The Bank of Canada held its key interest rate at five per cent Wednesday and signalled it has begun discussing when it should start cutting rates. Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem says discussions are shifting from whether its key policy rate is high enough to how long it needs to maintain it at five per cent. Economists were widely expecting the central bank to maintain its benchmark rate but were waiting to see if the Bank of Canada would indicate a pivot toward rate cut considerations. Despite the shift in messaging today, Macklem maintained that the central bank is not ruling out more rate hikes if inflation doesn’t co-operate. The Bank of Canada’s new forecasts suggest inflation is still expected to return to two per cent in 2025.
Truro Police and the RCMP Federal Intelligence Unit recently wrapped up a 3-month investigation into drug trafficking in Colchester County – an operation that resulted in the seizure of drugs that have an estimated street value of over $1 million; and $94,000 in cash. Police say the investigation resulted in the disruption of a crime group based in rural Colchester County which was trafficking cocaine and supplying cannabis to illegal dispensaries throughout Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Search warrants were executed in Colchester County and Halifax Regional Municipality, and those searches led to the seizure of a large quantity of illegal drugs and money. A 35-year old Beaver Brook man is facing charges of possession for the purpose of trafficking and violation of a court order.
Nova Scotia Health is providing COVID-19 and influenza immunization and testing clinics across the province this week and one of those is being held today:
Tatamagouche Fire Department
202 Main St., Tatamagouche
Thursday, January 25 from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Offering COVID-19 Moderna & influenza vaccines (ages 6 months +)
Note: Drop-in only. Booked appointments not available. COVID-19 rapid test kits available. There will be an Emotional Wellness Counsellor/Navigator and Family Practice Nurse onsite to provide support.
The Nova Scotia Teachers Union is calling on the Atlantic Provinces Special Education Authority to restore programs for blind or deaf students that it says were halted during the pandemic.
The programs in question are in-person assistance for children who are visually impaired or hard of hearing, which the union says were moved online when the risk of contracting COVID-19 was high.
The union says those programs are set to remain as virtual aids, which means less hands-on support for students.
Union president Ryan Lutes says the in-person assistance is vital for developing essential skills to navigate their education and daily lives.
The Nova Scotia government is seeking feedback on a proposal to allow residents to hunt bears this spring.
Currently, bear hunting is permitted only in the fall.
Natural Resources Minister Tory Rushton says Nova Scotia is the only province with black bears and no spring bear hunt.
The province says hunting would be open to Nova Scotia residents with a bear-hunting license, and only male bears and females with no cubs could be taken.
A sports note, in the Maritime Junior Hockey League the Pictou County Weeks Crushers host the Valley Wildcats tonight.
