LP_468x60
ontario news watch
on-the-record-468x60-white
and-another-thing-468x60

FREDERICTON — New Brunswick opposition parties say the premier lacks compassion because he responded to the recent deaths of two homeless people by invoking legislation that could force the unhoused into addiction treatment.

Liberal Leader Susan Holt says Blaine Higgs’ comments at the legislature on Tuesday failed to show empathy for the two people killed in a tent fire at an encampment near a highway on-ramp in Saint John.

Higgs said that some people “just don’t want to come off the street,” in response to an opposition question about how his government would prevent tent fires at encampments.

The premier added that his government will table legislation to help people into shelters when their lives are in danger. 

In the fall, Public Safety Minister Kris Austin told the CBC that the government planned to table a bill that would give police the power to force people into drug rehabilitation in extreme cases. 

Both Holt and Green Party Leader David Coon say they are concerned that the premier brought up the bill in the context of homelessness, adding that the legislation is problematic and potentially harmful. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 27, 2024.

The Canadian Press


EDMONTON — The Alberta government is asking the federal government for more control over provincial immigration.

Premier Danielle Smith has written a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asking him to re-evaluate his government’s decision that places limits on the numbers for Alberta’s provincial nominee program in 2024.

She says Alberta has been informed it will receive less than 10,000 allotments but says it should be double that number given Alberta is a key driver of jobs and the national economy.

The program nominates people for permanent residence in Alberta if they have skills to fill job shortages or plan to start a business.

Smith says there are 57,000 Ukrainians who came to Alberta after the beginning of the Russian invasion and says the province would like to see more.

The federal Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel ended last summer but visa holders have until the end of the month to arrive in Canada.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 27, 2024.

The Canadian Press


VANCOUVER — The federal government wants to support those who rent their homes with a protection fund, a bill of rights and a plan to give reliable renters credit when they step up to by a home. 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says there’s something fundamentally unfair about paying $2,000 a month for rent, while those paying the same for a mortgage get equity and build their credit score. 

The measures are part of next month’s federal budget and include a $15-million Tenant Protection Fund, which would pay provincial legal aid groups to help tenants against unfairly rising rents, ‘renovictions’ or bad landlords. 

The Canadian Renters’ Bill of Rights would also need partnerships with provinces and territories to require landlords to disclose a history of unit pricing and create a national standard for lease agreements. 

The government wants landlords, banks and credit bureaus to make sure rental history is taken into account on credit scores, giving young first-time buyers a better chance at getting a mortgage, with a lower interest rate. 

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland says a no-holds-barred plan in the upcoming budget will help young Canadians “wrestle down” the cost of owning and renting a home. 

“We need to make real the promise of Canada for younger Canadians,” Freeland said. “We are going to pull every single lever and push every single button to deliver more housing without delay.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 27, 2024. 

The Canadian Press


HALIFAX — The Nova Scotia government has announced it is indexing income assistance rates to keep up with inflation.

Community Services Minister Brendan Maguire says the rates will be tied to the consumer price index and will rise by 2.5 per cent in the 2024-25 fiscal year.

The change will be implemented on July 1 with payments retroactive to April 1.

The minister says the change will mean an increase of about $35 a month for people living on low incomes.

According to the province there were 23,665 income assistance recipients in the province as of Feb. 1.

Maguire says the $7-million cost of the indexing will come from funds allocated to his department in the 2024-25 provincial budget that was introduced on Feb. 29.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 27, 2024.

The Canadian Press


Quebec is proposing a new legal status for unmarried, non-civil union couples with children that would set a framework for splitting family assets if the parents separate.

The “parental union” designation is the centrepiece of a family law reform bill that Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette introduced today.

Under a parental union certain property, including the family home, furniture and vehicles, would be considered by the government as common goods regardless of who paid for them.

The value of those goods would be evenly divided between the parents if they separated, though couples would be able to withdraw from that provision or adjust its scope.

Jolin-Barrette says the new status would give legal recognition to the large number of Quebec parents who are unmarried and would provide a wider safety net for their children.

The Quebec government says that the share of unmarried couples in the province has quintupled in the last 40 years, from eight per cent in 1981 to 42 per cent in 2021.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 27, 2024.

The Canadian Press


NEW YORK (AP) — The Federal Trade Commission is investigating TikTok over its data and security practices, a probe that could lead to a settlement or a lawsuit against the company, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The investigation is the latest battle in Washington for the social media company, which is already fighting against a federal bill that could ban the platform in the U.S. if it doesn’t break ties with its Beijing-based parent company, ByteDance.

