National News

MONTREAL — Tens of thousands of visitors flock to Quebec's Îles-de-la-Madeleine every summer to behold its cliff-framed seascapes and sandy beaches. But starting next month, those island sojourns will come with an added cost.

Ottawa has plans to finally stop blocking Canadian development aid to Afghanistan this year. But by the time its new system is fully up and running, the Taliban will have been in control of the country for about three years.

TORONTO — The Globe and Mail was the top winner at the National Newspaper Awards, which were handed out on Friday night. The Globe won nods in seven of the 23 regular categories.

TORONTO — The National Newspaper Awards were handed out in Toronto on Friday night.

ZEBALLOS, B.C.

VANCOUVER — British Columbia is preparing to ban most public drug use, a change to parts of its decriminalization pilot project that the premier says should have been in place all along.

OTTAWA — The future was just starting to appear bright for Mykyta Zakharchenko. The 18-year-old's youth in Ukraine was shadowed by two major conflicts with Russia before he escaped to Canada in 2022.

VANCOUVER — A high-risk sex offender who went on the run for 10 days in Vancouver has pleaded guilty to breaching his long-term supervision order and failing to attend court.

OTTAWA — A global treaty to end plastic waste can be ambitious and successful without firm caps on plastic production, which are hard to design and harder to get agreement on, Canada's environment minister said Friday.

OTTAWA — The Canadian Press erroneously attributed a Conservative statement about subsidies to Sebastian Skamski, a spokesperson for Opposition leader Pierre Poilievre.