Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:
After yesterday’s federal election, Canadians woke up to a Parliament that looks very much like the one before: Mail-in ballots are still being counted, but as of this afternoon, the Liberals were leading or elected in 158 seats, followed by 119 seats for the Conservatives, 34 for the Bloc Québécois, 25 for the NDP and two for the Greens. The People’s Party of Canada did not win any seats and PPC Leader Maxime Bernier finished a distant second to the Conservatives in the Quebec riding of Beauce.
So what happens now? Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s minority government will face calls from the NDP for new taxes on the “ultra-rich” and calls from the Bloc Québécois for billions in new spending on health and seniors. But both Bloc Leader Yves-François Blanchet and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, who Trudeau will need to turn to for support in the House of Commons, are pledging to make the new Parliament work.
Opinion:
- New taxes, daycare and help for home buyers: How Liberal election promises will affect your finances - Rob Carrick
- Erin O’Toole and the Conservative Party brace for an ugly war over his shift to the left - Gary Mason
Read more: Notable winners and losers in the 2021 federal election
On today’s The Decibel podcast: Unpacking Canada’s federal election results
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Evergrande teeters on the edge of collapse. Will China step in to avoid a ‘Lehman moment’?
Evergrande, China’s second-largest property developer, has about US$300-billion in liabilities, with the first coming due this week: an US$83-million interest payment on a US$2-billion bond. Failure to pay could leave the company facing default, Asia correspondent James Griffiths writes.
The company’s mounting problems have caused anxiety in global financial markets as investors worry about the potential for an Asian reprise of the U.S. financial crisis of more than a decade ago.
Many investors are looking to the Chinese government, hoping Beijing will deem the property giant too big to fail and step in to keep it afloat. Beijing is not ideologically opposed to intervening to shore up markets but regulators may fear that propping up Evergrande could send the wrong message, given that the government is cracking down elsewhere on risky investments and excessive borrowing.
Explainer: What’s behind Evergrande’s debt struggle and why it’s rattling investors around the world
Read more: With Gucci bags and Dyson appliances, Evergrande wooed retail investors
The latest COVID-19 developments: Shandro reportedly out as Alberta Health Minister and Ontario vaccine passport system starts tomorrow
Developing story: Alberta Premier Jason Kenney is expected to replace Tyler Shandro with Jason Copping, the current Labour Minister, as the new health minister at a ceremony later today, sources tell The Canadian Press. Shandro and Kenney have been facing sharp criticism for their handling of the COVID-19 crisis that has pushed the provincial health care system to the brink of collapse.
As Ontario prepares to bring in its vaccine certificate system tomorrow, Premier Doug Ford says he knows many people are concerned about their civil liberties being impeded. But he says the greater concern is having to lock down the province again, or experience a sudden surge in cases.
ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Germany’s wild-card race for chancellor: A new German chancellor to replace Angela Merkel after a decade and a half in power will be determined by an election on Sept. 26 – a choice following a campaign that has focused more on character than policy. Germans are seeking a steady hand to carry them through the remainder of the pandemic, combat the climate crisis and maintain the country’s central force as a unifying power in the European Union.
CF Industries to restart U.K. operations: Britain has struck a deal with CF Industries for the American company to restart the production of carbon dioxide (CO2) after soaring gas prices forced it to halt operations, threatening the supply of meat in the country.
Prince Andrew served with lawsuit: Britain’s Prince Andrew has been served with a sexual-assault lawsuit in the United States by lawyers for Virginia Giuffre, who says she was forced to have sex with him at the London home of a friend of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, court papers show.
MARKET WATCH
U.S. stocks ended near flat today after a broad selloff yesterday, with worries over troubles at developer China Evergrande and uncertainty ahead of tomorrow’s Federal Reserve policy news keeping a lid on the market. Canada’s main stock market posted a modest gain following its worst day since January. with the re-election of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberals reassuring investors that the outlook for the economy would continue to improve.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 50.63 points or 0.15 per cent to 33,919.84, the S&P 500 slipped 3.56 points or 0.08 per cent to 4,354.17 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 32.50 points or 0.22 per cent to 14,746.40.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 89.75 points or 0.45 per cent to 20,244.29.
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TALKING POINT
McGill must do more to prevent COVID-19 outbreaks on campus
“Where many universities follow best practices and are proactive in preventing infections on campus and in their communities, McGill has taken the attitude that everything will simply turn out okay. We have seen this story before and it never turns out well.” - Richard Gold and Joanne Liu, professors at McGill University
LIVING BETTER
The good news about coffee is that its benefits go beyond a morning pick-me-up: Data suggest drinking three to five cups of coffee a day lowers the risk of many chronic health ailments, including type 2 diabetes and heart disease. (Researchers define a cup of coffee as six or eight ounces.) But too much caffeine can cause headaches, make you irritable or anxious, interfere with sleep, upset digestion and spike blood pressure. If you’re worried you’re drinking too much zoom juice, check out consumption guidelines and strategies to cut back here.
TODAY’S LONG READ
My mother and her family might be the oldest siblings in Canada
My mother and her siblings, all Holocaust survivors, might just be the oldest in Canada. Amazingly, they have spent nearly all their lives together. At 99, 98, 96, and 94 they make a formidable quartet. There are three sisters – Sally Singer, 99, Anne Novak, 98, and Ruth Zimmer, 94 – and a brother Sol Fink, 96.
Having faced hunger during the war, food became one of life’s big pleasures, and not surprisingly the sisters all cooked the same wonderful dishes. As a testament to their culinary skills, my Auntie Ruthie was in the pilot episode of a cooking show starring grandmothers called Loving Spoonfuls.
Another common denominator is their desire to have fun. Whether it be writing and performing skits and songs, dressing up in costumes, imitating quirky family members or celebrities, or telling off-colour jokes, they make each other howl.
From my mother, aunts and uncle, I have learned many life lessons – to treasure family, celebrate every milestone, cook excellent dishes and forgive small transgressions. Read Carol Sevitt’s full essay here.
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