The Canadian Press

Health officials and Indigenous leaders in northern Manitoba have signed a declaration to address racism in the health-care system.

The document commits the regional health system to reduce barriers for Indigenous people seeking care and reduce the gaps in care between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.

Bernice Thorassie, who helps northern Indigenous patients navigate the health-care system, says she has seen people struggle to get treatment and face barriers after travelling from their home communities to Thompson, Man., or Winnipeg.

Gustavo Dudamel, the U.S.-based orchestral conductor, violinist and music education activist,  is the winner of this year's Glenn Gould Prize for lifetime contribution to the arts.

The Venezuelan-born conductor is currently the music and artistic director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the music director of the Opéra National de Paris and Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra.

A police officer has died shortly after being charged with child pornography offences.

The Winnipeg Police Service says Const. Yvan Corriveau, a 15-year member of the force, was found deceased and his death is not considered criminal in nature.

RCMP say Corriveau, who was 39, was arrested at a home south of the city Thursday on charges including possessing and accessing child pornography.

He was released from custody following the arrest.

Federal ministers say all COVID-19 border restrictions will end as of Saturday, including mandatory vaccinations, testing and quarantine of international travellers, as well as mandatory masks on planes and trains.

The cabinet order maintaining COVID-19 border measures will not be renewed when it expires on Sept. 30.

The change will mean foreign nationals no longer require an approved series of vaccinations to enter the country.

Residents of Atlantic Canada and eastern Quebec are coming to terms with the full scope of the damage left behind after post-tropical storm Fiona tore through the region over the weekend as one of the strongest storms Canada's East Coast has ever faced.

Members of the Canadian Armed Forces are being deployed to help with recovery efforts, with federal Defence Minister Anita Anand saying Sunday that about 100 troops a piece were either in place or en route to Newfoundland, Nova Scotia and P.E.I. to provide assistance with the cleanup effort.

The Manitoba government is establishing healing lodges at two correctional facilities to give prisoners access to culturally appropriate supports and limit their chances of reoffending. 

The province says the Standing Together Healing Lodges at the correctional centres in Brandon and The Pas are to support inmate education, language acquisition, family reunification and sobriety. 

Justice Minister Kelvin Goertzen says evidence shows rehabilitative programs offered in the correctional system help reduce the chance of inmates reoffending. 

The City of Merritt in British Columbia's Interior is launching a four-day work week pilot program in the hope of attracting, recruiting and retaining municipal workers.

The one-year trial, approved by council on Tuesday, will see city hall closed on Mondays, with operational hours extended Tuesday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5:45 p.m., an extra hour and 45 minutes each day.

Sean Smith, Merritt’s chief administrative officer, said wages won't change but the city is hoping the compressed work week will allow it to compete with other jurisdictions for staff.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has agreed to let a cabinet order enforcing mandatory COVID-19 vaccination requirements at the Canadian border expire at the end of this month.

The news was confirmed by two senior government sources, who spoke to The Canadian Press on the condition they not be named because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

The federal government is still deciding whether to maintain the requirement for passengers to wear face masks on trains and airplanes.

An Inuk man who alleges he was sexually abused by a former Oblate priest in Nunavut when he was 13 years old says meeting the man face to face after nearly three decades was a relief. 

Steve Mapsalak was part of a delegation led by Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., a group representing Nunavut Inuit, that travelled to France last week to seek the extradition of Johannes Rivoire to Canada. The group met with French and Oblate officials, as well as with Rivoire himself.

An Amber Alert has been cancelled for the child who authorities say was taken from BC Children's Hospital in Vancouver on Monday.

A statement from Vancouver police says the three-year-old and his mother were found near Calgary early Tuesday.

Police say the boy is now receiving care and his mother has been arrested.

The Amber Alert was first issued shortly after 11 p.m. Monday.

Investigators said the child had been in treatment at BC Children's Hospital when he was abducted about 11 hours earlier.