National News

First Nations youth leaders are warning Canadians can expect a long, tense summer of protests as governments push forward with plans to fast-track major projects — and young people will be leading the charge.

"You will see us in your cities, your city's hubs," said Ramon Kataquapit, a youth councillor with the Chiefs of Ontario and Nishnawbe Aski Nation and a member of Attawapiskat First Nation in northern Ontario.

Police and parks officials say one person was killed and three were injured in a rockfall at a remote hiking trail in Banff National Park.

They say the search continues to confirm no other hikers are missing following the early afternoon tragedy at Bow Glacier Falls, north of Lake Louise.

One person had been found dead and the extent of the injuries to the other three is unknown.

Two of the three injured were taken to a Calgary hospital by STARS air ambulance and the third went to hospital by ground ambulance.

Rescue crews, police and paramedics scrambled to a remote region of Banff National Park late Thursday amid reports that a group of hikers were hit by a rock slide, causing possible injuries and deaths.

“The initial report indicated there were multiple hikers and there may be serious injuries and/or fatalities,” RCMP Cpl. Gina Slaney said in a news release.

Parks Canada, in a statement said, it is responding to a report of "a serious rockfall incident with involvement near Bow Glacier Falls in Banff National Park."

Ottawa is giving no sign that it intends to amend existing legislation on medical assistance in dying — something a UN committee called for earlier this spring.

The federal minister responsible for disabilities spoke at a hearing of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities last week, about two months after the committee called on Canada to repeal the 2021 law that expanded eligibility for assisted dying to those whose deaths were not reasonably foreseeable.

The average Canadian family will save $280 on their taxes next year from the Liberal government's planned income tax cut, the parliamentary budget officer said in an analysis released on Wednesday.

But some seniors and single Canadians are expected to save less, prompting criticism from Conservatives who argue the tax cut doesn't go far enough.

Almost one in four Canadians were directly affected by extreme weather events over the past year, a new poll suggests.

The Leger poll — released as Canada copes with its second-worst wildfire season on record — says 23 per cent of Canadians who responded said they were personally affected by extreme weather events like heat waves, floods, fires and tornadoes over the last 12 months.

A Statistics Canada reports says Canadians are spending less time with friends than ever, with the decline sharpest among the working-age demographic.

The data released Tuesday show that in 2022, only 19.3 per cent of Canadians saw friends on an average day, down from 47.9 per cent in 1986.

The questions to those in the survey asks if they were with a friend or family member in person, separate from communicating using technology such as phone, email, or social media.

Prime Minister Mark Carney pulled off a successful performance hosting the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alta., say some world leaders and foreign policy experts commenting on his perceived pragmatism and savviness.

Fen Osler Hampson, international affairs professor at Carleton University, said Carney guided the G7 "through the diplomatic Rockies," navigating "shifting weather" on the global front and avoiding "avalanches and treacherous cliffs."

Prime Minister Mark Carney outlined $4.3 billion in new support for Ukraine's defence as he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Alberta on Tuesday.

The Prime Minister's Office said that sum includes $2 billion for weapons like drones, ammunition and armoured vehicles — funding that Canada will count toward its NATO defence spending target.

Canada is also lending Ukraine $2.3 billion to help the embattled country rebuild its infrastructure.

An organization that monitors the effect of information flows on human rights says the new federal border security bill appears to "roll out a welcome mat" for expanded data-sharing agreements with the United States and other countries.

Researchers with The Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto say they want the federal government to reveal more about the information-sharing implications of the bill due to a possible risk to human rights.