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Conservative MP Michael Chong told the House of Commons that contrary to what Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said, a 2021 intelligence report about him and his family being targeted by China was circulated beyond the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and reached the PM’s national-security adviser.
Chong and his family were targeted by the Chinese government after he spearheaded a parliamentary motion that condemned Beijing’s treatment of Uyghurs as genocide and that Zhao Wei, a Chinese diplomat, was involved.
Meanwhile, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said Canada has summoned China’s ambassador over revelations Beijing was targeting Chong and his family and said the government is taking stock of what blowback it would face were it to expel any Chinese diplomats.
Conservative member of Parliament Michael Chong speaks to reporters on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on May 3, 2023.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
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First Nations police forces sue Ottawa over stalled funding talks
Three First Nations police forces in Northern Ontario are suing Ottawa, saying they will have to stop operating – leaving those communities without security – because government grants to fund those forces have run out.
The Indigenous Police Chiefs of Ontario say the situation threatens to shut down patrols and create a “public safety crisis” with “significant, long-term consequences” and they have taken the federal government to court. They are alleging an impasse in negotiations of new funding has led Ottawa officials to cease sending money to three of the province’s nine Indigenous police forces.
A police roadblock is set up at the James Smith Cree Nation, Sask., on Sept. 6, 2022.Heywood Yu/The Canadian Press
Trudeau pledges to run against Poilievre and his ‘brokenist’ policies in next election
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau kicked off the Liberal national convention on Thursday evening with a pledge to lead the party into a fourth election, and attacked Pierre Poilievre over his “brokenist” Conservative politics.
By staying at the helm, Trudeau is attempting to do what no Prime Minister has done since Sir Wilfrid Laurier more than a century ago: win four consecutive mandates. Even without that historic challenge, Liberals face an uphill battle, with Nanos polling in April showing the Liberals at 30 per cent, compared with Poilievre’s Conservatives at 35 per cent.
Read more:
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau makes a keynote address at the 2023 Liberal National Convention in Ottawa, on May 4, 2023.Justin Tang/The Canadian Press
For French purists, the ‘coronation quiche’ is undeserving of its name
When King Charles and Camilla, the Queen Consort, announced a “Coronation Quiche” last month, it was meant to be something fun and simple that people could cook during the weekend celebrations.
They hoped the quiche would be a centrepiece for street parties across the country during the coronation weekend and find a permanent place in the British diet. But the quiche has caused an uproar.
The French keepers of Quiche Lorraine have slammed the royal recipe, saying it’s not a true quiche but a tart, and a pretty bland one. A senior Tory MP and royalist, Jacob-Rees Mogg, has also said he’d never eat quiche and food reviews have been mixed at best.
Read more:
- Opinion: King Charles’ coronation marks the arrival of a generation. Yikes
- In photos: Royal excitement grows in London as King Charles’s coronation nears
A "Coronation Quiche" is seen in an undated handout photo. King Charles III and Camilla, the Queen Consort, have shared the recipe for the vegetarian dish, which they hope can inspire celebratory gatherings in honour of the May 6 coronation ceremony.HO/The Canadian Press
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Also on our radar
TD, First Horizon terminate US$13.4-billion takeover, halting TD’s expansion in the U.S. southeast: Toronto-Dominion Bank’s US$13.4-billion deal to buy Tennessee-based First Horizon Corp. has been called off, allowing it to walk away from an ambitious takeover that some investors had soured on.
BoC needs to stay the course, though banking stress could affect monetary policy, Macklem says: Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem said stress in the global banking system could tighten credit conditions in Canada and affect the path of interest rates, but he added that his chief concern is still inflation proving more stubborn than expected.
Biden authorizes sanctions in Sudan’s war as UN prepares for 860,000 refugees: U.S. President Joe Biden has signed an order authorizing sanctions in Sudan as his intelligence officials cast doubt on any hope of an early end to the heavy fighting between military and paramilitary forces that has devastated the country and forced more than 440,000 people to abandon their homes.
Shopify to lay off 20 per cent of global work force, sell logistics operations: Shopify Inc. is slashing nearly 20 per cent of its entire work force and selling off its delivery and warehousing operations, as the Ottawa-based company strives to recapture momentum in its core e-commerce business.
BCE, Telus report lower profits in first quarter as telecoms prepare for stiffer competition: BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. reported lower first-quarter profits as they brace for heightened competition from Rogers Communications Inc. after the completion of its takeover of Calgary-based Shaw Communications Inc.
Morning markets
World stocks edge up: Global stocks eked out small gains on Friday as investors focused on bets of central banks pausing rate increases in light of another rout in shares of U.S. regional lenders. Around 5:30 a.m. ET, Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.29 per cent. Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 gained 0.61 per cent and 0.28 per cent, respectively. In Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended up 0.50 per cent. Markets in Japan were closed. New York futures were higher. The Canadian dollar was up at 74.01 US cents.
What everyone’s talking about
Scrubbed out words. Banned books. Stop the assault on reading, from the left and right
“It is wrong for a publisher or estate to alter the works of a deceased author, removing content deemed racist or sexist or homophobic. Seeking to have a work banned from libraries or schools is worse, although at least that effort has the (singular) merit of being an unmistakable act of censorship.” – The Editorial Board
Dr. Frankenstein awakens to the AI monster he has made
“It is not our intelligence that is being expanded, but our creation’s – the computer – to the point that some have begun to fear it will surpass or even replace us. And it is not the usual enemies of progress who are raising the alarm. Rather, it is some of the biggest names and deepest thinkers in the AI community itself – the people who have been most responsible for bringing it into being. My God, some of them have begun to exclaim: what have we done?” – Andrew Coyne
Today’s editorial cartoon
Illustration by David Parkins
Living better
Three Lake Como gems to explore before the summer rush
For centuries, Lake Como has been celebrated for its sumptuous villas, pristine lakeside gardens, and lido lifestyle. It has been home to noble families and a rejuvenating retreat for composers, artists and writers. Its timeless sophistication continues to attract the modern aristocracy, with prominent figures acquiring villas in the area. Yet all the glamour seamlessly exists alongside the quaint piazzas and familiar local life, where elbows of all ages rest on the table to share a hearty polenta and regional variations on risotto.
If you’re planning a spring getaway to northern Italy before tourism kicks into high gear, these three lakeside gems deserve your attention.
Moment in time: May 5, 1921
Chanel No. 5 is introduced
The first known representation of CHANEL N°5 perfume by famous sketch artist of the era, Sem (Georges Goursat), 1921.Aunaies / Bridgeman Images
During the Roaring Twenties, when single-flower scent perfumes were all the rage, French couturière Gabrielle (Coco) Chanel asked French-Russian chemist and perfumer Ernest Beaux to depart from the standard, and create a scent for her that would make “its wearer smell like a woman, and not a rose.” He composed 10 samples of fragrance with 80 notes, including aldehyde (organic compounds which give perfumes a clean, soapy or powdery scent), jasmine, rose, vanilla and sandalwood. When presented to Chanel, labelled by number, Chanel chose the fifth. Legends surrounding her choice vary. Some say that the extra aldehydes in the sample reminded her of the freshness of her mother’s laundry, or the cleanliness of the Catholic nuns she was raised by. Some claim it was because of her lifelong belief that five was her lucky number. In the fifth month of the year, on the fifth day of the month, she launched the perfume in its iconic clear, rectangular bottle design in her Paris boutique, and gave bottles to some of her elite friends. By the mid-1940s, the worldwide sales of Chanel No. 5 amounted to US$9-million annually, and to this day it is regarded as the world’s most famous perfume. Aruna Dutt.
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