Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has arrived in Iqaluit for a meeting with Canada’s national Inuit organization, part of a two-day visit to the Arctic – his first since the 2015 election campaign. Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett, Health Minister Jane Philpott and Social Development Minister Jean-Yves Duclos are also taking part in the talks.
Category: Canada
The B Bomb: new federal cash for Bombardier reignites political tensions
From the West came the calls of a double standard: why are the federal Liberals giving Bombardier Inc. a $372.5-million loan while thousands of jobs in the oil and gas industry remain consigned to the dustbin? From Quebec, cries that the loan for the aerospace company was nothing compared to what the federal government has giving the Ontario auto sector. From behind closed Liberal caucus doors, it was internal pressure from the Quebec caucus that partially forced the government to finally agree on some sort of financial assistance for the company, nearly a year and a half after it first began agitating for support.
Quebec legislature votes to condemn Washington Post article that bashed province
The Quebec government is denouncing a recent Washington Post opinion piece that claimed the province is more racist than the rest of Canada. Legislature members voted unanimously today to condemn the article, which ran three days after six men were killed at a Quebec City mosque.
New Brunswick’s population declines, despite growth in larger cities
The province’s population is down by 0.5 per cent since 2011, bringing the population to 747,101 according t o a census snapshot released by Statistics Canada today. The Feb. 8 release compares the population data collected in the 2016 census to the the 2011 census numbers.
Census 2016: Canada’s big cities home to big share of 35 million Canadians
In some ways a victim of his own success, the mayor of Kelowna h as been struggling in recent years to rein in his city as it slowly spreads across the B.C. interior, testing his ability to provide core municipal services and build badly needed infrastructure. Nor is the city’s middle-aged spread at all unique, according to the 2016 census data released Wednesday: Canada’s population of 35.15 million is settling in the bigger cities, ensuring they and their suburban neighbours keep growing, while small cities get smaller.
Let them eat fish soup
De Beers shelves diamond mine expansion in northern Ontario after failing to win Attawapiskat’s support TORONTO – De Beers is shelving immediate plans to study an expansion project at a remote northern Ontario diamond mine after failing to get support from a neighbouring aboriginal community, a ‘disappointing’ setback for the world’s top diamond producer, the mine’s manager said. The isolated Victor mine in the James Bay lowlands produces some 600 carats of diamonds annually and is scheduled to stop production in late 2018 and close in early 2019, De Beers Canada general manager James Kirby told Reuters late last week.
Canadian man who strangled high school sweetheart in Ohio gets life in prison after guilty plea
A Canadian-American man who fled from Ohio to Quebec after strangling his high school sweetheart with a belt has pleaded guilty to murder and been sentenced to life behind bars. Kyle Sheppard, 33, of Toledo, Ohio, who’d been scheduled to go on trial next month, will have to serve at least 15 years in prison before being eligible for parole.
Event remembers avid skier
Eaman died in March 2012 in a vehicle collision on Highway 97 between Vernon and Kelowna. Within weeks, the Jessica Eaman Ski Scholarship was established, and JESS4KIDS was established to give a few youth the chance to experience the winter sport she loved.
Ten-year report card highlights gains made in bison conservation
Efforts to bring bison back to the landscape across Canada, the United States and Mexico have made great strides in the past decade, officials say. The American Bison Society, which is meeting for its annual conference in Banff, issued a report card Tuesday highlighting the milestones in bison conservation.
Junior hockey class-action lawsuit lands for certification hearing in Calgary
Players from the Red Deer Rebels watch from the bench during a 2016 game against the Kelowna Rockets. A Calgary judge is presiding over a four-day hearing into whether a class-action lawsuit on behalf of junior hockey players in the CHL and affiliated leagues can proceed.
Junior hockey class-action lawsuit lands for certification hearing in Calgary
Players from the Red Deer Rebels watch from the bench during a 2016 game against the Kelowna Rockets. A Calgary judge is presiding over a four-day hearing into whether a class-action lawsuit on behalf of junior hockey players in the CHL and affiliated leagues can proceed.
Five stories in the news today, Feb. 7
New Brunswick Finance Minister Cathy Rogers will present the provincial budget today, and it is expected to include targeted spending increases. A government source says this includes a 5.4 per cent hike in grants to community colleges, funding for “research and strategic initiatives” and $2.4 million more for pre-school autism intervention programs.
Five stories in the news today, Feb. 7
New Brunswick Finance Minister Cathy Rogers will present the provincial budget today, and it is expected to include targeted spending increases. A government source says this includes a 5.4 per cent hike in grants to community colleges, funding for “research and strategic initiatives” and $2.4 million more for pre-school autism intervention programs.
