National

Vancouver Coast Guard Base Shuttered By Conservative Government To Re-Open

The Canadian Press, 16 Dec, 2015 01:16 PM

VANCOUVER — A Vancouver coast guard base shuttered amid controversy by the former Conservative government will be re-opening.

Fisheries Minister Hunter Tootoo announced the news alongside B.C. Premier Christy Clark and Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson while outside the former Kitsilano coast guard base.

B.C. Premier Christy Clark says the closure of the station was a mistake and she is delighted that the new federal government has reversed the decision for the safety of those who use the harbour.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made an election campaign promise to re-open the base, which he reaffirmed in a mandate letter to Tootoo last month.

The closure of the station in 2013 as a cost-cutting measure was loudly criticized at the time and again when a grain ship spilled 2,800 litres of bunker fuel into Vancouver's harbour last April.

The coast guard faced heavy criticism for its response to the incident after it took 12 hours to install an oil-absorbing boom around the ship and to notify the city.

Prev Next

MORE National ARTICLES

Parliament's Opening Debate Sees Sparks Fly Between Liberals, Conservatives

OTTAWA — The promised new era of civility in Parliament is sounding a lot like a rehash of the federal election campaign.

Parliament's Opening Debate Sees Sparks Fly Between Liberals, Conservatives

Ontario Passes Patch-For-Patch Law To Combat Abuse Of Powerful Opiate Fentanyl

TORONTO — The Ontario legislature has passed a private member's bill aimed at combating abuse of the pain killer fentanyl, which is blamed for at least 655 deaths in Canada in the past six years.

Ontario Passes Patch-For-Patch Law To Combat Abuse Of Powerful Opiate Fentanyl

Calgary Faces Both Uncertainty And Opportunity In 2016 After Oil Price Plunge

Home prices are down, unemployment is up, food bank usage is climbing, and no one knows when things might turn around with oil below US$40 a barrel on Monday from highs of well over US$100 less than two years ago.

Calgary Faces Both Uncertainty And Opportunity In 2016 After Oil Price Plunge

Employers To Be Banned From Taking Employees' Tips In Ontario

TORONTO — The Ontario legislature is expected to pass a bill this afternoon that will make it illegal for employers to take a share of servers' tips.

Employers To Be Banned From Taking Employees' Tips In Ontario

Liberals To Proceed With Tax Cut For Middle Earners, Higher Rate For Richest

The government will introduce a motion today in Parliament that will slash the income-tax rate on Canadians earning between $44,700 and $89,401 per year.

Liberals To Proceed With Tax Cut For Middle Earners, Higher Rate For Richest

Flooding Prompts B.C. First Nation Community To Declare State Of Emergency

PORT ALBERNI, B.C. — A First Nations community on Vancouver Island has declared a state of emergency as rising water levels threaten to flood as many as two dozen homes.