby formula behind counter The threat of a shortage of specialized infant formulas in British Columbia has prompted an order from the Ministry of Health to put the containers behind the counter.

The ministry says in a statement the guidelines to pharmacies will help preserve supply during the temporary Canada-wide shortage of hypoallergenic formulas.

The statement says manufacturers are distributing the specialized formulas for public purchase exclusively to pharmacies until more product is available.

There’s no shortage of regular infant formulas in B.C., but food for babies with allergies and certain medical conditions is in short supply.

The statement says families will generally be limited to a 10day to two-week supply unless they’re in remote communities or have other access issues.

The voluntary recall and temporary closure by the Abbott’s formula plant in Michigan created the shortage, but the facility opened again on June 4 and the statement says the formulas will gradually become more available.

Federal govt’s Trans Mountain pipeline purchase no longer projected to be profitable, PBO says The federal government-owned Trans Mountain Pipeline system is no longer a “profitable undertaking,” according to a report from the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) on Wednesday.

Ottawa purchased Canada’s only oil pipeline system from Alberta to the West Coast for $4.4 billion in 2018 from Kinder Morgan Canada. At the time, the company threatened to halt expansion due to environmental opposition. The construction project, now roughly half complete, would essentially twin the existing pipeline, raising output to 890,000 barrels per day.

Canada’s budgetary watchdog determined the project will result in a $600 million net loss, in its report on Wednesday. The PBO also examined scenarios where the expansion is stopped after June 2022 and cancelled indefinitely.

That would require Ottawa to write off over $14 billion in assets, the report said.

“The net impact would result in a significant financial loss for the Government, and would lead to the Trans Mountain Corporation no longer being a going concern,” the PBO wrote.

In its previous report on Trans Mountain released in December 2020 using the same methodology, the PBO estimated the project carried a net present value of $600 million. Since then, estimated construction costs for the pipeline expansion have surged from $12.6 billion to $21.4 billion.

The latest PBO analysis also pushes the completion date of the project by a year, to the end of 2023.

Adrienne Vaupshas, press secretary for Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, says assessments by BMO Capital Markets and TD Securities have confirmed the project remains commercially viable.

LOCAL / NATIONAL

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Finance minister Freeland defends budget after Scotiabank accuses feds of ‘doing nothing’ on inflation A cut in planned government spending could help tame rampant inflation and reduce pressure on the Bank of Canada to hike interest rates, according to a report from Scotiabank.

The report from the bank’s chief economist Jean-Francois Perrault and modelling director René Lalonde claims that Canadian fiscal policymakers are “doing nothing of any significance to slow inflation at the moment.”

The authors argue that cutting government spending will take some of the burden to cool inflation off of the Bank of Canada and the private sector.

Scotiabank’s analysis came as Canada’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland is met with the head of the U.S. Treasury Janet Yellen in Toronto on Monday to discuss cooperation between the nations and the global inflation concerns. affordable childcare policies, Yellen says U.S. ‘admires’ Canadian affordable childcare policies, Yellen says The report cites the Bank of Canada’s renewed mandate from December of last year, which said tackling inflation is a “joint responsibility” between the feds and the central bank.

Vancouver will see temperatures higher than 30°C this weekend Get your tank tops out — it’s about to get sweltering hot in Vancouver this weekend, with temperatures forecast to hit the low 30s.

Environment Canada has issued a special weather statement in anticipation of the first hot stretch of summer along the south coast.

This heat event will begin on Friday, with inland temperatures reaching the upper 20°C mark.

Through the weekend, all the way into Tuesday, temperatures above 30°C will heat up certain areas during the day, but you can expect cooler nights with temperatures in the mid teens.

The affected areas are: Metro Vancouver – central including the City of Vancouver Burnaby and New Westminster Metro Vancouver – North Shore including West Vancouver and North Vancouver Metro Vancouver – northeast including Coquitlam and Maple RidgeMetro Vancouver – southeast including Surrey and LangleyMetro Vancouver – southwest including Richmond and Delta Environment Canada says this could heighten the risk of heat-related illnesses.

Snowmelt will also lead to increased streamflows,andwaterrun-offispossible.

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Saturday, June 25, 2022

Varun Dhawan recollects memories of simpler life before stardom Varun Dhawan will be completing a whole decade of his journey in the Indian film industry. He has always been experimental with his roles and choices of scripts. Dhawan’s roles have been both intense as well as entertaining as he manages the audiences to both laugh and cry. Varun Dhawan recollects memories of a simpler life before stardom: “Mom once sent me to buy bread before I went to an awards night” In his recent interview with Cosmopolitan India, Varun got candid and reminisced about having a simple life, before

he had the taste of stardom. He pondered over an incident when his mother asked him to go buy bread when he was getting ready for an awards night. He said, “I went in my fancy suit to this place called Intop in Juhu and got her the bread. Secretly, I was really happy…

I prefer to do this any day. I’ll be honest.”

His latest, Jug Jug Jeeyo is set for a theatrical release on June 24th. He is currently on the go for the promotions of the film starring Varun, Kiara Advani, Anil Kapoor and Neetu Kapoor. Along with Jug Jug Jeeyo, Varun has some more movies in his kitty.