’60s Scoop survivor skeptical of gov’t move
Not everyone’s cheering last week’s announcement that the federal government plans to negotiate a countrywide settlement with those affected by the ’60s Scoop. While he remains open to the possibility that it might end up leading to positive things, Stewart Garnett remains skeptical.
Imam says speech re-tweeted by J.K. Rowling came from his heart
Police officers stand guard next to a building housing a mosque Tuesday, January 31, 2017 in Quebec City. Six people were killed and another 19 were injured when a gunman attacked the Centre Cultural Islamique de Quebec.
Military phases out relief effort in New Brunswick as power returns to region
The military is phasing out its presence in New Brunswick as power steadily returns to the storm-ravaged Acadian peninsula. The Canadian Armed Forces said in a statement Sunday that conditions in parts of the province have improved to point where military support is no longer necessary.
Doing the math: do the factors that led to Trump add up in Canada?
Kevin O’Leary makes a point at the Conservative leadership candidates’ debate, in Halifax on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2017. Conservatives vote for a new party leader on May 27, 2017.
A man looks over a brochure offering retirement savings options.
A decision by an Ontario public pension manager to study the potential consequences of climate change is the latest sign that pension plans are increasingly becoming concerned about how it can hurt the bottom line. OPTrust released a report last week that reviewed how four climate scenarios, factoring in policy changes and disasters including hurricanes and wildfires, would affect its $18 billion portfolio.
Why are police calling so many sexual-assault complaints ‘unfounded’?
The revelation that Canadian police are routinely mislabelling sexual-assault complaints as “unfounded” – a classification that means no crime was committed – is shocking. This cold clerical error is depriving the public of an accurate picture of the magnitude of sexual assault in Canada.
Saskatchewan premier concerned about Tundra Energy’s latest oil spill
Premier Brad Wall says two recent oil spills in Saskatchewan are unfortunate, but the response by the company involved has been promising. Wall was responding to a 5,000-litre crude oil spill earlier this week at a Tundra Energy terminal 270 kilometres southeast of Regina.
‘It’s our turn,’ say Eastern Shore parents who’ve spent years fighting for new school
People who have spent three years lobbying for a new school in Musquodoboit Harbour, N.S., say they’re upset with the provincial government’s decision to build a new school in Spryfield. Jean McKenna, whose children graduated from Eastern Shore District School, said the building is outdated, contains asbestos and needs to have water trucked in three times a day.
Author Bharati Mukherjee dies at age 76
Indian author Bharati Mukherjee, part of a Canadian and American literary power couple with her husband writer Clark Blaise, died Saturday in New York at 76. Mukherjee, who was born in Kolkata, is known around the world for her books including The Middleman and Other Stories, which won the National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction, that deal with immigrant life and trying to create a new identity for oneself – something she knew well from the experience of her own life. “She was an early writer dealing with the kinds of tensions that we’re still dealing with today,” said Iris Tupholme, her editor at HarperCollins Canada.
MLS last holdout as NASL joins USL in treating Canadian, U.S. players the same
The North American Soccer League has joined the United Soccer League in counting Canadian players as domestics south of the border, leaving Major League Soccer as the lone holdout. “Canadian players have played a big role in the development of our league on the field,” NASL interim commissioner Rishi Sehgal said in a statement Thursday.
Trudeau breaks a campaign promise
First-past-the-post isn’t going anywhere The Liberals have backed away from their campaign promise to reform the electoral system. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and former democratic institutions minister Maryam Monsef had been criticized for how they’d been handling the file: dismissing feedback from the electoral reform committee and an unpopular online survey.
Outdoor show kicks off Coldsnap
William Kuklis will open the Globally Inspired Roots and Harmonies show Sunday at the Playhouse, as part of this yearA’s Coldsnap music festival. – Handout photo William Kuklis will open the Globally Inspired Roots and Harmonies show Sunday at the Playhouse, as part of this yearA’s Coldsnap music festival.
Maui’s ‘top of the world’ sunrise view leads to overcrowding
Well before dawn each morning, throngs of tourists from around the world make their way to Maui’s tallest peak, a dormant volcano, to see what Mark Twain called the “sublimest spectacle” he ever witnessed. They drive up a long, winding road through the clouds to an otherworldly, lava-rock landscape at 10,000 feet.
‘I think the community just needed this’ says vigil organizer
People seen holding lit candles during a vigil Feb. 1, 2017 at the courthouse in support of the local Muslim community. Kenneth Armstrong/SooToday A diverse crowd of Saulites braved the cold tonight in a show of support for the local Muslim community, who are grieving Sunday’s tragic Quebec City mosque shooting.
