Ontario to ban use of cellphones in school classrooms starting in September
Ontario is introducing a suite of measures that will crack down on cellphone use and vaping in schools.
Canada has been named one of the 50 places in the world to retire, according to a report from a European travel website.
The list was recently compiled by Enjoy Travel, a U.K.-based car rental rate comparison site, taking into account a variety of priorities for retirees, including those trying to retire early.
To determine the rankings, Enjoy Travel analyzed the factors like cost of living, quality of life, ease of getting a visa or residency permit, and the costs of entertainment and rent. Good weather, health care, hospitality and language barriers for English speakers were also part of the analysis.
Canada ranked 22 in the world, thanks to what Enjoy Travel called easy access to visas and residency permits and high quality of living.
Recently released census data shows immigrants made up nearly a quarter of all people living in Canada in 2021, and are projected to represent a third of the population in 20 years.
The proportion of immigrants is the largest it's ever been in Canada, and the highest among G7 countries.
But Canada wasn't in the top 10, or even the top 20, based on one factor: cost of living.
Specifically, the report warned of the costs associated with rent and eating at restaurants, saying the prices for both are at the higher than in many of the other top 50 countries.
According to the most recent National Rent Report from Rentals.ca, the price for rental housing in Canada was up 15.4 per cent year over year in September, hitting an average of $2,043 for all home types. It's the highest year-over-year increase in the average rent since April 2019, according to the report.
Countries that fared better than Canada in the ranking include Slovenia, which managed to score the first spot because of its low cost of living, high quality of life, low visa and residency permit barriers and mild temperatures, and because English is widely spoken.
Portugal came second thanks to affordability, “extremely” high quality of life and access to a range of visas and residency permits. The report also praised its "sunny climate, excellent restaurants and laid-back culture."
Following Portugal, Estonia ranked third. Low living costs, high quality of life, easy access to visas and residency permits and English being widely spoken are cited as the biggest factors for Estonia, as well as cleanliness and safety.
Noticeably absent from this list is Canada's neighbour to the south. The U.S. didn't make the cut for the top 50, but is mentioned as having a higher cost of living, including rent, entertainment and other expenses.
Those behind the list said counties needed to offer a "mixture of everything," saying, as an example, if a country ranks high in terms of quality of life but a retiree's chance of getting a visa is near-zero, it wouldn't be included.
Enjoy Travel did not say whether that is what excluded the U.S.
Reporting for this story was paid for through The Afghan Journalists in Residence Project funded by Meta.
Ontario is introducing a suite of measures that will crack down on cellphone use and vaping in schools.
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
Anyone who has a Gen-Z person in their life is likely familiar with the popular social media app TikTok, but a new bill in the U.S. may soon take it off of the American market.
U.S. President Joe Biden is out to win votes by scoring some laughs at the expense of Donald Trump, unleashing mockery with the goal of getting under the former president's thin skin and reminding the country of his blunders.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has issued a recall for a specific chocolate brand sold in Ontario and Quebec.
Quebec is investing $603 million over the next five years to counter what its French-language minister describes as the decline of the French language in the province.
One person has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death of a man who fell from a balcony following an altercation inside a Toronto apartment building.
Ukraine's troops have been forced to make a tactical retreat from three villages in the embattled east, the country's army chief said Sunday, warning of a worsening battlefield situation as Ukrainian forces wait for much-needed arms from a huge U.S. aid package to reach combat zones.
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
As if a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers lead in Game 1 of their playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings wasn't good enough, what was announced at Rogers Place during the next TV timeout nearly blew the roof off the downtown arena.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”