National News

OTTAWA — The hunt is on for a new judge to sit on Canada's highest court, in preparation for the mandatory retirement of Justice Rosalie Abella. Abella, the longest-serving Supreme Court justice, will retire July 1, on her 75th birthday.

TORONTO — Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault's promise to introduce legislation that would force tech giants like Facebook to pay Canadian media companies for their content is taking far too long, experts say.

PORT HAWKESBURY, N.S. — Lionel Desmond experienced severe mental decline and horrible visions after he served as an infantryman in the Afghanistan war, a fatality inquiry in Nova Scotia learned Friday.

OTTAWA — The federal government has agreed to boost its funding for vaccine rollouts in lower-income countries, pledging $75 million more to the COVAX international vaccine-sharing program as other wealthy countries step up their commitments as well.

Quebec's auditor general says the province has underestimated the size of its debt by $12 billion. Guylaine Leclerc told a legislative committee today she plans to table a report on the situation in March.

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signalled Friday the federal government won't let provincial opposition stand in the way of municipalities that want to work with Ottawa to ban handguns.

In The News is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to kickstart your day. Here is what's on the radar of our editors for the morning of Feb. 19 ... What we are watching in Canada ...

The latest numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Canada as of 4 a.m. ET on Friday, Feb. 19, 2021. There are 837,497 confirmed cases in Canada. _ Canada: 837,497 confirmed cases (32,587 active, 783,412 resolved, 21,498 deaths).

The latest numbers on COVID-19 vaccinations in Canada as of 4 a.m. ET on Friday Feb. 19, 2021. In Canada, the provinces are reporting 25,253 new vaccinations administered for a total of 1,354,289 doses given.

Last week, Paul Goulet's 10-year-old daughter quietly went to his wife with worry about her father. "It's like he's here, but he's not really here," she said.