Morning Update: A Globe investigation looks into the Thunder Bay Jail described as 'a death trap’

Good morning,

Few outsiders have seen what goes on in Thunder Bay’s jail, but for years, inmates, their families, First Nations and Ontario’s ombudsman have been warning of its horrors and demanding change.

No journalists have been inside the jail in nearly a decade, so to get a picture of what’s happening behind its stone walls, The Globe interviewed more than 40 people.

Six people who’ve toured the facility in recent years described it to The Globe in similar terms: unsafe, unsanitary, inhumane.

Read the full investigation here on the stories of overcrowding, understaffing and violence in Thunder Bay.

Previous reporting:

• Thunder Bay inmates, union leaders question institution’s safety after lack of coronavirus information
• 'Shut it down now’: First Nations leader, MPP alarmed after another death at Thunder Bay jail

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Coronavirus cases on the rise again in Ontario nursing homes

A surge of COVID-19 infections in Canada’s most populous province is spreading to elderly residents of nursing homes, with the number of facilities declaring an outbreak tripling over the past month.

Half of the homes with an outbreak are in Toronto, Ottawa and Peel Region, all hot spots in Ontario where community transmission of the virus is concentrated. Older homes with multibed ward rooms have been hit the hardest, a Globe and Mail analysis shows.

Also read

• Emergency meeting to be convened on systemic racism in health, Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller says
• More Scarborough elementary schools losing teachers to virtual learning than elsewhere in Toronto, data show
• Give thanks, not COVID: Some universities ask student to stay put this weekend

World news

World of uncertainty draws Ottawa and London into a new mini-alliance

Canada and Britain have issued another joint call this week, for a ceasefire in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, the third major instance of the countries acting in lockstep this year. It’s a mini-alliance that reflects how isolated Canada and Britain sometimes are in a world beset by rising authoritarianism and fading adherence to international law.

U.K. MPs accuse Huawei of collusion with Beijing

British MPs said on Thursday they found “clear evidence of collusion” between Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. and Beijing, and suggested the British government may need to remove all Huawei equipment from mobile networks earlier than planned.

• Meanwhile in Canada: In the House of Commons, Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole urged Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to stop procrastinating and ban the Chinese telecom from participating in 5G networks in Canada, as other allies have done.

Got a news tip that you’d like us to look into? E-mail us at tips@globeandmail.com Need to share documents securely? Reach out via SecureDrop

ALSO ON OUR RADAR

Anti-government militia plot to kidnap Democratic Governor Gretchen Witmer thwarted by FBI: Six men were charged in federal court with conspiring to kidnap the Governor in reaction to what they viewed as her “uncontrolled power,” according to a federal complaint. Separately, seven others were charged in state court under Michigan’s anti-terrorism laws for allegedly targeting police and seeking a “civil war.”

Scientists tally nitrogen threat to climate: Human activity, primarily through the use of industrial fertilizers, has nearly doubled the world’s atmospheric concentration of nitrous oxide and made the gas a more significant contributor to global warming than previously thought, an international research team has found.

ATB forecasts sluggish recovery for Alberta with effects of pandemic: Low oil prices and the lasting effects of COVID-19 will likely keep Alberta’s economy from bouncing back to prepandemic levels for three years, according to a new forecast from ATB Financial.

Judge upholds majority of Canada’s privilege claims in Huawei CFO’s U.S. extradition case: The Canadian Department of Justice said in a statement that Associate Chief Justice Heather Holmes of the British Columbia Supreme Court “upheld a majority of Canada’s privilege claims.”

MORNING MARKETS

Global stocks gain: World shares pushed on from one-month highs as hopes rise for more U.S. stimulus. Just before 6 a.m. ET, Britain’s FTSE 100 gained 0.70 per cent. France’s CAC 40 added 0.35 per cent. Germany’s DAX slipped 0.09 per cent. In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index jumped 1.68 per cent. Tokyo’s Nikkei slid 0.12 per cent. New York futures were higher. The Canadian dollar was trading at 75.93 US cents.

WHAT EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT

Bill to ban conversion therapy deserves to be passed despite its flaws

John Ibbitson: “No qualified therapist should be deterred from good-faith treatment of a troubled child for fear of being criminally charged with practising conversion therapy. But that should not prevent legislation that seeks to protect children from zealots and fraudsters."

Why Canadians drive the worst gas-guzzling cars on the planet, and what to do about it

Editorial board: “Back in 1974, Ford claimed raising fuel-efficiency targets would mean it would only be able to sell tiny subcompact cars. A look at the average Canadian suburban driveway today puts the lie to that."

For Premier Scott Moe, Saskatchewan’s election will hardly be a Prairie dogfight

Gary Mason: “The people of Saskatchewan are a generous, unpretentious, down-to-earth lot. They don’t like deficits, and certainly don’t like taxes, especially ones they feel are being rammed down their throats by elitist governments in Ottawa under the guise of helping the environment.”

TODAY’S EDITORIAL CARTOON

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LIVING BETTER

Thanksgiving and beyond

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Thanksgiving will be a smaller holiday this year but you can still serve a variety of vegetable side dishes to make the meal feel special

Here are some of Lucy Waverman’s favourite recipes for Thanksgiving sides that you’ll want to keep making this fall. Best of all, many can be prepared ahead of time and reheated for the big meal, and they can easily be halved for smaller groups.

And if that isn’t enough, check out these 14 new cookbooks to inspire your fall kitchen adventures.

MOMENT IN TIME: Oct. 9, 1986

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The Phantom of the Opera opens in London

The story of a Frenchman with unusual looks seeking love is not uncommon. It’s a plotline of The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, Beauty and the Beast, Cyrano de Bergerac and Gaston Leroux’s The Phantom of the Opera. In the musical based on his novel, with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, the story takes place partly in the labyrinth of catacombs beneath the Paris Opera House, giving the gothic romance an element of horror. Phantom made its debut at Her Majesty’s Theatre in London on this day in 1986, with Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman in the lead roles. It is the story of a brilliant musician – and blackmailing scoundrel – who hides behind a mask and lurks in the catacombs to avoid the stares of a judgmental society. He mentors, and falls in love with, soprano Christine, who is also loved by her old friend, Raoul. The sung-through musical featured elaborate sets and costumes with many, well, haunting songs. Spoiler alert: At the end, someone’s heart is broken. With more than 13,500 performances in London’s West End and about the same on Broadway, the multiple-award-winning show has been seen by more than 140 million people worldwide and grossed about $8-billion. Philip King

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