Beyond Local

OTTAWA — An internal Defence Department report has found that a shortage of procurement officials is hindering efforts to buy much-needed equipment for the Canadian Armed Forces.

OTTAWA — Britain's envoy to Ottawa suggests that an uproar in the Prairies over expanded trade agreements could be overcome if ranchers rejig their use of hormones — and she says an additional bilateral deal between Canada and London would give both countries an edge over Europe.

Calgary police have seized more than 90 kilograms of cocaine and arrested two men after a four-month investigation into an alleged drug trafficker.

DHARAMSALA, India (AP) — Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama apologized Monday after a video showing him kissing a child on the lips triggered criticism.

TORONTO — Calgary author Suzette Mayr has been shortlisted for the inaugural Carol Shields Prize for Fiction. The US$150,000 award celebrates excellence in fiction by women and non-binary writers in Canada and the United States.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden's administration on Thursday laid the blame on his predecessor, President Donald Trump, for the deadly and chaotic 2021 withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan that brought about some of the darkest moments of Biden’s presidency.

VICTORIA — British Columbia's minimum wage will increase to $16.75 an hour, a boost that the government says would fulfil a promise to tie the benchmark pay level to inflation.

OTTAWA — More details have come to public light about the mandate and remuneration for former governor general David Johnston, whom Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed to investigate allegations of foreign interference in the last two federal elections.

LONDON (AP) — King Charles III for the first time has signaled support for research into the British monarchy's ties to slavery after a document showed an ancestor with shares in a slave-trading company, a Buckingham Palace spokesperson said Thursday.