Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:
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Competition Bureau seeks to block Rogers’ takeover of Shaw
The Competition Bureau has requested an order from the Competition Tribunal blocking Rogers Communications Inc.’s $26-billion takeover of Shaw Communications Inc., arguing that the deal would substantially lessen competition by eliminating Rogers’ closest competitor in the wireless sector.
The two communication companies said in a press release over the weekend that they have offered to address the bureau’s concerns by proposing to sell all of Freedom Mobile, Shaw’s wireless business. The companies are currently engaged in a sale process for Freedom. The Globe previously reported that Quebecor Inc. has been invited to join the talks, which would help the telecom and media company expand out of Quebec, where it is a dominant player, onto a national stage
- Markets: The stock price of Shaw slumped more than 7 per cent in early afternoon trading on Monday, reflecting dimming hopes that Rogers will be able to complete its takeover of the Calgary-based telecommunications firm.
- Opinion: Rogers failed to listen to Ottawa, and now its Shaw deal is in jeopardy
Ukraine today: Putin’s muted Victory Day speech claims Russian invasion was success
On a day meant to showcase his country’s military might, Russia’s Victory Day had a smaller-than-usual parade of Russian forces rolling through Red Square. State media reported that 11,000 troops took part in the annual spectacle, which celebrates the defeat of Nazi Germany.
The real reason for the shrunken display of power was the unexpectedly fierce resistance the Russian army has encountered since Putin ordered his forces into Ukraine on Feb. 24, according to senior international correspondent Mark MacKinnon. The war that Kremlin officials expected would be over within days has now entered its 11th week.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, in his own Victory Day address, said his country would triumph over Russian forces, who are still advancing on the country’s eastern regions.
- Also today: Macron proposes new political union for European countries not in bloc
Alberta’s sole female heart surgeon alleges discrimination in complaint against health agency
Dr. Teresa Kieser is photographed at the Heritage Medical Research Building at the University of Calgary Foothills in Calgary on Thursday, April 14, 2022.Sarah B Groot/The Globe and Mail
Teresa Kieser, the only female cardiac surgeon in Alberta, has filed a human-rights complaint against the province’s health agency alleging years of pay inequity, pervasive sexism and gender-based discrimination. Dr. Kieser alleges that since beginning her career as a cardiothoracic and vascular surgeon in 1988 at Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary, where she still works, she has been made to battle institutional barriers, harassment, a general lack of respect and many baseless complaints about her professional abilities – all because she is a woman.
Last year, The Globe and Mail looked at the unique challenges facing women in medicine as part of an investigative series called Power Gap, which examined gender inequities in the work force.
Almost nine years after disaster struck Lac-Mégantic, a controversial rail bypass is set to be built
Yolande Boulanger, referring to maps showing the route of a proposed rail detour that will pass close by her home in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, is photographed on Mar 17, 2022.Fred Lum/the Globe and Mail
Nearly a decade after the rail accident that devastated Lac-Mégantic, the federal government is expected to finally begin construction on a long-delayed rail bypass that is intended to heal psychological wounds by rerouting the tracks along a more rural area.
But in a region where almost everyone has an intimate link to the tragedy, the bypass has gradually turned from a source of celebration into one of bitter controversy. Though moving the tracks seemed like an obvious first step, where to put it because difficult to decide. “There are people who tell me, ‘Every time I hear the whistle, I jump; I get a shiver,’” said Julie Morin, the city’s mayor.
ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Death toll in Havana Hotel explosion rises to 35: More bodies were pulled from the ruins of a luxury hotel in Cuba’s capital today. Authorities said the cause of the explosion was still under investigation.
Son of Philippines dictator Marcos headed for presidency: Ferdinand Marcos Jr was headed for a stunning victory in the Philippines’ presidential election on Monday with double the votes of his nearest rival, putting the son of the notorious late dictator on the cusp of a historic political fightback.
How labour shortages are slowing the aviation industry’s resurgence: Canada’s airlines are seeing a resurgence in travel, but have collided with a shortage of people working at airports. That, along with lingering pandemic measures, is adding to the amount of time it takes to make it from terminal to tarmac, or vice versa.
MARKET WATCH
The S&P 500 ended below 4,000 for the first time since March 2021 and the Nasdaq dropped more than 4% on Monday, closing at its lowest level since November 2020, in a selloff led by mega-cap growth shares as investors grew more concerned about rising interest rates.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 653.67 points to 32,245.7, the S&P 500 lost 132.1 points to 3,991.24 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 521.41 points to 11,623.25. The energy sector sector fell 8.3% as oil prices dropped.
The Canadian dollar weakened to its lowest level in nearly five months against its U.S. counterpart as investors grew more worried about the global economic outlook after China’s two largest cities tightened COVID-19 curbs.
- Opinion: As interest rates rise, the economy may already be descending from its peak
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TALKING POINTS
Maternal death is rare in Canada. But it’s not rare enough
André Picard: “The very least we can do is learn from these tragedies. We need to count the cases properly, study them thoroughly and, after critical reviews, work on prevention.”
Assisted dying must not be confused for palliative care
Dr. Ebru Kaya and Dr. Leonie Herx: “The expectation that MAID and MAIL can develop in parallel is a fantasy – and the most vulnerable among us risk paying the price.”
The Leafs need to learn what Tampa already knows: worrying doesn’t help
Cathal Kelly: “Some other coaches in some other cities can get away with it because they’ve got a big enough boat. Keefe, coach of the cursed Toronto Maple Leafs, is out there in an inflatable raft.”
LIVING BETTER
Can’t afford steak? Don’t even think about buying veggie burgers
Swapping your beef burger for the plant-based variety might feel like a good move for the environment. But saving the planet isn’t going to save you any cash. A recent study from Dalhousie University found that meat alternatives remain an average of 38 per cent more expensive than the animal products they seek to reproduce, even amid escalating meat prices.
Vegetarian imitations of meat-based meals and entrées cost approximately twice as much as the regular variety, while faux burger patties were on average more than 70 per cent pricier, according to the study, which compared 100 grams worth of plant- and animal-based products using data points from across the country.
TODAY’S LONG READ
Woodfibre LNG employees at the project’s industrial site near Squamish, B.C., looking out over Howe Sound.John Lehmann/Woodfibre LNG
Canada’s problems getting LNG to a thirsty world are allowing U.S. competitors to thrive
Canada has a golden opportunity to help Europe as they scramble to reduce its dependence on natural gas from Russia. But entering the LNG export game requires deep pockets and a strong mindset for placing risky bets on terminals that typically take at least five years to construct – assuming builders already have their pipeline route plans firmed up.
From difficult terrain to pipeline politics, Canada is so close to becoming a global liquefied natural gas player, but faces obstacles. In short, although Canada is the world’s sixth-largest producer of natural gas, it isn’t in any position to help Europe quickly and directly with LNG supplies.
Evening Update is written by Sierra Bein. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.