🔫 Carney unveils public-safety proposals, plans to launch gun-buyback program

Liberal Leader Mark Carney says he will reinvigorate the gun-buyback program that the federal government has failed to launch for several years as part of his plan to crack down on organized crime and strengthen gun control in the country.

The Liberal Party first proposed a buyback program for assault-style rifles in the 2019 campaign, and the government says the program is expected to launch later this year.
#Carney
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Eby directs B.C. government to scrap U.S. contracts ‘where viable’ amid Trump trade war

British Columbia is stepping up its non-tariff retaliation against the United States, amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war and annexation threats.

The province has previously directed Crown corporations and government agencies to avoid U.S. products where possible.

On Thursday, Premier David Eby said they are now being directed to — wherever possible — cancel American contracts, subscriptions, travel plans and membership in trade organizations.
#US
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🗳🇨🇳 Liberal candidate Peter Yuen, chosen to replace Paul Chiang, linked to pro-Beijing groups, events

The Liberal candidate selected by Mark Carney to replace one who dropped out over a China-related controversy is a member of a Beijing-friendly lobby organization and has given talks at events honouring a Toronto group that advocates for the annexation of Taiwan by China.

Onetime Toronto police deputy chief Peter Yuen, who is now carrying the Liberal banner in the Toronto-area riding of Markham-Unionville, succeeded Paul Chiang.

The former MP stepped down April 1 after news broke that he had talked to reporters about how someone could take a Conservative candidate and human-rights advocate to the Chinese consulate to claim a bounty put on him by Hong Kong authorities.
#election #China
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Poilievre promises tougher ethics rules, takes aim at Carney’s assets

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is promising to tighten financial transparency rules for elected officials -- and is using that promise to take aim at Liberal Leader Mark Carney.

We will eliminate the lobbying loophole and require anyone who is acting as an adviser to government officials to declare themselves and register as a lobbyist, whenever they are advising on matters that touch upon their financial interests or that of their company.

He said this rule would have forced Carney to register as a lobbyist when he advised former prime minister Justin Trudeau through the Liberal party.
#Poilievre #Carney
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Largest First Nation reserve in Canada files lawsuit over unsafe drinking water

Canada’s largest First Nation is taking Ottawa to court over unsafe and inadequate water systems that don’t reach most homes on its reserve, demanding an immediate fix and at least $25-million in compensation.

Six Nations of the Grand River is situated within Ontario’s Greater Golden Horseshoe, the most densely populated region in the country.

The allegations have not been tested in court and the federal government has not yet filed a statement of defence.

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🚨🗳 Conservatives left without candidate in Quebec Centre

Elections Canada has rejected Chanie Thériault, the Conservative Party’s candidate for Quebec Centre, due to incomplete nomination papers. This non-appealable decision leaves the Conservatives without a contender against former Liberal minister Jean-Yves Duclos. The Bloc Québécois is gaining momentum in the absence of a Conservative rival.

The Conservatives claim Thériault’s exclusion violates her constitutional rights, but Elections Canada insists the Canada Elections Act does not allow for appeals.
#Quebec #election
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📝 Conservative candidate alleges election signs stolen in Nepean

Conservative candidate Barbara Bal has filed a police report, claiming hundreds of her election signs in Ottawa's Nepean riding were stolen and destroyed.

She accuses Liberal campaign workers of replacing her signs with those of Mark Carney, the Liberal leader contesting his first election in the area.

The Carney campaign denies involvement, citing their own sign vandalism. The riding became contentious after Carney replaced longtime Liberal MP Chandra Arya, whose candidacy was revoked under unclear circumstances.
#election
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🔍City of Richmond under scrutiny for gift card spending

The City of Richmond faces calls for an investigation after spending nearly $450,000 in taxpayer funds on restaurant gift cards over three years.

Documents reveal significant discrepancies between reported and actual expenditures. Initially, the city stated costs were $32,800 (2022), $71,550 (2023), and $71,300 (2024), but actual figures were $156,000, $218,000, and $124,000, respectively.

The city claims the cards were for employee recognition, but an anonymous employee reported arbitrary distribution, sparking criticism amid a 6 percent tax hike planned for 2025.

#BritishColumbia
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🏟 Calgary stampede secures $90M land deal for Scotia Place developments

The Calgary Stampede has secured a $90 million land deal, including a $23 million land sale and a $66.9 million land swap, as part of the Scotia Place event centre developments in Calgary.

This project, part of the Culture + Entertainment District, involves partnerships between the City of Calgary, CSEC, and the Province of Alberta. With $232 million already invested, the new event centre is set to replace the Saddledome by fall 2027. The development aims to boost tourism and employment, with nearly 1,000 hotel rooms planned near the BMO Centre.
#Alberta
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📉 Inflation in Canada cooled slightly to 2.3% in March as gas prices fell

Statistics Canada says the annual inflation rate was 2.3 per cent in March, down from 2.6 per cent in February.

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🏳️‍⚧️ Carney vows to allow minors to undergo sex changes if he wins

Prime Minister Mark Carney has pledged to defend sex change treatments for minors, describing the procedures as a "fundamental right" for all Canadians. Carney made the remarks during a recent press briefing in Alberta, when asked about the province's proposed restrictions on sex changes drugs.

