Business
B.C. now has more than double Ontario's active cases per capita – CTV News Vancouver
VANCOUVER —
At the end of a difficult week that saw several records shattered for COVID-19 infections and deaths in B.C., the province now has more than twice as many active cases per capita as Ontario.
The federal government makes daily, rolling average, and active case counts available in an infographic, and the contrast is stark: while the prairie provinces and Nunavut struggle with soaring infections per capita, B.C. is slowly catching up and in far worse shape than the two most populous provinces in Canada.
As of Friday, B.C. has 189 active COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people, compared to 135 in Quebec and just 88 in Ontario. Alberta (321), Saskatchewan (268), Nunavut (387), and Manitoba (646) saw the highest active per capita infections.
CTV News asked provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry whether she has considered adopting some of Ontario’s strategies, since it’s faring better in the second wave, such as a colour-coded notification system making it clear and easy for people to know what restrictions are in effect.
“We all have our own pandemic, and as we know the issues that we’re dealing with are focussed in some areas and are different in different areas of the province, so our approach has always been to look at what is happening here and tailor our approach,” insisted Henry. “Many of our measures are ones we put in measures some time ago that Ontario has included in some of their colour zones now. It’s not like we can compare what we’re doing. we’re doing the things we need to do to manage what we’re dealing with here in B.C.”
The provincial health officer has faced intense criticism and even outright anger from various industries and sectors for implementing new rules and restrictions that aren’t clear or communicated directly to stakeholders, with murky rules between similar businesses that are clarified days later. Experts have warned that kind of confusion can undermine public health efforts.
CTV News pointed out the daily infections keep growing despite new restrictions implemented more than a week ago, and while Henry acknowledged she’s considering new measures, she also defended the current set of restrictions, including a “social lockdown,” and pointed out it takes time to see results.
“We still are in a place where we’re not surprised to see cases going up, obviously we want to see that corner bend,” she said. “I’m talking daily with my colleagues about what’s going on, what the situation is, what are the things we need to think about in terms of addressing them and what measures can we look at modifying or changing, so those are conversations we can continue to have and we will have a better idea next week.”
Business
Former crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years in prison
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Bankman-Fried, 32, sentenced for fraud on customers of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange he founded.
Former crypto tycoon Sam Bankman-Fried has been sentenced to 25 years in United States federal prison for stealing $8bn from customers of the now-bankrupt FTX cryptocurrency exchange he founded.
US District Judge Lewis Kaplan handed down the sentence at a Manhattan court hearing on Thursday after rejecting Bankman-Fried’s claim that FTX customers did not actually lose money and accusing him of lying during his trial testimony.
A jury found Bankman-Fried, 32, guilty on November 2 on seven fraud and conspiracy counts stemming from FTX’s 2022 collapse in what prosecutors have called one of the biggest financial frauds in US history.
“He knew it was wrong,” Kaplan said of Bankman-Fried before handing down the sentence. “He knew it was criminal. He regrets that he made a very bad bet about the likelihood of getting caught. But he is not going to admit a thing, as is his right.”
Bankman-Fried stood with his hands clasped before him as Kaplan read the sentence.
Kaplan said the sentence reflected “that there is a risk that this man will be in position to do something very bad in the future. And it’s not a trivial risk at all.”
Prior to sentencing, Bankman-Fried stood and apologised. “A lot of people feel really let down. And they were very let down. And I’m sorry about that. I’m sorry about what happened at every stage,” he said.
“My useful life is probably over. It’s been over for a while now, from before my arrest.”
Al Jazeera’s Kristen Saloomey, reporting from New York, said that Bankman-Fried could have received up to 110 years behind bars for his crimes and that the 25-year sentence was less than the 40-50 years that prosecutors were seeking.
“Given the scale of this crime, one of the largest frauds in history, the judge took a very strong stance but also showed some flexibility… perhaps based on the arguments made by Bankman-Fried’s lawyers and his family that he had always intended to do good”, she said.
Bankman-Fried had billed himself as a proponent of effective altruism – finding the best way to help other people, in particular by donating all or part of one’s wealth to charity rather than, say, volunteering at a soup kitchen.
When the cryptocurrency world lurched into crisis in the spring of 2022, he bought shares in the troubled platform BlockFi and another troubled company, Voyager.
