National News

CHISASIBI, Que. — Mandy Gull-Masty has become the first woman to be elected grand chief of Quebec's Cree Nation. Gull-Masty won 64 per cent of the vote in a run-off election held Thursday, defeating Pakesso Mukash, who received 34 per cent.

MONTREAL — A judge has put off a decision on a bail request from one of three men accused in an alleged abduction that triggered an Amber Alert in Montreal this week, telling the court on Friday she needs more evidence before ruling.

HALIFAX — Lost and discarded fishing gear dumped off the southwestern coast of Nova Scotia — site of Canada's most lucrative lobster fishery — is trapping species at risk and hurting the lobster industry, a new scientific study says.

OTTAWA — The federal government is tapping the brakes on its plans to phase out pandemic aid programs this summer, deciding instead to freeze benefits at current levels and extend help by an extra month beyond the previously planned end date.

Federal officials are warning Canada could be on the brink of a fourth wave of COVID-19 driven by the Delta variant if the country opens too fast before enough people have been vaccinated.

VANCOUVER — Two groups focused on environmental issues are calling on the British Columbia government to come up with a plan to track "heat dome injuries" following record-setting temperatures that are also linked with 570 deaths in the province over

OTTAWA — The federal government ran a deficit of nearly $24 billion over the first two months of its fiscal year, a sharp drop from the unprecedented spending one year earlier at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

TORONTO — Two travellers who arrived in Toronto from the United States have been fined for providing fake COVID-19 proof of vaccination documents and lying about pre-departure tests.

IQALUIT, Nunavut — Unvaccinated dependants travelling to Nunavut with their parents or guardians be allowed to complete their isolation in the territory starting Monday.

OTTAWA — The Canadian economy appears to have bounced back after its worst two-month stretch since the start of the pandemic, eking out a gain in June and growth in the second quarter of the year.