Jaya Prada is the new guest, dancer-actress in upcoming tv episodes The upcoming episode of Sony Entertainment’s kids reality show Superstar Singer 2 is all set to take the viewers on an emotional nostalgic rollercoaster ride with a ‘Jaya Prada Special’, honoring one of the reigning stars of the 70s – Jaya Prada, who will be joining the Judges panel as a special guest. Making it a musical extravaganza, the contestants will be seen performing on some of her iconic songs from her films which will leave everybody awestruck including the special guests. The cutest contestant of Superstar Singer 2, Samaira Mahajan will be performing along with Captain Sayili Kamble

on the song, ‘Parbat Ke Uss Paar’ (Sargam) and ‘Mujhe Nau Lakha Mangade’ (Sharaabi).

While the performance will surely win hearts and garner praises from all the judges as well as guest Jaya Prada, post her performance, Captain Sayli will be seen revealing a secret about Samaira. She reveals that she is a very shy girl but from the time she has come on Superstar Singer 2, she transformed into this confident girl who sings exceptionally. As a request to this, Captain Sayli asks Jaya Prada ji to teach Samaira a few of her dance steps from the famous song ‘Mujhe Nau Lakha Mangade’ in order to boost Samaira’s confidence further;

From page 1

Kapil Sharma in Vancouver

The comedian Kapil Sharma and his team is in Vancovuer to perform ‘The Kapil Sharma Show’ at PNE, today.

Kapil Sharma’s fame as a comedian is not restrained to India alone. The comedian’s name is known by his fans in the country and abroad. And, that’s why The Kapil Sharma Tour around the world is making quite some noise.

Currently, after the success of the third season of his comedy show The Kapil Sharma Show, the celebrity and his team have dived into a tour abroad.

Kapil’s last social media post showed us that he and his crew were en route to Canada.

His latest post is from the land of Vancouver, Canada. And, the photos are simply adding brightness to our day. In the photos shared by Kapil on Instagram, we see Krushna Abhishek, Kiku Sharda, Chandan Prabhakar, Rajiv Thakur and Sumona Chakravarti laughing their hearts out. The caption read, “Crew that laughs together stays together” and also included a heart emoji. What’s more? Kapil Sharma wrote that his ensemble was styled by none other than his wife Ginni Chatrath.

Take a look at the colourful carousel post

that Kapil Sharma shared on Instagram: Just a day before blasting us with photos from their Vancouver tour, Kapil Sharma shared a series of pictures that were clicked before leaving for Vancouver. Here, the team is dressed in their best travel attire. Kapil’s caption read, “Flying to Vancouver now.

Can’t wait to meet our lovely fans in Canada.”

Friends and fans flooded the comment section with best wishes for the trip ahead.

Kapil Sharma’s antics always leave us entertained. And, when the comedian is featured in a video alongside Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar, we know what’s waiting for us. In the clip, we see Kapil getting fidgety about an early morning

Five tips to know for your first camping trip

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For many Canadians, camping has become one of the most popular ways to travel in recent years. It’s inexpensive, offers quality time with friends and family and is the perfect way to get outdoors. Investing in the right supplies can make your camping experience amazing, with happy memories for years to come.

Here are some tips from Coleman Canada to make sure you’re prepared for a perfect escape: 1.

Pick the perfect tent W h e n choosing the tent size, divide the tent rating in half to get the best fit. For example, if two people will be sleeping in the tent, choose one that is rated for four people. This will give you enough space to sleep comfortably and store your gear.

Invest in a quality tent that can also protect you from all kinds of weather.

The Coleman® PEAK1™ collection is outfitted with the WeatherTec™ Plus system, which helps keep water out and withstand winds up to 45mph.

2.

Bring separate coolers for drinks and food Most coolers are opened frequently throughout the day to get out drinks.

By separating your food from your drinks, you can reduce the number of times the cooler with your food in it is opened, which keeps food freshers and reduces how quickly your ice will melt.

A high-performance cooler is a smart one-time investment that will last for years. The Coleman® Convoy™ Chest Cooler has a TempLock™ FX fully insulated lid, body and heavy-duty latch that will make sure your food

or drink stays cool for a long time.

If you’re going on a day trip, a soft, portable cooler is a great option. The Coleman® Sportflex™ Soft Cooler has 4Way stretch front and side pockets to easily fit your phone and keys with room to spare.

3.

Illuminateyourtent A quality camping lantern is an outdoor essential. It’s great for nightly camp games, sets the right outdoor ambiance and is key for making two-handed tasks easier in the dark.Coleman® Classic Recharge Lantern has a rechargeable battery and a durable, impact-resistant design meaning it will be a reliable light source your whole camping trip.

4. Keep in mind comfortable sleeping Everyone has different comfort levels.

There are cots, air mattresses and a wide variety of sleeping bags you can choose from for your best sleep.

When it comes to airbeds, look for one with built-in pumps that inflates quickly and will not leak, such as The Coleman® rechargeable SupportRest™ queen sized bed.

5.

Be prepared with a stove Many campers rely on cooking all their food on the campfire, however, once it rains and the wood is too wet, they are unable to start a fire and cook their meals. Be sure to pack a camp stove in case of rain or a fire ban. The Coleman® RoadTrip™ Griddle offers maximum portability and easy cleaning.

Visit ColemanCanada.ca for more camping tips.