In its investigation, the FTC has been looking into whether TikTok violated a portion of federal law that prohibits “unfair and deceptive” business practices by denying that individuals in China had access to U.S. user data, said the person, who is not authorized to discuss the investigation.

The agency also is scrutinizing the company over potential violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, which requires kid-oriented apps and websites to get parents’ consent before collecting personal information of children under 13.

FTC spokesperson Nicole Drayton and TikTok declined to comment on the investigation, which was first reported by Politico.

The agency is nearing the conclusion of its investigation and could settle with TikTok in the coming weeks. But there’s not a deadline for an agreement, the person said.

If the FTC moves forward with a lawsuit instead, it would have to refer the case to the Justice Department, which would have 45 days to decide whether it wants to file a case on the FTC’s behalf, make changes or send it back to the agency to pursue on its own.

The news comes nearly two years after Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner and Marco Rubio, the top Republican on the committee, urged FTC chair Lina Khan to investigate TikTok, citing a report from Buzzfeed News that said ByteDance employees in China have repeatedly accessed data on U.S. TikTok users.

In late 2022, ByteDance said it fired four employees who accessed data on journalists from Buzzfeed News and The Financial Times while attempting to track down leaks of confidential materials about the company.

Legislation that could determine TikTok’s fate in the U.S. was approved in the House this month. But the bill has already run into roadblocks in the Senate, where there is little unanimity on how to best approach concerns over the social platform.

Lawmakers and intelligence officials have said they worry the platform could be used by the Chinese government to access U.S. user data or influence Americans through its popular algorithm. To date, the U.S. government hasn’t provided public evidence that this has happened.

Haleluya Hadero, The Associated Press


OTTAWA — Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe says big polluters shouldn’t be forced to pay for their pollution — they should just emit less.

Moe appeared today at a House of Commons committee at the invitation of Conservative MPs to discuss his plea for Ottawa to kill off the carbon price.

Liberal, NDP and Bloc Québécois MPs pushed him to explain what he would do instead.

Moe says Saskatchewan industry and farmers have lowered their emissions and are displacing products overseas that have a higher carbon footprint.

He says nobody can call Saskatchewan businesses “climate laggards” and insists the carbon price makes it harder for families and businesses to lower their emissions.

Ontario Liberal MP Francis Drouin challenged Moe on why he hasn’t cut taxes he is in control of, such as the provincial sales tax on home heating, if he is so concerned about the cost of living.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 27, 2024.

The Canadian Press


OTTAWA — The federal Conservatives say they won’t be taking advice from “so-called experts” when it comes to carbon pricing, after more than 200 economists signed an open letter challenging Pierre Poilievre’s stance.

Instead, the party is pledging to listen to the “common sense of the common people.”

The comments come after economists associated with universities across Canada took aim at common claims in the heated debate over the policy. 

Economists are pushing back on assertions the carbon price has driven up the cost of living, and calling out opponents for failing to pitch a less costly alternative to reduce emissions.

The Opposition Conservatives have been almost singularly focused on abolishing the carbon price in the lead-up to the scheduled increase to the levy — from $65 to $80 — on April1.

In response to the letter, Tories say “experts” are living comfortably while forcing a 23 per cent tax hike on Canadians already struggling with affordability. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 27, 2024.

Laura Osman, The Canadian Press


Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.

The former president posted on social media that the gag order was “illegal, un-American, unConstitutional” and said Judge Juan M. Merchan was “wrongfully attempting to deprive me of my First Amendment Right to speak out against the Weaponization of Law Enforcement” by Democratic rivals.

The presumptive Republican presidential nominee also laid into Merchan’s daughter, a Democratic political consultant, noting that she had posted a photo on social media of him behind bars. An account appearing to belong to Loren Merchan on X, formerly known as Twitter, has a photo illustration of an imprisoned Trump as its profile picture. Loren Merchan’s consulting firm had linked to that account in a previous social media post.

The gag order does not bar comments about Merchan or his family, nor does it prohibit Trump from criticizing Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, the elected Democrat whose office is prosecuting him.

Messages seeking comment were left with Judge Merchan, Loren Merchan and a court spokesperson. Bragg’s office declined to comment on the gag order.

