Members of Quebec's official Opposition Liberals sworn in at the legislature
Quebec Liberal Leader Charles Millard urged his caucus to serve with clarity and humility today as they were sworn in at the provincial legislature.
Millard said his party's work isn't done after a strong Oct. 5 election result.
The party more than doubled its seat count, going from 18 to 40 and will serve as the official Opposition to the minority Parti Québécois government.
Former premier Jean Charest was on hand to watch as his son Antoine was sworn in as the new representative for the Verdun riding.
All of the Liberals opted to swear the oath to the Quebec people and not to the King, after the oath to the monarch was made optional in 2022.
One member, Affine Lwalalika, was not sworn in since a judicial recount is underway in her riding.
Milliard told his elected members to be proud, but also urged them to approach the role with “a healthy dose of clarity and humility.”
“If our work of rebuilding were complete, we would be the ones forming the government today,” he said, adding, “There are still many regions to win back.”
“The result on Oct. 5 is certainly an important milestone, but it is by no means the culmination of all our efforts.”
He said it's unclear how long the minority PQ government led by Paul St-Pierre Plamondon will last, and called for both discipline and teamwork.
“When it comes to resolving crises, the government will find in us a reliable and open partner, but when it comes to creating crises … it will find in us a tough and unyielding opponent,” he said.
Milliard also stated that the Quebec Fleur-de-lis is “just as striking alongside the Maple Leaf," in a plea for federalism that drew thunderous applause.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2026.
By Caroline Plante | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
CFB Wainwright fire highlights long, painful process of burn recovery, specialists say
Burn specialists in Toronto and Hamilton say their hospitals are ready to support their Alberta colleagues as they care for dozens of patients injured in Saturday's devastating fire at CFB Wainwright.
Although they don't know the specific condition of the 39 hospitalized patients — 19 of them in critical condition — they say recovering from serious burns is a long and painful process fraught with threats of infection.
Dr. Alan Rogers, a burn surgeon at the Ross Tilley Burn Centre at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, says the hospital is ready to take patients if burn centres in Calgary and Edmonton need backup and they could also send temporary skin frozen in Sunnybrook's tissue bank.
Rogers says age and chronic illnesses are factors in the chances of recovery for severely burned patients.
He says it's possible for younger healthy adults to survive burns to 80 per cent of their body, although other injuries, including smoke inhalation, are other factors.
Rogers says severely burned patients must endure multiple surgeries over weeks or even months — first to remove the burned tissue and cover the areas with donated cadaver skin or artificial skin substitutes, then later to graft skin from other areas of the patient's body.
The burn care team can use techniques like expanding the skin grafts to cover more of the exposed area.
They prioritize areas to be covered, including the face and hands, he said.
Seriously burned patients are immunocompromised because they don't have a skin barrier, Rogers said, so they are often kept in isolation rooms for weeks to protect them from infection.
Extensive burns can also prompt an "overwhelming" inflammatory response in the body that can strain the patient's organs, he said.
Dr. Marc Jeschke, director of the burn program at Hamilton Health Sciences Centre, said his team wants to help their colleagues in Alberta however they can, noting the long road ahead for patients with severe burns.
"It is severe injury that causes significant burden to the patients, to the families, to the loved ones, to everybody," Jeschke said.
"It is not over like a fracture when you walk out a couple of days later. This is something that will affect their lives forever."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2026.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
By Nicole Ireland and Hannah Alberga | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Doerkson says B.C. Conservative growth projection of 3.2% 'absolutely doable'
British Columbia's interim Conservative leader Lorne Doerkson says his party's projection of 3.2 per cent economic growth by 2029 represents about one per cent "more optimism" than the New Democrats had previously budgeted.
The Conservatives' figure, which is more than 50 per cent higher than the forecast in the last provincial budget, is also considerably higher than recent projections by the Bank of Canada and International Monetary Fund at the national level.
But Doerkson told a campaign stop in Maple Ridge, B.C., in the final days before the Oct. 24 provincial election that the growth is "absolutely doable."
He says industries, including natural gas, forestry, mining and agriculture, are waiting for a change in government to invest in the province because of "fear" under the previous NDP regime.
The Conservative platform promises to create $2.6 billion in new revenue over three years, while shrinking the deficit to $10.8 billion based on gross domestic product growing by 2.5 per cent next year, 2.8 per cent the year after and 3.2 per cent in 2029.
NDP Leader David Eby says the Conservatives are "torquing the numbers" and their platform has "major omissions" in how the party would pay for its plans.
"They failed to cost basic platform commitments like their cut to the (Provincial Sales Tax) on alcohol, which costs almost $300 million," Eby told a campaign stop in Vancouver on Monday.
"It is all with the aim of minimizing the reality of the cuts they're going to have to make."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2026.
By Brenna Owen | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

L’émission MasterChef recrute partout au Canada et c’est ta chance d'empocher 100 000 $
On connaît tous quelqu'un qui a des « skills » de chef hors pair!
Le célèbre concours culinaire MasterChef Canada fait un retour très attendu sur nos écrans pour la saison 2025-2026. Après avoir séduit des millions de téléspectateurs et téléspectatrices à travers le monde, cette émission revient sur CTV avec un format légèrement revisité, mais toujours aussi intense. La huitième saison, composée de onze épisodes, promet une aventure exaltante pour les passionné.e.s de cuisine du pays, et la période de recrutement est commencée.
Le principe reste simple, mais efficace : des amateurs et amatrices en cuisine s’affronteront dans des épreuves diverses pour tenter de décrocher le prestigieux titre de MasterChef Canada et empocher la somme de 100 000 $. Chaque candidat.e devra faire preuve de créativité, d’audace et de technique devant un panel de juges, dont les noms seront bientôt dévoilés. La compétition s’annonce relevée, avec des défis individuels et en équipe conçus pour pousser les talents culinaires à leurs limites.
Si tu aimes cuisiner, que tu es prêt.e à innover et que tu rêves de transformer ta passion en carrière, cette compétition est faite pour toi. Comme annoncé par des communiqués et sur les réseaux sociaux le 25 octobre, les inscriptions sont ouvertes à toutes les personnes canadiennes et celles ayant la résidence permanente, étant âgées de plus de 19 ans au 1er octobre 2024. La seule condition : ne jamais avoir travaillé comme chef.fe professionnel.le.
Pour t’inscrire, rends-toi sur le site de CTV avant le 17 novembre 2024. Tu devras soumettre deux vidéos : l’une pour expliquer pourquoi tu mérites ta place dans la compétition et l’autre pour démontrer tes talents culinaires en action. Prépare-toi également à être disponible entre janvier et février 2025 pour environ quinze jours de tournage.
Que tu sois un.e autodidacte passionné.e ou l'expert.e des repas du dimanche, c’est l’occasion rêvée de transformer ton amour de la cuisine en une aventure inoubliable. Alors, enfile ton tablier, aiguise tes couteaux et tente ta chance pour décrocher la fameuse veste blanche de MasterChef Canada!