Star & Style

Saturday, June 25, 2022

Kishore Kumar August 4, 1929 - 13 October 1987 One of the greatest singer of Indiam cinema Kishore Kumar was as born Abhas Kumar Ganguly on August 4, 1929 in Khandwa. He was one of the best playback singers and actor of Indian cimema. He is aslo regarded as one of the greatest and most dynamic singers in the history of Indian music.He was one of the most popular singers in the Indian film industry, notable for his yodeling and ability to sing songs in different voices.Kishore Kumar used to sing in different genres but some of his rare compositions which were considered classics were lost in time.’ According to his brother Ashok Kumar, Kumar’s success came because his voice hit the microphone straight at its most sensitive point.

Apart from Hindi, he sang in many Indian languages including Bengali, Marathi, Assamese, Gujarati, Kannada, Bhojpuri, Malayalam, Odia, Urdu etc.[19] He also released a few non-film albums in multiple languages especially in Bengali which are noted as all-time classics.[20] He won 8 Filmfare Awards for Best Male Playback Singer and holds the record for winning the most Filmfare Awards in that category.

He was awarded the Lata Mangeshkar Award by the Madhya Pradesh government in 1985–86.

In 1997, the Madhya Pradesh Government initiated an award

called the “Kishore Kumar Award” for contributions to Hindi cinema.

In 2012 Kumar’s unreleased last song sold for Rs 1,560,000 at the Osian’s Cinefan Auction in New Delhi.

After Ashok Kumar became a star of Hindi films, the Ganguly family visited Bombay (now Mumbai) regularly. Abhas Kumar changed his name to ‘Kishore Kumar’ and started his cinema career as a chorus singer at Bombay Talkies, where his brother worked. Music director Khemchand Prakash gave Kumar a chance to sing “Marne Ki Duayen Kyon Mangu” for the film Ziddi (1948). After this, Kumar was offered many other assignments, but he was not very serious about a film career. In 1949, he settled in Bombay.

During the initial stage of his career, Kumar was deeply inspired by singer K. L. Saigal and imitated his style of singing in some of his early films but later evolved his own, unique style.He had a great respect for poet and musician Rabindranath Tagore who influenced him in many ways.

He was an ardent admirer of Hollywood actor-singer Danny Kaye. He hung the portraits of all these three personalities at his Gouri Kun residence and would bow respectfully before them everyday as a rule.

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Deepika to make special appearance in Shah Rukh Khan’s Jawan Deepika Padukone, who is busy shooting for Project K with Prabhas, has amazing movie line-ups such as Pathaan with Shah Rukh Khan and John Abraham and Fighter with Hrithik Roshan.

Now, the latest update suggests that she might make a brief appearance in Atlee’s Jawan, starring Shah Rukh Khan and Nayanthara. According to a report in Pinkvilla, the actress has agreed to make a special appearance in the film. The report added that Shah Rukh and Atlee met the actress in Hyderabad and discussed the shoot dates.

“Deepika has been in talks with SRK and Atlee for a while now and she is poised to make a short yet important appearance in the film.

She has agreed in principle though the paperwork still remains,” Pinkvilla quoted a source saying.

In the report, the source added, “Deepika was shooting for her ambitious film, Project K in Hyderabad. Shah Rukh Khan and Atlee met the actress and even discussed the dynamics of her character as also the shoot dates. Everything should be on paper in a fortnight”

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Saturday, June 25, 2022

Concrete strike in Metro Vancouver threatens construction industry A month-long labour dispute is hitting the foundation of Metro Vancouver’s construction industry.

A strike by nearly 300 workers has shut down 12 concrete operations, slashing the supply of concrete and stalling many projects.

The Homebuilders Association Vancouver said large commercial and industrial projects are taking precedence for deliveries of what little supply remains available, leaving the small and medium residential builders in a quandary.

“Members are telling me the larger concrete suppliers have advised them to not break ground on any projects planned with concrete foundations, estimating the strike could push on through September or October,” Ron Rapp, CEO of the homebuilders association, said in a release.

“Recognizing our members build 65 per

cent of Metro Vancouver’s homes, cancelled projects can add up quickly, with grave impact on the ability to deliver our regions (that) desperately needed housing.” Larry Clay, a homebuilder in Metro Vancouver and a previous board member of the homebuilders association, has three houses ready to be built right now.

“We’re not getting any concrete,” he said. “The ripple effect is huge because my foundation contractors – I have no forms, dampproofing services, backfill. My excavation contractor can’t dig the next two, the framer’s not coming, we’re not delivering lumber and windows and the ripple effect is huge. It’s affecting so many people.”

Clay said the homebuilders association is not taking sides but said both parties need to get back to the bargaining table and resolve the issue.

City of Surrey approves Fleetwood Plan of adding up to 100,000 more residents near future SkyTrain The processes of reviewing area land use plans around future SkyTrain extensions in the City of Surrey and the City of Vancouver could not be more different. While much controversy surrounds the highly dramatic and protracted process of reviewing the City of Vancouver’s Broadway Plan centred around the Millennium Line Broadway Extension, the City of Surrey recently approved a pivotal step in its own area plan process with little to no wrangling — to the extent that it essentially flew under the regional radar if it were to be compared with its counterpart.

