Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:
In response to the cancellation of a $900-million student volunteer program, which the Justin Trudeau government awarded to WE Charity, an organization to which his family has close ties, the Prime Minister issued a public apology for not recusing himself from government discussions about awarding the contract.
“I made a mistake in not recusing myself immediately from the discussions given our family’s history and I’m sincerely sorry about not having done that,” he said Monday.
What’s the significance of this apology? This was Trudeau’s first public statement since it was revealed last Thursday that members of his immediate family were paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for speeches at WE Charity events.
Some context: Trudeau’s apology follows recent news that senior Liberals raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the organization. Finance Minister Bill Morneau, Natural Resources Minister Seamus O’Regan and the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, Katie Telford, have all said, either directly or through spokespersons, that they did not recuse themselves from cabinet discussions about the WE Charity contract.
What’s next? The Prime Minister and others will appear before a House of Commons committee later this week to talk about the decision.
Trudeau says federal wage-subsidy program to be extended to December
The program at the heart of the government’s promise to help Canadians get back to work will be extended until December, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday. The program, which subsidizes wages in companies hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, has paid $18.01-billion to 252,370 companies in payroll help, as of July 6.
The program covers 75 per cent of wages, up to a weekly maximum of $847, for eligible companies and non-profits. Critics have said that the program’s current eligibility stopped some employers from getting aid they desperately needed.
Trudeau didn’t say how the government will reshape the eligibility rules moving forward.
Also: Most of Ontario will enter “stage 3″ of the pandemic reopening plan on Friday, except the Toronto area and surrounding suburbs, Haldimand-Norfolk, Lambton and Windsor-Essex, Premier Doug Ford announced Monday. The number of people allowed to gather is significantly changing — up to 100 outside, and 50 inside.
Washington’s NFL team to retire Redskins name and logo
In response to decades of criticism, and recent pressure, Washington’s NFL team finally decided to drop the “Redskins” name and Indian head logo.
It is unclear when a new name will be selected. The team will technically retain its current name and logo, which date back to 1933, until a new one is decided
The move came less than two weeks after owner Dan Snyder, who once declared he would never get rid of the name, launched a “thorough review” amid pressure from sponsors. FedEx, Nike, Pepsi and Bank of America all lined up against the name.
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ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Hong Kong Disneyland closes again as the city’s coronavirus cases rise: Walt Disney Co. is temporarily closing its Hong Kong Disneyland theme park from July 15 amid rising coronavirus cases in the Chinese-ruled city, the company said Monday. The announcement came two days after Disney reopened its biggest resort, Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., as coronavirus cases surged in the state.
Tennessee governor signs strict six-week abortion ban; judge quickly blocks it: Tennessee Governor Bill Lee on Monday signed one of the strictest abortion bans in the country, but a federal judge waited for the bill to become law, and then ruled to block it. Supporters of this bill hope lawsuits like this one will lead to ending the constitutional right to abortion.
More than 200 universities back lawsuit over U.S. foreign student rule: In response to the Trump administration’s new restrictions on international students, hundreds are arguing that the policy jeopardizes students’ safety and are urging schools to reconsider fall plans they have spent months preparing.
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Visitors wearing face masks to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, take a selfie at the Hong Kong Disneyland on Thursday, June 18, 2020.Kin Cheung/The Associated Press
MARKET WATCH
The TSX finished the day in the red. The S&P/TSX Composite Index lost 74.41 points, or 0.47 per cent, at 15,639.41.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq ended lower on Monday, pulled down by Amazon, Microsoft and other recent big-name leaders of Wall Street’s recent rally. The S&P 500 dipped after briefly touching its highest level since Feb. 25. The index has rebounded over 40 per cent since mid-March, even as COVID-19 infections rose rapidly in Arizona, California and Texas and about 35 other states.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 11.04 points, or 0.04 per cent, to 26,086.34, the S&P 500 lost 29.69 points, or 0.93 per cent, to 3,155.35 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 226.60 points, or 2.13 per cent, to 10,390.84.
Recent economic data has strengthened belief that the stimulus-pumped U.S. economy is on the road to recovery, helping investors look past a recent spike in U.S. infections.
Looking for investing ideas? Check out The Globe’s weekly digest of the latest insights and analysis from the pros, stock tips, portfolio strategies and what investors need to know for the week ahead. This week’s edition includes the case for Algonquin, what value are analyst reports and why higher inflation, interest rates are coming.
TALKING POINTS
Raise a glass to COVID-19? Maybe not
André Picard: “Now the ubiquity of beer, wine and spirits in our daily lives has become another twist in the COVID-19 story. First, governments deemed liquor and beer stores to be essential services – and now we’re making reopening bars a higher priority than reopening schools.”
The one thing standing in the way of getting back to the office: Kids
Eileen Dooley: “As we are continually reminded, these are unconventional times and they call for unconventional thinking. Acknowledgment and support for employees with school-age kids is critical for an effective return to work plan.” Dooley is a principal and executive coach in the leadership practice of Odgers Berndtson, global executive search and leadership advisory firm.
The Hagia Sophia is now a mosque – and a victim of Turkey’s profane politics
Michael Coren: “Turkey is home to a modern, non-religious, educated class that looks to Europe and liberal democracy. But for the rest, and they are now perhaps the majority, Mr. Erdogan and his systematic – sometimes brutal – policy of Islamization is the fulfillment of a long-awaited ambition.” Coren is an author and columnist, and is ordained in the Anglican Church.
LIVING BETTER
BritBox drama Isolation Stories finds invention in a lockdown crisis
Creators across the film and television industry have come up with innovative, potentially game-changing ways to tell stories during the pandemic. Now, BritBox is streaming Isolation Stories – a series shot in Britain entirely during lockdown, with actors such as Eddie Marsan and Angela Griffin performing small domestic dramas revolving around the pandemic’s key themes of loneliness, anxiety, and heartache.
With the unprecedented moment giving rise to unprecedented creativity, The Globe and Mail spoke with Isolation Stories’ writer and executive producer Jeff Pope about the production.
TODAY’S LONG READ
Pastor Joel Crouse (right) sits with Glenn Bostock in the 'God Pod," that has a glass partition between the two sides and an air filtration system to prevent the spread of COVID-19, on June 5, 2020. Mr. Bostok's company made the pod for St. John’s Lutheran Church, Ottawa.Jack Burkom/Supplied
‘God Pod’ helps churchgoers to connect despite dangers of COVID-19
When Isabelle Geraets-Rose’s uncle passed away from lung cancer, she attended his virtual funeral in Germany from her Ottawa home. She held a personal prayer session. It was lonely, unlike going to church.
That afternoon, she met her pastor for a grief counselling session at St. John’s Lutheran Church, but the meeting was unlike any she’d had in the era of physical distancing. They sat less than two metres apart from each other, and weren’t wearing any masks. They were sitting inside the “God Pod:” a 4-foot by 6-foot enclosed meeting space that looks like an altered and pandemic-proofed confessional booth.
Read the story here.
Evening Update is written by Hannah Alberga. 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.