National News

OTTAWA — Contract talks are expected to resume next week for about 70,000 federal government employees, many of whom have been delivering emergency financial aid to millions of Canadians during the COVID-19 pandemic.

FREDERICTON — New Brunswick legislators have voted down a controversial bill that would have made vaccinations mandatory for children in the province's schools and daycares.

OTTAWA — The federal deficit could be on track to hit $256 billion this fiscal year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Parliament's budget watchdog says in a new estimate that doesn't account for this week's extension to a cornerstone benefit for workers.

HALIFAX — Nova Scotia's justice minister says most details of a joint federal-provincial inquiry into a mass killing in the province have been finalized.

OTTAWA — The prices Canadians have reported paying for goods and services have been rising more than the official inflation rate, a senior Bank of Canada official says.

OTTAWA — A made-in-Canada mobile app to alert Canadians who may have been exposed to a person infected with COVID-19 is ready for testing in Ontario, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Thursday.

HALIFAX — Nova Scotia is allowing people to gather in groups of up to 10, as the province has gone nine days without any fresh cases of COVID-19.

TORONTO — Conservative leadership candidate Peter MacKay accused chief rival Erin O'Toole of committing a cardinal conservative sin Wednesday: wanting to introduce a carbon tax.

WINNIPEG — RCMP say they have arrested a passenger whose unruly behaviour forced a Toronto-bound plane to divert to Winnipeg.

Here's a timeline of key developments in the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada since the first presumptive case was reported on Jan. 25: Jan.