After almost exactly two years of planning and public consultation, Surrey

City Council has approved Stage 1 of the Fleetwood Plan, which densifies the Fleetwood neighbourhood around the area’s three future SkyTrain stations at 152 Street, 160 Street, and 166 Street — part of the forthcoming Expo Line extension along Fraser Highway to Langley Centre. The planning area for the Fleetwood Plan spans over 2,200 acres along the Fraser Highway and future SkyTrain corridor.

Over the next 30 years, the Fleetwood Plan will catalyze at least a doubling in the number of homes — from 13,000 units today with 40,000 residents to 28,000 units

BC landlords big and small dread ‘knockout punch’ of potential rent increase cap With the B.C. government telling CityNews it will consider capping the allowable rent increase for 2023 at a rate below inflation, landlords big and small are voicing their concerns.

Jon Stovell is the president of Reliance Properties and the chair of the Urban Development Institute.

He calls the prospect of the formula changing to an allowable increase lower than the Consumer Price Index a “knockout punch.”

He points out the development industry is facing headwinds as it is, between rising

interest rates costs — even formula for “We know

and surging construction without a more restrictive allowable rent increases. there’s a dire shortage of rental housing in the Lower Mainland and south Vancouver Island,” Stovell told CityNews.

“The vacancy rate is probably well under two per cent and rents have been going up. The provincial government and Minister [David] Eby, the housing minister, has been very vocal on the need and the urgency to have additional rental housing built, and full recognition

Canada needs ‘all hands on deck’ to fill housing supply gap: CMHC Canada’s current pace of homebuilding will see the country face a gap of 3.5 million units by 2030, falling well short of the bar for housing affordability, according to a new report.

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC) published its latest analysis on Canada’s housing stock challenges Thursday.

The agency projects that Canada will add an additional 2.1 million housing units between 2021 and 2030, hitting a total stock of 19 million homes nationally.

But that will be well short of enough

units to make housing affordable for all Canadians, the CMHC said. It projects Canada will need well over 22 million units by that time to put affordable roofs over the heads of the growing population.

Canada’s construction industry would have to more-than double its expected pace of building over that timeframe.

“Canada’s approach to housing supply needs to be rethought,” the report states.

“The evidence has been mounting for many years that the housing supply system is broken in many parts of Canada.”

The CMHC notes, however, that

Saturday, June 25, 2022

Real estate sector ‘highly vulnerable’ to money laundering: OREA This week, the Cullen Commission investigating money laundering in British Columbia found that “real estate presents enormous money laundering vulnerabilities” and found gaps in provincial real estate legislation that put employees of developers and “For Sale By Owner” (FSBO) operators outside reporting requirements aimed at identifying suspicious transactions, according to the Ontario Real Estate Association.

(OREA). “As Ontario continues to struggle with a housing affordability crisis, the Ontario Real Estate Association is calling

on policy makers to get criminal money laundering out of the real estate market so young families aren’t competing with corrupt officials and drug dealers when looking for their dream home,” says a news release.

“There are concerns about unlicensed so-called real estate consultants and FSBO companies who are currently operating outside of consumer protection oversight, hiding behind numbered companies to conceal criminal activities. OREA agrees with B.C. Supreme Court Justice Austin Cullen’s

Real Estate

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Nearly half of Canadian renters will stay tenants indefinitely: survey Almost half of Canadians who rent say they will continue to do so indefinitely and aren’t sure when they’ll be able to get into the housing market, says a new survey.

Renters surveyed by insurance firm Canada Life cited a lack of cash, fear and uncertainty as reasons for staying on the sidelines, with almost 73 per cent saying it’s a bad time to buy a house and 17 per cent saying they’ll never buy one.

Ninety-one per cent of renters surveyed believe buying a home is getting harder

every year, and 89 per cent expect the next generation to have an even harder time getting into the housing market.

A new survey finds almost half of Canadian who rent will continue to do so indefinitely and aren’t sure when they’ll be able to get into the housing market.

While 79 per cent of respondents believe homeownership is a good investment, 64 per cent don’t think they’ll be able to buy a house unless they have financial support from others like family members.

Sellers are rapidly “losing their grip” on BC housing market: RBC Is the BC housing market in full-blown cooling mode like the rest of Canada?

That’s what a new report by RBC seems to suggest even though market activity remained high over the month of May. Home resales fell for a third consecutive month in May as they were done 8.6% compared to April. The RBC

report also states that home prices are softening, primarily in BC and Ontario, but that there are also signs that the housing market is weakening in Alberta.

RBC thinks that this could signal a broad-based property depreciation in the period ahead.

Home resales slipped below 512,000 units in May, which was a first since 525,000 units were resold in February 2020.

Sellers are “losing their grip” in BC “The starkest developments are taking place in Ontario and British Columbia where sellers are rapidly losing their (previously strong) grip on the market —

although demand-supply conditions aren’t putting buyers in the driver’s seat quite yet,” said Robert Hogue, assistant chief economist at RBC, in a recently-published report.

While demand is cooling, more properties are being added to the market.

The report states that new listings rose 4.5% month-over-month in Canada last month.

Monthly payments on variable-rate mortgages may push up as borrowers near their ‘trigger rate’ An obscure feature of variable-rate mortgages may push up the monthly payments for an increasing number of borrowers.

Some Canadians who took out mortgages in 2020-21 could see their monthly payments jump by as much as 45% in 2025-26, given rising rates, according to a Bank of Canada scenario released.

