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In-person service for mail-in passport requests now available at 300 sites in Canada

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OTTAWA — Some travellers keen to get their passports will now be able to request their mail-in applications be transferred to any of the more than 300 local Service Canada centres for processing.

They can also now do so even if their need for a passport is slightly less urgent, as in for those planning to leave the country within the next few weeks, instead of a couple of days.

Until now, applicants in the queue could only ask for a transfer by visiting one of 35 specialized passport sites across Canada, or by contacting the call centre.

The new policy will apply to anyone who completed their application by mail more than 20 business days ago, which allows enough time for it to have been entered into the system, and has proof that they are travelling within 20 business days from when they ask for a transfer.

Social Development Minister Karina Gould says depending on when the person plans to travel, the application will either be expedited and their passport mailed to them, or their file will be transferred to a local office for printing and pickup.

People who haven’t waited the required 20 days but still need their passport quickly because they have imminent plans to travel can ask to have their applications transferred to a Service Canada location, but will have to pay extra fees.

The changes come after months of stressful waits for Canadians to renew their passports and long, hectic lines at passport offices as workers try to expedite needed documents.

Last month the prime minister announced he would assemble a committee of cabinet ministers to troubleshoot wait times and backlogs for immigration applications and passport processing, which he called “unacceptable.”

The government aims to process 90 per cent of applications mailed from within Canada or made at a Service Canada counter within 20 business days of receiving them.

Only 49 per cent of all mail-in and Service Canada applications processed last week met the 20-day target, government statistics show.

Gould says the changes will speed up processing times for overdue passports and shorten the lineup for urgent requests at passport offices.

The government blames the long waits on the fact that few people renewed or applied for new passports during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now that people can more easily and safely leave the country, the pent-up demand has hit the government in a giant wave.

The government expects to receive more than four million passport applications this year.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 29, 2022.

 

Laura Osman, The Canadian Press

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RCMP arrest second suspect in deadly shooting east of Calgary

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EDMONTON – RCMP say a second suspect has been arrested in the killing of an Alberta county worker.

Mounties say 28-year-old Elijah Strawberry was taken into custody Friday at a house on O’Chiese First Nation.

Colin Hough, a worker with Rocky View County, was shot and killed while on the job on a rural road east of Calgary on Aug. 6.

Another man who worked for Fortis Alberta was shot and wounded, and RCMP said the suspects fled in a Rocky View County work truck.

Police later arrested Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, and charged him with first-degree murder and attempted murder, and a warrant was issued for Strawberry’s arrest.

RCMP also said there was a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Strawberry, describing him as armed and dangerous.

Chief Supt. Roberta McKale, told a news conference in Edmonton that officers had received tips and information over the last few weeks.

“I don’t know of many members that when were stopped, fuelling up our vehicles, we weren’t keeping an eye out, looking for him,” she said.

But officers had been investigating other cases when they found Strawberry.

“Our investigators were in O’Chiese First Nation at a residence on another matter and the major crimes unit was there working another file and ended up locating him hiding in the residence,” McKale said.

While an investigation is still underway, RCMP say they’re confident both suspects in the case are in police custody.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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26-year-old son is accused of his father’s murder on B.C.’s Sunshine Coast

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RICHMOND, B.C. – The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the 26-year-old son of a man found dead on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast has been charged with his murder.

Police say 58-year-old Henry Doyle was found badly injured on a forest service road in Egmont last September and died of his injuries.

The homicide team took over when the BC Coroners Service said the man’s death was suspicious.

It says in a statement that the BC Prosecution Service has approved one count of first-degree murder against the man’s son, Jackson Doyle.

Police say the accused will remain in custody until at least his next court appearance.

The homicide team says investigators remained committed to solving the case with the help of the community of Egmont, the RCMP on the Sunshine Coast and in Richmond, and the Vancouver Police Department.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



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Metro Vancouver’s HandyDART strike continues after talks break with no deal

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VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, have broken off without an agreement following 15 hours of talks.

Joe McCann, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they stayed at the bargaining table with help from a mediator until 2 a.m. Friday and made “some progress.”

However, he says the union negotiators didn’t get an offer that they could recommend to the membership.

McCann says that in some ways they are close to an agreement, but in other areas they are “miles apart.”

About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people who can’t navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last week, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.

McCann asks HandyDART users to be “patient,” since they are trying to get not only a fair contract for workers but also a better service for customers.

He says it’s unclear when the talks will resume, but he hopes next week at the latest.

The employer, Transdev, didn’t reply to an interview request before publication.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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