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The police chief in London, Ont., apologized to the woman who alleges she was sexually assaulted by members of Canada’s 2018 world junior hockey team, acknowledging that the force had taken years to lay charges.
Chief Thai Truong addressed the media yesterday, hours after the first court date for five of the team’s members, who were charged last week with sexual assault.
The woman, identified in court documents as E.M., told police that she was sexually assaulted in the early morning hours of June 19, 2018, at a London hotel after a Hockey Canada fundraiser. London police closed an initial investigation in 2019, without laying charges. It was reopened in 2022 after the public learned of the allegations.
- Hockey Canada keeps suspension of 2018 national junior players in place
- Opinion: The Hockey Canada scandal shows the harmful escalation of non-disclosure agreements
London Police Chief Thai Truong, right, and Detective Sergeant Katherine Dann, of the Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Section, listen to questions during a press conference in London, Ont., on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024.Geoff Robins/The Canadian Press
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Senior B.C. minister removed from cabinet for saying Israel founded on ‘crappy piece of land’
B.C. Premier David Eby has removed senior cabinet minister Selina Robinson after she said Israel was founded on a “crappy piece of land.”
The Premier initially resisted calls for Robinson’s resignation, but demands for her ouster continued to mount on the weekend, particularly with the Muslim community but also among First Nations leadership. Robinson will remain in the New Democratic Party caucus but agreed to resign as minister of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills.
At issue are remarks Robinson made during a Jan. 30 online discussion hosted by B’nai Brith Canada, in which she decried the lack of understanding among younger people about the Holocaust and the origins of the state of Israel.
Cape Breton appeals for help after being snowed in by days-long storm
Many Cape Bretoners remain trapped in their homes days after Nova Scotia was hit with one of its largest-ever snow storms. The massive dump of snow has led to a state of emergency and calls for help from provincial and federal governments.
Three days of extreme weather covered parts of the province’s mainland with up to 80 centimetres of snow and more than 150 centimetres in Sydney, the largest community in Cape Breton, according to Environment Canada.
On Parliament Hill yesterday, federal Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan told reporters that he has sent Parks Canada snow removal equipment and Canadian Coast Guard helicopters to help in Cape Breton. He said Search and Rescue Volunteer Association of Canada, Team Rubicon and the Red Cross, which he said were closer than the Canadian Armed Forces, will also be assisting.
A person shovels snow off a small roof after a winter storm in Sydney, N.S. on Monday, Feb.5, 2024.Shane Wilkie/The Canadian Press
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Also on our radar
King Charles diagnosed with cancer: Messages of support poured in from around the world for King Charles after news yesterday that he has been diagnosed with a form of cancer. Officials did not provide further details but added in a statement that the King chose to share his diagnosis to prevent speculation about his health and to raise awareness about cancer.
CBSA investigator finds no evidence of destroyed documents: A Canada Border Services Agency investigator said he is conducting a preliminary review into allegations that the agency’s former vice-president took actions that led to the destruction of e-mails, but said he’s found no evidence to date that any documents were destroyed.
Smith holds firm on transgender policy: Federal Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault, the only cabinet minister from Alberta, urged Alberta Premier Danielle Smith yesterday in a meeting to reconsider her policies on transgender youth, calling it “the most draconian and harmful policies for young people in the country.” Smith’s proposals include restricting youth access to medical treatments such as puberty blockers, hormone therapy and surgery, and excluding transgender athletes from women’s sporting competitions.
Colorado ballot issue signals trouble for the two-party system: The efforts to erase Donald Trump from the Colorado ballot are part of a much broader erosion in support for the partisan power structures that underlie American democracy, analysts say. The legal action against him comes at a moment of widening disaffection with Republicans and Democrats alike.
RIP Toby Keith: The sometimes polarizing figure in country music who crafted an identity around his macho, pro-American swagger, has died at 62 after battling stomach cancer.
Morning markets
World markets gain: World share indexes rose on Tuesday, boosted by a sharp rise in Chinese stocks as Beijing ramped up efforts to put a floor under its slumping market, while government bond yields in Europe and the U.S. dipped slightly, after two days of large increases. Around 5:30 a.m. ET, Britain’s FTSE 100 was up 0.35 per cent. Germany’s DAX slid 0.16 per cent while France’s CAC 40 added 0.11 per cent. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei fell 0.53 per cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 4.04 per cent. New York futures were mostly steady. The Canadian dollar little changed at 73.86 US cents.
What everyone’s talking about
Editorial: “Canadians deserve the widest possible disclosure, within the bounds of not betraying intelligence sources or methods. Since The Globe first published revelations about China’s meddling nearly a year ago, the federal government has waved the talisman of classified information repeatedly, as if this were an immutable law of physics preventing disclosure. But the government can un-classify that which it has classified. If it so wishes.”
Tony Keller: “The NHL has grown big enough that Canada is now never more than a backup plan. The PWHL, like the NHL of old, had no choice but to take this country as a starting point. Half its teams are here, and I bet they’ll account for well over half of first-year revenues. That’s why the PWHL is going to survive, and maybe even thrive.”
Today’s editorial cartoon
Editorial cartoon by David Parkins, Jan. 1, 2024.Illustration by David Parkins
Living better
A tax hater’s guide to choosing between TFSAs and RRSPs
The tax-free aspect of TFSAs is powerful, but it doesn’t always mean you pay the least tax if your goal is saving for retirement. Here are some tax-forward points to consider in deciding whether to use TFSAs, RRSPs or non-registered accounts.
Moment in time: Feb. 6, 1973
Ironworkers stand on second section of communications mast after it was raised to top of CN Tower in Toronto, March 10, 1975.John McNeill /The Globe and Mail
CN Tower construction begins
It’s impossible to imagine the Toronto skyline without the iconic CN Tower rising high above a sea of skyscrapers. The Canadian National Railway Co. employed more than 1,500 workers to build the 553-metre structure, designed to carry radio and television signals over the city’s increasingly tall buildings. Workers began by removing 56 tonnes of earth and shale for the foundation. Then came construction of the tower’s 335-metre concrete shaft, a hexagonal core with three curved support arms, and a seven-storey sphere, which would eventually house the observation decks and a restaurant. Finally, two years after construction first began, 39 pieces of antenna were moved into place by helicopter, and the tower opened on June 26, 1976. Twenty years later, it was sold to Canada Lands Company, a federal Crown corporation. It remained the world’s largest free-standing structure until it was surpassed by Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, at nearly 830 metres, in 2009, and has since been pushed to 10th place by other taller structures. Today, the CN Tower is the centre of telecommunications for Toronto, supporting 17 Canadian television and radio stations. It employs more than 500 people and welcomes more than two million visitors a year. Rasha Mourtada
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