Elevated levels of inflation - which is

currently at a 31-year-high - could also mean that households allocate more of their income to food and gas if wage increases do not keep pace, the central bank said in its annual financial system review.

“In this context, highly indebted households are especially vulnerable to a loss of income,” it said.

The bank increased rates by 50-basis-

points in April and June and money markets are betting on another half point rise in July.

Canadians with a high loan-to-income ratio variable rate mortgages would see payments rise by 45% in 2025-26 upon renewal. The overall increase in monthly payments for all types of mortgages originating in 2020-21 would be 30%.

The scenario focused on mortgages

#106 - 7565 132 St. Surrey, BC 604.572.3005

with a five-year term taken out at banks in 2020-21, when rates were at record lows. It assumed variable- and fixed-rate mortgages would renew at median rates of 4.4% and 4.5% respectively in 2025-26.

“These households will see the largest rate increase because they took out a mortgage when rates were at or near record lows.

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Saturday, June 25, 2022

LOCAL / NATIONAL

Saturday, June 25, 2022

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Eknath Shinde our leader, group of 37 rebel MLAs tells deputy speaker Rebel Shiv Sena MLAs of wrote to Deputy Speaker of Maharashtra Assembly Narhari Zirwal regarding the reaffirmation of the appointment of Eknath Shinde as the leader of the Shiv Sena Legislature Party. The letter was signed by 37 rebel MLAs. In the letter, it was mentioned that Shinde was appointed as group leader of the Shiv Sena Legislature Party on October 31, 2019. The rebel

China and India’s “common interests far outweigh differences”, and the two countries should put the differences on the border in its appropriate place and seek to resolve the dispute through dialogue and consultation, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi has said Indian Ambassador to China Pradeep Kumar Rawat meets Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, at Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing on Wednesday. Indian Ambassador to China Pradeep Kumar Rawat meets Chinese

MLAs said that there was a prepoll alliance between Shiv Sena and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2019.

“There is enormous discontent amongst the cadre of our party viz.

Shiv Sena for the government with NCP and Indian National Congress who are ideologically opposed to our party,” the rebel MLAs said in the letter. They also accused the state government of corruption.

Earlier in the day, Shinde said that norms for disqualification are meant for legislative business and do not apply to party meetings. He tweeted, “We know your ways and the law too! According to Schedule 10 of the Constitution, the whip is used for assembly work, not for meetings.”

Also Read: Maharashtra political crisis LIVE: 3 more Sena MLAs join rebel camp; Shiv Sena files petition demanding disqualification of 12 MLAs

Common interests with India far outweigh differences, says China Foreign Minister Wang Yi, at Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing on Wednesday outweigh differences”, and the two countries should put the differences on the border in its appropriate place and seek to resolve the dispute through dialogue and consultation, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi has said.

At his first meeting with Indian ambassador Pradeep Kumar Rawat, who was appointed as India’s envoy to China in March, in Beijing

on Wednesday, Wang recalled the consensus reached between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping over multiple meetings, especially the two informal summits in Wuhan (2018) and Chennai (2019), that the two countries are partners and not competitors, saying the two sides should support rather than undermine each other and enhance trust rather than be suspicious.

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On his part, Rawat “emphasised the criticality of maintenance of peace and tranquility in the border areas for realising the full potential of this consensus,” according to a statement from the Indian embassy on the meeting.

Wang’s meeting with Rawat ahead of the 14th Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) summit – which is being hosted online

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The rebel MLAs are staying in a hotel in Assam’s Guwahati. The political crisis for the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in Maharashtra deepened further after Shinde released videos and photographs claiming that he has the support of 41 MLAs. Notably, the number of dissident MLAs camping at the luxury Radisson Blu hotel rose to 44, including Independents.

Meanwhile, the NCP and the Congress extended support to Uddhav Thackeray.

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Russian oil tankers get India safety cover via Dubai company

HC notice to Telangana govt on land allotment for TRS office The Telangana high court on Thursday ordered issuance of notices to some senior officials of the state government on a petition against allotment of land to the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) for setting up its office in Hyderabad.

A retired employee, who filed the PIL, challenged the allotment of government land measuring 4,935 square yards in posh Banjara Hills locality to the TRS for construction of its Hyderabad district office.

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Certification by the Indian Register of Shipping provides a final link in the paperwork chain needed to keep Sovcomflot’s tanker fleet afloat and delivering Russian crude oil to overseas markets India is providing safety certification for dozens of ships managed by a Dubai subsidiary of top Russian shipping group Sovcomflot, official data showed, enabling oil exports to India and elsewhere after Western certifiers withdrew their services

due to global sanctions against Moscow.

Certification by the Indian Register of Shipping (IRClass), one of the world’s top classification companies, provides a final link in the paperwork chain – after insurance coverage – needed to keep state-owned Sovcomflot’s tanker fleet afloat and delivering Russian crude oil to overseas markets.

Data compiled from the IRClass website shows that it has certified more than 80 ships managed by SCF Management Services

Emotional cadre rallies behind Uddhav Thackeray At 8 pm on 22 June, crowds outside a private bungalow in suburban Mumbai swelled as scores of angry and emotional Shiv Sainiks lined up outside the residence of party supremo Uddhav Thackeray.