However, prosecutors have said the responsible image he cultivated concealed his years-long embezzlement of customer funds.
“The defendant victimised tens of thousands of people and companies, across several continents, over a period of multiple years. He stole money from customers who entrusted it to him” prosecutors said in a court filing.
Business
Gas prices in the Thompson Okanagan jumped by 7 cents a litre, days before the next carbon tax increase – Vernon News – Castanet.net
Some area gas stations are not waiting until April 1 to crank up the price of gas.
On April Fools Day, the federal Liberals will be increasing the controversial carbon tax, which will directly impact the price at the pump.
However, overnight, several Thompson Okanagan gas stations have already increased the price, selling the liquid gold for 174.9.
In January, gas was selling for a ‘mere’ 143.9 cents a litre. The latest hike is a whopping 31-cent-a-litre increase in just three months.
And the price of petrol is guaranteed to go up again when the carbon tax increase is implemented on Monday.
Kelowna drivers are also paying more at the pump today, with the majority of stations raising the price to 174.9.
As of 9:30 Thursday morning, the Co-op stations on Rutland and Sexsmith roads were at 168.9 as was the Costco gas station.
Several Vernon stations are holding at 167.9.
In Penticton, motorists are also paying more, with the price at the majority of stations hitting the 174.9 mark.
Kamloops drivers are also taking a hit to the wallet with gas in the Thompson community also selling for 174.9.
The Kamloops Costco was the cheapest in the city at 161.9 cents a litre.
Enderby continues to have some of the cheapest gas in the region at 165.9, however the Esso in Tappen has them all beat at 157.9.
Gas in Vancouver has crested the $2 a litre mark, sitting at 202.9 cents a litre.
And as usual, Calgary motorists are paying significantly less than their BC counterparts, filling up for 154.9 cents a litre.
Business
Calgary breaks all-time record in housing starts but increasing demand keeps inventory low – CBC.ca
Soaring housing demands in Calgary led to an all-time record for new residential builds last year, but inventory levels of completed and unsold units remained low due to demand outpacing supply.
According to the latest report from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), total housing starts increased by 13 per cent in Calgary, reaching a total of 19,579 units with growth across all dwelling types in the city.
That compares to a decline of 0.5 per cent overall for housing starts in the six major Canadian cities surveyed by CMHC.
Calgary also had the highest housing starts by population.
“Part of the reason why we think that might have happened is that developers are responding to low vacancies in the rental market,” said Adebola Omosola, a housing economics specialist with CMHC.
“The population of Calgary is still growing, a record number of people moved here last year, and we still expect that to remain at least in the short term.”
Earlier this year, the Calgary Real Estate Board also predicted that demand, especially for rental apartments, wouldn’t let up any time soon.
Industry can cope with demand, expert says
According to numbers from the report, average construction times were higher in 2023 for all dwelling types except for apartments.
The agency’s report suggests the increase in the number of under-construction residential projects might mean builders are operating at or near full capacity.
However, there’s optimism the construction industry can match the increasing need.
Brian Hahn, CEO of BILD Calgary Region, said despite concerns around about construction costs, project timelines and labour shortages, the industry has kept up with the demand for new builds.
“I’ve heard that kind of conversation at the end of 2022 and I heard it in 2023,” Hahn said.
“Yet here we are early in 2024, and January and February were record numbers again.”
Hahn added he believes the current pace of construction will continue for at least the next six months and that the industry is looking at initiatives to attract more people to the trades.
Increase in row house and apartment construction
Construction growth was largely driven by new apartment projects, making up almost half of the housing starts in Calgary in 2023.
The federal housing agency says 9,034 apartment units were started that year, an increase of 17 per cent from the previous year. Of those, about 54 per cent were purpose-built rentals.
Apartments made up around two-thirds of all units under construction, CMHC said, with the total number of units under construction reaching 23,473.
Growth, however, was seen across all dwelling types. Row homes increased by 34 per cent from the previous year while groundbreaking on single-detached homes grew by two per cent.
“Notwithstanding challenges, our members and the industry counterparts that support them managed to produce a record amount of starts and completions,” Hahn said.
“I have little doubt that the industry will do their very best to keep pace at those levels.”
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