Where 14 Conservative leadership candidates stand on social issues
Leadership candidates prepare for the Conservative Party French language leadership debate, in in Quebec City, on Tuesday, January 17, 2017. When it comes to social issues, there are stark differences between the 14 different candidates running for the Conservative leadership, which will be decided May 27. While Kevin O’Leary and Rick Peterson support same-sex marriage, legal abortion and doctor-assisted death, Brad Trost and Peter Lemieux are on the opposite end of the spectrum.
RCMP officer featured in documentary
Penticton RCMP officer Dan Moskaluk is advocating for a non-animal protein diet in the latest documentary Eating You Alive. Eating You Alive is about the connection between dietary habits and chronic diseases, a large theme in Moskaluk’s life.
Toronto Argonauts sign former NFL linebacker Victor Butler to CFL deal
Linebacker Victor Butler, who was suspended in 2015 for violating the NFL’s drug policy, was among three Americans signed by the Toronto Argonauts on Wednesday. The six-foot-two, 245-pound Butler spent seven NFL seasons with Dallas , New Orleans , Arizona and Indianapolis and the New York Giants .
Khari Wendell McClelland charts ancestral path from slavery in ‘Freedom Singer’
Khari Wendell McClelland sought to trace the path travelled by his ancestors and other African-American slaves who fled to Canada in search of freedom. But as he embarked on his cross-Canada journey researching the history of the Underground Railroad and his own great-great-great-grandmother Kizzy, McClelland unearthed a connection which deepened his interest and ties to their stories.
Nickelback plan summer tour, debut new song
The Alberta rockers released the first new single on Tuesday – also titled “Feed the Machine” – and plans for an extensive run of summer concerts that stop in seven Canadian cities. Included among the dates are shows in Toronto on June 27, in Montreal on June 29 and a run of concerts in Western Canada throughout late September.
Tories criticize Trudeau over letter to Fox, say the PM has better things to do
The Opposition Conservatives are criticizing the Prime Minister’s Office for complaining to Fox News about a tweet identifying the suspect in the Quebec City mosque shooting as “Moroccan.” In an open letter to Fox News Channel co-president Bill Shine, PMO Communications Director Kate Purchase wrote that Canada is “an open, welcoming country that stands by its citizens.”
Whistler Film Festival invites screenwriters and producers to apply for lab programs
This was demonstrated again in November 2016 when it screened La La Land on its opening night, well in advance of the movie’s general release. La La Land , starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, went on to receive 14 Oscar nominations , tying a record set by Titanic and All About Eve .
List of some terrorism cases in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau branded the Quebec mosque massacre as a terrorist attack, although the accused in the rampage is only facing murder charges. Here are some recent high-profile cases involving terrorism-related offences: Hiva Alizadeh: The Ottawa resident, who wanted to form a terrorist group dedicated to violent jihad in Canada, pleaded guilty to explosives possession with the intent to cause harm as part of a terrorist conspiracy in 2014.
Hate crimes spike in Montreal after Quebec City mosque shooting
There have been 14 reports of hate crimes in Montreal since the Quebec City mosque shooting Sunday, said Montreal police chief Philippe Pichet . From May to December last year, there were 55 reported hate crimes; a 20 per cent increase from 2015 to 2016.
Man who beheaded Greyhound bus passenger seeking discharge: family
The mother of a man beheaded by a fellow bus passenger in Manitoba says her son’s killer is seeking an absolute discharge nine years after he was found not criminally responsible. Carol de Delley says she has been told by justice officials that Vince Li – who now goes by the name Will Baker – will ask the Criminal Code Review Board for a discharge at a hearing Feb. 6. In a social media post, de Delley says that means no conviction will be registered and he won’t be required to follow any conditions.
Man who beheaded Greyhound bus passenger seeking discharge: family
The mother of a man beheaded by a fellow bus passenger in Manitoba says her son’s killer is seeking an absolute discharge nine years after he was found not criminally responsible. Carol de Delley says she has been told by justice officials that Vince Li – who now goes by the name Will Baker – will ask the Criminal Code Review Board for a discharge at a hearing Feb. 6. In a social media post, de Delley says that means no conviction will be registered and he won’t be required to follow any conditions.
Quebec City, Ottawa and Halifax among centres with vigils for mosque shooting victims
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke at a vigil in Quebec City on Monday for those killed and injured in a shooting in one of the city’s mosques. He told the crowd that Canada stands with the Muslim community and will protect their right to gather together and pray.
‘Ovation worm’: Bizarre new Burgess Shale species detailed in journal
The Ovatiovermis is shown in a handout photo from the Royal Ontario Museum. Researchers with the Royal Ontario Museum have for the first time identified an 18-limbed worm that lived some 500 million years ago.