The Thackerays – Uddhav, his wife Rashmi, and son Aaditya – were on their way back to the family house ‘Matoshree’ after vacating the official CM bungalow, ‘Varsha’.

The development came on the heels of Shiv Sena MLA and Maharashtra cabinet minister Eknath Shinde along with at

least 30 other MLAs staging a rebellion demanding the Sena to quit the ruling NCP-Congress alliance and join hands with BJP – Sena’s former partner in the state.

When the family cavalcade reached Bandra at around 9 pm, slogans of ‘Uddhav tum aage badho, hum tumhare saath hain’ (March on, Uddhav! We are with you), ‘Uddhav saheb angaar hain, baaki sab bhangaar hain’ (Uddhav is fire, every body else is lacklustre) and songs comparing the Sena chief with Lord Vitthal, Lord Ram,

Maharashtra, Parties begin preparation for floor, legal tests The only way to prove that the ruling Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) is a minority government is on the floor of the state assembly, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar said on Thursday — a statement that comes at a time when the government faces its worst crisis with a faction of rebel Shiv Sena legislators looking to break away from the coalition and ally with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Legal experts told HT that a floor test now seemed inevitable unless Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray resigned as chief minister of his own accord. And leaders on the ground said that both the Eknath Shinde-led rebel camp (assisted by the BJP), and the NCP-Congress-Sena combine have started preparing for it. The last time a floor test was conducted in Maharashtra was in 1978, when Sharad Pawar split the Congress and formed the government with Janata Party. Pawar was then successful in proving his majority in the House, and went on to become the youngest chief minister of the state.

Saturday, June 25, 2022

India has really helped us during this crisis: Sri Lanka PM Ranil Wickremesinghe India has “really helped” Sri Lanka in its efforts to cope with the island’s economic crash, the island nation’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said, however observing that aid coming in from different sources has put Sri Lanka “in the middle of geopolitics”.

I go measure by measure. I want the Opposition and the government to work together. Forget about the differences.

We can always go back to the principle

of the Second World War in the U.K. The leadership of the Opposition was kept in the Labour Party. They could nominate who they want. And at the same time, their members were free to serve in the Cabinet of Winston Churchill. So we can do the same, we can go ahead with the same practice. It is a crisis, you do not require something new. The main Opposition party then has the advantage of being in opposition and being in the government. But to get the country out of

Digital Economy to reach $1 Trillion by 2025 PM Narendra Modi Narendra Modi, on Wednesday, said that the Indian economy is expected to grow by 7.5 per cent this year, which will make it the fastest growing major economy. He also highlighted the growth of digital economy and said that its value will reach $1 trillion by 2025 and that the government is supporting innovation in every sector. Prime Minister mentioned that there are investment opportunities to the tune of $1.5 trillion under the country’s national infrastructure pipeline. Modi was speaking in a virtual address at the opening ceremony of BRICS Business Forum.

“In order to deal with the economic problems arising out of the pandemic

in India, we have adopted the mantra of ‘reform, perform and transform’. And the results of this approach are evident from the performance of the Indian economy. This year we are expecting 7.5 per cent growth, which makes us the fastest growing major economy.

Transformative changes are taking place in every sector in the emerging new India,” Modi said.

Stating the fact that the key pillar of India’s current economic recovery is technology-led growth, Modi also pointed out that the government has made innovation-friendly policies in many areas

INDIA

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India re-establishes diplomatic presence in Afghanistan, deploys technical team India’s technical team reached Kabul on Thursday and was deployed at the embassy to “closely monitor and coordinate the efforts of various stakeholders for the effective delivery of humanitarian assistance India on Thursday re-established a diplomatic presence in Afghanistan, from where it withdrew all its officials following the Taliban takeover in August last year, with the deployment of a “technical team” at the embassy in Kabul.

Following the shuttering of Indian consulates in Herat, Kandahar, Jalalabad and Mazar-e-Sharif, India pulled out all its officials and security personnel from Kabul after the fall of the Ashraf Ghani government, largely on account

of security concerns. Recent contacts with the Taliban – both behind the scenes and formal meetings – paved the way for the return of Indian officials to Kabul.

The technical team reached Kabul on Thursday and was deployed at the embassy to “closely monitor and coordinate the efforts of various stakeholders for the effective delivery of humanitarian assistance and in continuation of our engagement with the Afghan people”, the external affairs ministry said in a statement.

The statement positioned the reestablishment of India’s diplomatic presence in the context of the country’s “historical and civilisational relationship with the Afghan people” – thereby implying that the move did not amount to any sort of recognition of the Taliban setup in Kabul.

Ayodhya temple donation cheques worth Rs 22 crore bounce The donation campaign, which was spearheaded by Shree Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra Trust and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) towards the construction of the Ram temple on Shree Ram Janmabhoomi premises, has led to the coffers of the temple trust brimming with Rs 5457.94 crore but the tentative report of the team monitoring the donation campaign at the all-India level has claimed that the cheques worth Rs 22 crore of the corpus have bounced.

On the other, the figure of the total amount collected so far is tentative as a district-wise audit of the trust accounts is

going on. As per the trust sources, a new audit report was being prepared separating the cheques which were bounced.

Moreover, each bounced cheques is being examined to ascertain the reason for which it got bounced. “The cheques which were bounced due to technical reasons would be represented again after taking the consent of the bank concerned,” said a member of the trust.

