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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Facebook blasted by Canadian privacy watchdogs for breaking law and refusal to acknowledge findings
A joint investigation of the federal and B.C. privacy commissioners found Facebook committed “serious contraventions of Canadian privacy laws” and claims the company is refusing to accept the findings or make requested changes.
According to their report, Facebook:
- failed to ensure third-party apps obtained valid and meaningful consent from its users about information-sharing
- had inadequate safeguards to protect user information and
- failed to be accountable for the user information under its control.
The news comes a day after Facebook said that it expected to be fined up to US$5-billion by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission for privacy violations.
The Canadian investigation was launched early last year in response to the international scandal involving the misuse of Facebook data by Cambridge Analytica. Facebook has yet to comment.
China expands its Belt and Road initiative – and global influence – amid dwindling Western opposition
If China’s globe-spanning, heavy-spending Belt and Road Initiative defies easy description, that’s at least in part because few even in China itself seem to know exactly what it includes (for subscribers).
As Beijing prepared to host 37 national leaders to its second Belt and Road summit this week, state media produced reports studded with big numbers and complicated maps overlaid with new routes for the transport of goods.
The fact that this is a club led by Beijing – which has opposed that characterization – rather than by Washington underscores how rapidly China’s global standing is shifting.
Bombardier slashes profit, revenue outlook; stock tumbles on train-unit woes
Bombardier Inc. has slashed its financial estimates for 2019 amid ongoing struggles in its train unit, dealing another blow to its turnaround efforts.
The company says that its aerospace businesses are “on track,” but cautioned that its full-year revenues likely will not meet its original targets, “mainly due to [a] revised transportation outlook.”
Bombardier now expects its 2019 total revenue to come in roughly US$1-billion lower than it originally expected, representing a 5.5-per-cent drop. Shares tumbled 15 per cent on the TSX to close at $2.48.
Federal carbon-tax revenue seen topping forecasts but most will still come out ahead, PBO says
The federal carbon tax will take in more revenue than Ottawa has forecast, but government rebates will ensure all but the highest-income Canadians come out ahead, the Parliamentary Budget Office says in a report (for subscribers).
The tax kicked in on April 1 in four provinces – Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and New Brunswick – that do not have their own carbon levy. The federal government also has vowed to impose it in Alberta if premier-designate Jason Kenney carries through on his promise to scrap that province’s carbon tax.
Conservative politicians, oil executives map out strategy for ousting federal Liberals
Top Conservative politicians met with oil-industry executives at a private conference to map out strategy for ousting Justin Trudeau’s Liberals in a sign of growing collaboration between the sector and its political backers ahead of the next federal election (for subscribers).
The event reflects the deep ties between federal Conservatives and more activist elements of the Alberta-based oil industry that blame Liberal policies on issues such as pipelines and climate change for job losses and investor apathy that have dogged the sector.
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ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Joe Biden launches White House bid: Former U.S. vice-president Joe Biden announced the third presidential bid of his career on social media today, drawing a stark contrast between himself and President Donald Trump. He became the Democrats’ instant front-runner.
Ontario cancels tree-planting program: Ontario is cancelling a program aimed at planting 50 million trees, with those involved warning the move will lead to the loss of jobs and environmental benefits that forests provide (for subscribers).
Anzac Day memorials: Tens of thousands gathered in Australia and New Zealand at Anzac Day memorials today amid heightened security following the shooting massacre at Christchurch mosques and deadly suicide bombings of churches and hotels in Sri Lanka.
Anzac Day commemorates the bloody battle involving thousands of troops from the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) on the Gallipoli peninsula in Turkey during the First World War.
Vlad Jr. set to make MLB debut: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., regarded as the top prospect in baseball, will make his much-anticipated major-league debut tomorrow when the Toronto Blue Jays play host to the Oakland Athletics.
Stamp honours Vancouver Asahi: A new Canada Post stamp honours the Vancouver Asahi, an amateur Japanese-Canadian baseball team that used sport to battle racism and discrimination (for subscribers).
(Canada Post/The Canadian Press) /The Canadian Press
MARKET WATCH
Canada’s main stock index finished flat today, hurt by a drop in Bombardier’s shares following a weak full-year outlook. The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX Composite index closed down 10.42 points at 16,576.10.
On Wall Street, strong results by Facebook and Microsoft kept the tech-rich Nasdaq near record highs and offset a drop in 3M, United Parcel Service and other industrials.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 134.97 points to 26,462.08, the S&P 500 dropped 1.08 points to 2,926.17 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 16.67 points to 8,118.68.
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TALKING POINTS
Donald Trump’s intransigence puts Washington on the brink of a dangerous constitutional confrontation
“Mr. Trump’s defiance is yet another breach of contemporary American political practice, a notion that many Republicans acknowledge in private. But the zeal of Mr. Trump’s rivals to force this confrontation has the potential of backfiring on the Democrats.” - David Shribman
Don’t toss recycling in the garbage. Here’s why
“Better technologies do exist and they all have one thing in common: Instead of sorting and bundling complex plastic packages for resale, they break them down into their basic molecules, which can be disposed of cleanly or resold profitably.” - Jane Kearns, senior adviser of Cleantech at MaRS Discovery District
Bonding on Netflix: Fun and filthy frolics in the dominatrix world
“What unfolds in the dominatrix world is not for your delectation if you have issues with frank talk about fetishes and what a dominatrix actually does. At the same time, there’s a jaunty quality to the comedy that is adorable.” - John Doyle (for subscribers)
LIVING BETTER
As many of us re-examine our lifestyle decisions to make better choices for the planet, don’t overlook your personal-care routine. From disposable razors to excessive packaging, this area can be a major source of household waste. One common cosmetic is being repurposed for an innovative second life in animal care: mascara. At wildlife rescue organizations around the world, old mascara wands are collected and used to brush and clean the feathers and fur of rescued critters.
LONG READ FOR A LONG COMMUTE
How the fight over Thunder Bay’s century-old James Street Bridge points way to spanning a racial divide
People watched from their windows as thick black smoke reached high above the silver birch trees along City Road on the night the bridge caught fire. A blaze that size, on a structure that important, couldn’t help but draw attention.
For more than 100 years, the James Street Swing Bridge had been a key link between the city of Thunder Bay and neighbouring Fort William First Nation − two communities set apart physically by the broad Kaministiquia River but equally by heritage and history.
On the evening of Oct. 29, 2013, the sight of that lifeline becoming a barrier brought out dark speculation. Some in town suggested that residents of the reserve had set the fire, to get a new bridge built; others on the reserve wondered if city-dwellers had lit the match, to keep their Indigenous neighbours out. Read Eric Andrew-Gee’s full story here.
(Photo by David Jackson for The Globe and Mail)David Jackson/The Globe and Mail
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