'Some structural damage' from wildfire near Fort Nelson, B.C., mayor confirms
More than one home has been damaged or lost due to a massive wildfire outside of the B.C. community of Fort Nelson, the mayor confirmed Wednesday.
New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said Monday he personally favours his country becoming a republic, but it's not a change he intends to push for as leader.
Hipkins made the comments to reporters hours before he was due to depart for this week's coronation of King Charles III in London.
New Zealand, a former British colony, is self-governing but Charles retains a largely ceremonial role as head of state and king. Charles is represented in New Zealand by a governor-general.
Like many former British colonies, New Zealand continues to wrestle with what -- if any -- constitutional role the British monarchy should play in modern times.
Barbados chose to become a republic in 2021. Jamaica last year said it plans to pursue independence. And Australia in February decided to remove the British monarch from the last of its banknotes, although an image of Charles is expected to feature on coins.
"Ideally, in time, New Zealand will become a fully independent country, will stand on our own two feet in the world, as we by and large do now," Hipkins said. "I don't think that swapping out the governor-general for some other form of head of state is necessarily an urgent priority right now, though."
Hipkins faces an election later this year and has already ditched many of his government's more contentious policies as he tries to refocus the political agenda on what he describes as bread-and-butter issues such as the cost of living.
Hipkins unexpectedly rose to power following the shock decision in January of former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to step down.
Ardern had previously said she believed New Zealand would eventually become a republic but it was not a legislative priority. Hipkins, however, stated his own support of republicanism more forcefully than Ardern.
"I believe we should ultimately be an independent country," he said.
But he said the current constitutional arrangements were working well and he wasn't interested in pushing the republic debate onto New Zealanders.
"Honestly, I think it is something for New Zealanders to instigate a discussion on, and there isn't a groundswell of support for having this particular debate right at the moment," Hipkins said.
Hipkins inadvertently acknowledged he had a meeting planned with Charles on the trip, but he declined to say what they would discuss.
While in London, Hipkins also plans to meet with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to advance a free trade deal the two nations struck in 2021.
More than one home has been damaged or lost due to a massive wildfire outside of the B.C. community of Fort Nelson, the mayor confirmed Wednesday.
A warning from a Saskatoon driver about using your fast-food app while in the drive-thru line — a trip to get some free lunch cost him a lot more than he bargained for.
An 'unrepentant' YouTuber has been ordered to pay $350,000 in damages as compensation for a 'relentless' campaign of defamation waged online against a business owner and his company, the B.C. Supreme Court has ruled.
Chief Robert Michell says relief isn't the right word to describe his reaction as the search begins for unmarked graves at the site of a former residential school he attended in northern British Columbia.
While it's unclear what these closures might mean for the 27 restaurants in Canada, Red Lobster is expected to file for bankruptcy protection in the U.S. this month.
A man from B.C.'s Lower Mainland has been sentenced to four years behind bars after shooting a sex worker in the back during a drug-fuelled 43rd birthday.
Nearly six dozen dogs were seized from a home Wednesday morning by the Winnipeg Humane Society. It is the largest known seizure of animals in the city’s history.
Of the $40-million Aiden Pleterski was handed over two years, documents show he invested just over one per cent and instead spent $15.9 million on "his personal lifestyle." The 25-year-old Oshawa, Ont. man was arrested and charged with fraud and money laundering on Tuesday.
A man with a long record of dangerous driving told investigators he smoked marijuana oil and took prescription drugs hours before he sideswiped a bus, killing eight Mexican farmworkers and injuring dozens more, according to an arrest report unsealed Wednesday.
When Adam Kirschner wrote 'Slap Shot,' he never imagined the song would be embraced by his favourite team.
A team is ready to help an entangled North Atlantic right whale in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
A $200 reward is being offered by a North Vancouver family for the safe return of their beloved chicken, Snowflake.
Two daughters and a mother were reunited online 40 years later thanks to a DNA kit and a Zoom connection despite living on three separate continents and speaking different languages.
Mother's Day can be a difficult occasion for those who have lost or are estranged from their mom.
YES Theatre Young Company opened its acclaimed kids’ show, One Small Step, at Sudbury Theatre Centre on Saturday.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.