It may be recalled that a 44-day fundraising campaign was launched by the temple trust and the VHP on January 14, 2021. The initial campaign had resulted in the collection of Rs 2100 crore at

Winning IPL digital rights is helping Asia’s richest man in more than one way Reliance Industries Limited recently paid a hefty premium to acquire the digital rights for the Indian Premier League (IPL), the biggest Twenty20 cricket tournament in India, for its subsidiary Viacom18. While many may assume that the move is linked to Mukesh Ambani’s ambition of making its OTT platform

Voot a relentless competitor to other major players like Disney+ Hotstar, there is definitely more to this deal than meets the eye.

According to research firms Bank of America (BofA) and CLSA, the IPL digital rights may also have a positive impact on Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance’s telecom offering and its content

If Droupadi Murmu becomes India’s next President, she will create history On June 21, Bharatiya Janata Party-led (BJP) National Democratic Alliance (NDA) announced former Governor of Jharkhand Droupadi Murmu’s name as its Presidential candidate for the upcoming elections scheduled for July 18, 2022.

Before the announcement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi headed a BJP Parliamentary Board meeting. BJP Chief JP Nadda announced Murmu’s candidature in a press conference following the board meeting.

She will file her nomination on June 25.

Speaking to ANI after the announcement, she said, “I’m surprised. I wasn’t able to

believe it. I’m thankful, do not wish to speak much. Whatever powers are there of a President in the Constitution, I’ll work accordingly.” She added, “Our work is to go to people, reach out to members of Electoral College and seek their cooperation. I will request all parties and states for support.”

On Wednesday morning, she visited Shiva Temple in Rairangpur and performed seva by sweeping the floor before offering prayers to Bhagwan Shiva. Earlier, she offered prayers at Rairangpur Jagannath Temple and visited a tribal worship place called ‘Jahira’.

As per reports, she has been provided

Why Eknath Shinde, rebel Shiv Sena MLAs are in Assam?

From the very start, the Maha Vikas Aghadi or MVA government in Maharashtra was an illcobbled coalition of disparate and antithetical elements, arraying the “secular” Congress and NCP with the “pro-Hindutva” Shiv Sena. Things were expected to come to a head, given the constant pressure from the BJP and its combative former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis.

Now that they have, the BJP’s plot too seems to be unfolding though its leaders

have remained tight-lipped about the entire MVA crisis, only underlying their “personal relations” with Eknath Shinde, their former colleague in the BJP government in Maharashtra.

First, the rebel Shiv Sena MLAs were herded to Gujarat by their good shepherd Shinde, but today suddenly, a chartered flight took all of them to Assam, a first in Indian political history when the northeast has come to play the centre for the otherwise considered centre of political hotbed.

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Saturday, June 25, 2022

Punjab Punjab cadre senior IPS officer Dinkar Gupta appointed NIA chief The Central Government on Thursday issued an order appointing senior IPS officer of Punjab cadre Dinkar Gupta as the new Director-General of the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

Gupta is a 1987-batch IPS officer.

In an order, the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) said, “The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved Gupta’s appointment as the Director-General, NIA, till March 31,

2024, that is the date of his retirement or till further orders whichever takes place earlier.”

Gupta was removed as Director-General of Police (DGP), Punjab, by the thenCongress Government led by Charanjit Singh Channi in October last year and was posted as Chairman of the Punjab Police Housing Corporation (PPHC). Gupta had then decided to go on a month’s leave after Channi took over as Chief Minister and the state government gave the charge to

Planning to kill Sidhu Moosewala began in August last year, says Anti-Gangster Task Force chief Gangster Lawrence Bishnoi has admitted that he was the mastermind in Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala’s killing and was planning it since last August, Punjab Police ADGP Pramod Ban said on Thursday.

Ban, who is also the head of the AntiGangster Task Force, said another accused, Baldev alias Nikku, was arrested on Thursday.

Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, also

known as Sidhu Moosewala, was shot dead in Punjab’s Mansa district on May 29, a day after the Punjab Government pruned the security cover of the singer and 423 people temporarily.

“We had recently arrested Lawrence Bishnoi in the case and his remand was extended till June 27. He has admitted that he was the mastermind

Punjab cadre senior IPS officer Dinkar Gupta appointed NIA chief The Central Government on Thursday issued an order appointing senior IPS officer of Punjab cadre Dinkar Gupta as the new Director-General of the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

Gupta is a 1987-batch IPS officer.

In an order, the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) said, “The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet

has approved Gupta’s appointment as the Director-General, NIA, till March 31, 2024, that is the date of his retirement or till further orders whichever takes place earlier.”

Gupta was removed as Director-General of Police (DGP), Punjab, by the thenCongress Government led by Charanjit Singh Channi in October last year and was posted as Chairman of the Punjab Police

Pakistan Pakistan signs $2.3 billion loan agreement with China Pakistan signed $2.3 billion (15 billion yuan) loan facility agreement with Chinese consortium of banks to help the country’s cash-strapped economy in the wake of depleting foreign exchange reserves and depreciation of its local currency.

Pakistan Finance Minister Miftah Ismail in a tweet said that the “Chinese consortium

of banks has today (Wednesday) signed the RMB 15 billion ($2.3 billion) loan facility agreement after it was signed by the Pakistani side yesterday (Tuesday)”.