Canada is a mosaic, people can be who they are, they can love who they love. Access to health care in Canada is not a business, it is a fundamental right, and we will defend it for all Canadians, without exception.

#Carney #Alberta #election
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🚙 Honda denies reports that it intends to move auto production out of Canada

Honda Canada says it is not planning to move production out of Canada to the U.S., contrary to reports from a Japanese news outlet.

Nikkei newspaper reported Tuesday that Honda is working on plans to switch some production from Mexico and Canada to the U.S., after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a 25 per cent auto tariff last month.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford and a spokesperson for federal Minister of Industry Anita Anand said early Tuesday those reports were not accurate.
#US
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B.C. will only accept 1,100 new immigrant applications with nominations focusing on health care

The British Columbia government says the odds of new applications from immigrants looking to be accepted into its nominee program this year have dropped to near zero for anyone other than health workers or entrepreneurs after the federal government slashed the number of available slots.

The program, which help immigrants already living in Canada gain permanent residency if they fill key jobs, will accept 1,100 new applications this year, mainly for doctors, nurses and other health professionals as well as entrepreneurs.

It says most of the remaining 2,900 slots will be used to nominate some of the applications it has already received.
#BritishColumbia
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Greens not running candidates in certain federal ridings in bid to stop Conservatives: party spokesperson

The Green Party says it has decided not to run candidates in some federal ridings in order to boost progressive parties and stop the Conservatives from forming government in the April 28 election.

The party is facing scrutiny for being included in this week’s federal leaders’ debates because it has only 232 candidates formally nominated with Elections Canada. There are 343 ridings across the country.
#election
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🇺🇸 Trump still wants Canada to be the 51st U.S. state, White House says

U.S. President Donald Trump still wants Canada to become the country’s 51st state, the White House said.

Asked Tuesday if there was a reason for the apparent softening of tone, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt denied there was any change in Trump’s posture behind the scenes.
#US
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Green Party dropped from leaders' debates for not running enough candidates

The Leaders' Debates Commission, which is tasked with organizing the French and English debates, has removed the Green Party from federal leaders' debates for failing to meet participation requirements.

Parties must meet two of the following three criteria in order to be invited to the debates: having at least one sitting MP who's been elected as a member of that party; having at least four per cent national support in opinion polls; and running candidates in at least 90 per cent of all ridings.
#election
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Ontario to loosen internal trade, remove barriers on alcohol and labour mobility

Ford’s government tabled legislation Wednesday aimed at loosening interprovincial trade and signed memorandums of understanding with the premiers of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick agreeing that a good, service or registered worker that is recognized in one province is acceptable in the other.

Why did we have to wait for a trade war to break out to start addressing this problem?
#Ontario #NovaScotia #NewBrunswick
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🇺🇸 Nearly 900,000 fewer people went to the U.S. in March as cross-border travel plummets

The number of cross-border travellers going from Canada to the U.S. dropped by nearly 900,000 in March compared to the same month last year.

The border figures show 4,105,516 travellers crossed the U.S. northern border in March of this year, down from 4,970,360 people who did the same in 2024 — a roughly 17 per cent decline.
#US #border
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🇺🇸 ‘Hold the line’: B.C. government reacts to California governor’s plea for Canadian tourists

The Governor of California Gavin Newsom made a pitch for Canadians to visit his state. The governor went on to distance California from President Donald Trump, pleading for the two million Canadians who typically visit to continue vacationing in his state.

Two thousand miles away from Washington, and a world away in mindset.

- Gavin Newsom.

It comes after B.C. Premier David Eby has repeatedly discouraged British Columbians from travelling to the States, even cancelling his own family’s spring break trip to Disneyland in March.

Our message to British Columbians, to Canadians, is hold the line. It’s working.

- Ravi Kahlon, chair of the B.C. cabinet committee.
#US
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🛢🇨🇳🇺🇸 China pivots from US to Canada for more oil as trade war worsens

Chinese refiners are importing record amounts of Canadian crude after slashing purchases of US oil by roughly 90% amid escalating trade tensions.

A pipeline expansion in Western Canada that opened less than a year ago has presented China and other East Asian oil importers with expanded access to the vast crude reserves in Alberta’s oilsands region.

Chinese crude imports from the port at the pipeline terminus near Vancouver soared to an unprecedented 7.3 million barrels in March and are on pace to exceed that figure this month. Meanwhile, Chinese imports of US oil have collapsed to 3 million barrels a month from a peak of 29 million in June.
#US #China #Alberta
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Debates chief cancels post-debate Q&A after Rebel News clashes with reporters

The head of the Leaders' Debates Commission cancelled a planned question-and-answer session between journalists and party leaders scheduled to take place after Thursday's English-language debate, following heated exchanges between reporters and representatives of the right-wing media group Rebel News.

The commission's executive director Michel Cormier also said Thursday he was not aware that Rebel News had registered as an official third party in the federal election when the commission gave the group more opportunities to question leaders following Wednesday's French debate than most mainstream outlets.
#election
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