Trump’s post on Truth Social was his first reaction to the gag order, which Merchan issued on Tuesday, a day after he scheduled the trial to begin on April 15. Hours before the judge’s ruling, Trump had referred to Merchan in a Truth Social post as a “very distinguished looking man” and a “true and certified Trump Hater.”

Merchan’s order cited Trump’s history of “threatening, inflammatory, denigrating” remarks about people involved in his legal cases in granting the prosecution’s request for what it deemed a “narrowly tailored” gag order.

Though not covered by the gag order, Merchan referenced Trump’s various comments about him as an example of his rhetoric. The restrictions mirror ones imposed and largely upheld by a federal appeals court panel in Trump’s Washington, D.C., election interference criminal case.

Trump’s lawyers had fought a gag order, warning it would amount to unconstitutional and unlawful prior restraint on his free speech rights — an argument echoed by Trump in his Truth Social post.

Merchan had long resisted imposing a gag order, recognizing Trump’s “special” status as a former president and current candidate and not wanting to trample his ability to defend himself publicly. But, he said, as the trial nears, he found that his obligation to ensuring the integrity of the case outweighs First Amendment concerns. He said Trump’s statements have induced fear and necessitated added security measures to protect his targets and investigate threats.

“So, let me get this straight,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, “the Judge’s daughter is allowed to post pictures of her ‘dream’ of putting me in jail, the Manhattan D.A. is able to say whatever lies about me he wants, the Judge can violate our Laws and Constitution at every turn, but I am not allowed to talk about the attacks against me, and the Lunatics trying to destroy my life and prevent me from winning the 2024 Presidential Election, which I am dominating?”

“Maybe the Judge is such a hater because his daughter makes money by working to ‘Get Trump’ and when he rules against me over and over again, he is making her company, and her, richer and richer,” Trump continued. “How can this be allowed?”

Trump also accused President Joe Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland and their “Hacks and Thugs” of “tracking and following me all across the Country, obsessively trying to persecute me, while everyone knows I have done nothing wrong.”

The gag order bars Trump from either making or directing other people to make public statements on his behalf about hush-money trial jurors and potential witnesses, such as his lawyer turned nemesis Michael Cohen and porn star Stormy Daniels. It also prohibits any statements meant to interfere with or harass the court’s staff, prosecution team or their families.

A violation could result in Trump being held in contempt of court, fined or even jailed.

Trump’s hush-money case centers on allegations that he falsely logged payments to Cohen, then his personal lawyer, as legal fees in his company’s books when they were for his work during the 2016 campaign covering up negative stories about Trump. That included $130,000 Cohen paid Daniels on Trump’s behalf so she wouldn’t publicize her claim of a sexual encounter with him years earlier.

Trump pleaded not guilty last April to 34 counts of falsifying business records, a felony punishable by up to four years in prison, though there is no guarantee that a conviction would result in jail time. He denies having sex with Daniels and his lawyers have said that the payments to Cohen were legitimate legal expenses, not part of any coverup.

Michael R. Sisak, The Associated Press


The federal government will provide a $1.5 billion loan to restart a nuclear power plant in southwestern Michigan, officials announced Wednesday.

Holtec International acquired the 800-megawatt Palisades plant in 2022 with plans to dismantle it. But now the emphasis is on restarting it by late 2025, following support from the state of Michigan and the Biden administration.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said it would be the first nuclear power plant to be reopened in the U.S. It still faces hurdles, including inspections, testing and the blessing of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, known as the NRC.

“Nuclear power is our single largest source of carbon-free electricity, directly supporting 100,000 jobs across the country and hundreds of thousands more indirectly,” said Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, a former Michigan governor.

The Palisades plant is along Lake Michigan, a two-hour drive from Chicago. A Michigan utility, CMS Energy, owned it from 1971 until the plant was sold to Louisiana-based utility Entergy in 2007. It was shut down in 2022.

Holtec said it has long-term commitments so far from two electric cooperatives to buy power from the plant.

“The repowering of Palisades will restore safe, around-the-clock generation to hundreds of thousands of households, businesses and manufacturers,” said Kris Singh, Holtec president and chief executive.

Critics, however, have emerged. A coalition opposed to restarting what it derisively calls a “zombie reactor” has requested a hearing at the NRC.

Holtec spokesman Patrick O’Brien said it will take four to five months to finalize the financial deal with the government.

“It is a loan we have to pay back,” he said.

___

Follow Ed White on X, formerly Twitter, at https://twitter.com/edwritez

Ed White, The Associated Press