Thanking the Chinese government for “facilitating this transaction”, Ismail said the “inflow was expected within a couple of days”.

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-

Pakistan may cede Gilgit Baltistan to Chia to pay off debts: Report A report has said that Pakistan may cede Gilgit Baltistan to China on lease to pay off its mounting debt.

Mumtaz Nagri, the chairman of the Karakoram National Movement expressed fear that the isolated Gilgit Baltistan , a Pakistan occupied Kashmir region could become a future battleground for the world powers to compete a report in the Al Arabiya Post said. The ceding of Gilgit Baltistan which Pakistan illegally occupies would be a boon for China’s expansion plans. It

would like the region as it is on the trail of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Pakistan would however benefit greatly with such a deal as it faces a terrible economic crisis.

This move would earn Pakistan a hefty lease of money and help it tide over the economic crisis. This would however be a calculated risk for Pakistan as it risks angering the United States and could be denied the $3 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

1,000 killed, 1,500 injured in earthquake near Pak-Afghan border A powerful earthquake struck rural, mountainous region of eastern Afghanistan early on Wednesday, killing 1,000 people and injuring 1,500 more in one of the deadliest earthquakes in decades, the state-run news agency reported. Officials warned that the already grim toll may still rise. Information remained scarce on the magnitude 6.1 temblor near the Pakistani border, but quakes of that

strength can cause serious damage in an area where homes and other buildings are poorly constructed and landslides are common.

Experts put the depth at just 10 km — another factor that could lead to severe destruction.

Rescuers rushed to the area by helicopter on Wednesday, but the response is likely to be complicated since many international aid agencies left Afghanistan after Taliban.

Pakistan following Sri Lanka’s path to land in Chinese debt trap: Report Pakistan is blindly following Sri Lanka’s path which will lead the country to fall into the Chinese debt trap.

Pakistan’s already fragile economy

suffered another setback when recently China demanded repayment, by November 2023, of USD 55.6 million for the Lahore Orange Line Project, reported Italian publication Osservatorio Globalizzazione.

FIJI Immediate action required as children scavenge for scrap metal – FCOSS Calls are now being made for authorities to take immediate action regarding the issue of food poverty after Fiji Council of Social Services Executive Director Vani Catanasiga stated that some children are scavenging for scrap metal in dump sites while others are selling food near supermarkets to

put food on the table for their families.

Meanwhile, National Federation Party MP, Lenora Qereqeretabua says any government or leader, with an iota of conscience, will never shirk its basic commitment to the people, which is to ensure no one person is hungry for a day.

Seized in Fiji, Russian superyacht flies American flag A Russian-owned superyacht seized by the United States has arrived in Honolulu Harbour flying an American flag.

The US won a legal battle in Fiji to take the US$325 million (NZ$513 million) vessel and immediately sailed it to Hawaii.

The FBI has linked the Amadea to the Russian oligarch Suleiman Kerimov.

The US said Kerimov secretly bought the Cayman Island-flagged vessel last year through various shell companies.

The ship became a target of Task Force KleptoCapture, launched in March to seize the assets of Russian oligarchs to put pressure on Russia to end the war in Ukraine.

Simran Prasad represents Fiji in Miss India Worldwide Pageant Actor from Levuka, Shayal Simran Prasad is representing Fiji in the Miss India Worldwide Pageant currently underway in the United States.

While speaking to fijivillage, Prasad says people close to her encouraged her to take part in the pageant, including her mother who made sure she

does not miss this huge opportunity.

The 23 year old says her journey has been awesome so far where she is trying to keep up with the politics, everything around the world, trying to balance school work, her vacation and preparation as well.

Fiji adopts nuclear treaty The cost of producing nuclear weapons is keeping resources away from addressing issues that matter like climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic and global food shortage.

This was the view expressed by Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama during the

first Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapon.

Fiji joined over 86 states to adopt a treaty on the prohibition of nuclear weapons and take the first step back from the knife edge of Armageddon.

Mr Bainimarama said they would work

22

Saturday, June 25, 2022

Affordability out of reach under NDP housing plan BC Liberal Housing Critic Mike Bernier released the following statement on the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s (CMHC) new report on housing supply: “Today’s report highlights the critical lack of housing supply in B.C. According to CMHC, B.C. will need to build 570,000 additional homes by 2030 to deliver any sort of affordability to the housing market — far more than the NDP’s promise of 114,000 affordable homes.

“Even if the NDP were on track to meet their housing goal, they would still be nowhere close to reaching the benchmark of affordability set by the CMHC. And inexcusably, the NDP have fallen far behind when it comes to building needed new homes.

“The NDP should be nearly halfway through their 10-year plan by this point,

but they have barely scratched the surface.

According to Housing Minister David Eby, the NDP’s flagship Building BC housing plan has only opened 7,219 units.

“Housing has never been less affordable in B.C., and unless this NDP government gets serious about working with the private sector to get more homes built across the province, affordability will continue to worsen.

“Dramatic and decisive action is required to increase housing supply. If Premier John Horgan was serious about cancelling his billion-dollar vanity museum project, he would invest funding into the issues that truly matter to people, including affordability, and immediately get to work building the homes British Columbians desperately need.”

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