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These are the top stories:
Jody Wilson-Raybould told cabinet SNC pressure was improper
The former attorney-general told federal cabinet ministers during a closed-meeting that she believed it was improper for officials in the Prime Minister’s Office to press her to help SNC-Lavalin avoid criminal prosecution, sources say (for subscribers). While she has been bound by solicitor-client privilege in her public statements, Wilson-Raybould privately outlined her concerns to cabinet on Tuesday.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke with Wilson-Raybould about SNC on Sept. 17, two weeks after federal prosecutors decided to move toward a trial over the firm’s dealings in Libya. She also discussed the matter with then-principal secretary Gerald Butts on Dec. 5. (for subscribers)
Once prosecutors decided in early September to move to trial, Wilson-Raybould told cabinet she felt it was wrong for anyone – including the Prime Minister, members of his staff and other government officials – to raise the issue with her, a source said.
SNC, which employs thousands in Canada, had warned that it might have to move to Britain or face a takeover bid if prosecution went ahead as planned, a source said.
Yesterday, Wilson-Raybould said in the House of Commons that she hoped solicitor-client privilege would be waived so she could “speak my truth.” That came as Trudeau apologized to Wilson-Raybould for taking almost a week to condemn the efforts of unnamed Liberals to undermine her character and reputation in comments to various media outlets.
Here’s John Ibbitson’s view: “We are at that stage in this scandal – for this is now certifiably a scandal – when the story seems to get worse for the government every day.” (for subscribers)
Freelance writer Jen Gerson offers this take: “The problem, it is now clear, is that a Butts-shaped skull trophy doesn’t make the scandal disappear. And so the curious affair now rests on the words of Wilson-Raybould herself – who has been in the enviable position, for a politician, of becoming more heroic by saying less.”
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Halifax is mourning the loss of seven children who died in a house fire
(Darren Calabrese/The Canadian Press)Darren Calabrese/The Canadian Press
Hundreds gathered after sundown yesterday for a moment of silence to grieve the death of the Barho family’s seven children, who ranged in age from four months to 15. Ebraheim Barho is in critical condition after suffering severe burns trying to rescue his children. His wife, Kawthar, survived.
New details are emerging on a possible cause of the fire. A spokesperson for the group that sponsored the Syrian family’s immigration to Canada in 2017 said Ms. Barho told her through a translator that “she had come downstairs and noticed that the heating register behind the couch was on fire. It then quickly spread to the sofa and from there moved up to the stairs, where the children were sleeping.” Ms. Barho had previously told friends there had been problems with the heater and attempts to repair it.
So far, more than $400,000 has been raised to support the surviving members of the Barho family.
Pope Francis promises ‘concrete’ remedies as Vatican conference on child sex abuse opens
Pope Francis promised that concrete actions against child sexual abuse by priests would result from a conference he opened on Thursday, countering skepticism from some survivors who said the meeting looked like a public relations exercise.
Francis convened Catholic leaders from around the world for the four-day meeting to address the scandal that has ravaged the Church’s credibility in the United States – where it has paid billions of dollars in settlements – Ireland, Chile, Australia, and elsewhere over the last three decades.
“Faced with the scourge of sexual abuse committed by men of the Church against minors, I wanted to reach out to you,” Francis told the assembled bishops and heads of religious orders, asking them to “listen to the cry of the little ones who are seeking justice.”
Victims expected “concrete and efficient measures” and not mere condemnations, he added.
Canada’s telecom providers engage in misleading sales practices, the CRTC has found
The regulator says misleading or aggressive tactics “are harming Canadian consumers, in particular vulnerable Canadians” – but its report didn’t lay out any required actions for providers. Instead, it offered suggestions like new measures that would allow customers to cancel services if they don’t match up with what was offered. (for subscribers)
The CRTC initially refused to hold hearings on the matter, until the federal government directed it to after CBC stories on allegations including inappropriate upselling of services consumers didn’t need.
Representatives for BCE and Rogers said they would work with the CRTC on the issue, while Telus said it “does not tolerate” unethical sales practices.
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ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Jason Kenney is vowing to cancel the NDP government’s plan to lease 4,400 rail cars to ship crude oil if his United Conservative Party wins this spring’s Alberta election. Kenney slammed Premier Rachel Notley’s $3.7-billion plan, saying he believes the private sector can increase capacity on its own when market conditions are appropriate.
Canada’s Competition Bureau has closed its investigation into the maker of Remicade, the blockbuster drug used to treat arthritis and Crohn’s disease. The bureau concluded that Janssen didn’t break the law, but said the tactics it used to protect its market share from near-copy generic-style drugs could “raise concerns.” (for subscribers)
The Brampton man accused of killing his 11-year-old daughter has died in hospital. Roopesh Rajkumar had spent days in hospital after a self-inflicted gunshot wound. His daughter, Riya Rajkumar, was the subject of an Amber Alert last week that was soon called off after police found her body.
MORNING MARKETS
Stocks mixed
Signs the United States and China were tackling some of the stickiest issues in their trade war kept world shares near a four-month high on Thursday, though it could not prevent a favorite Chinese proxy, the Aussie dollar, hitting the skids. Tokyo’s Nikkei gained 0.2 per cent, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng 0.4 per cent, while the Shanghai composite lost 0.3 per cent. In Europe, London’s FTSE 100 was down 0.6 per cent by about 6:50 a.m. ET, with Germany’s DAX up 0.4 per cent and the Paris CAC 40 up marginally. New York futures were up. The Canadian dollar was below 76 US cents.
WHAT EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT
Vaccination is part of the social contract. Somehow, we’ve lost sight of that
Robert Ragotte: “Herd immunity, the term used to describe the protection conferred on the whole population when most are vaccinated, requires that everyone who is able to be vaccinated does so. It is herd immunity that protects those who are unable to get vaccinated, but will not work if overall vaccine coverage continues to decline. Vaccination, like paying taxes, is a civic duty; it is part of the social contract. Opting out for personal beliefs should not be an option.” Robert Ragotte is a PhD student and Rhodes scholar in the Nuffield Department of Medicine at the University of Oxford, where he studies malaria vaccines.
A reliable indicator of an imminent recession is pundits debating about it
David Parkinson: “I know I’m aging myself here, but I’ve had the dubious fortune of covering three U.S. and two Canadian recessions in my professional career. One thing I’ve learned about them is that once the economic pundits are debating whether they see smoke, the fire may have already begun. With that in mind, and not to alarm anyone, but the smoke-debaters are suddenly all over the place.” (for subscribers)
How the pipeline convoy was - almost - a perfect demonstration
Duane Bratt: “Unfortunately, the convoy’s pro-oil and gas message was diluted by two factors. The first was unfortunate timing: the convoy arrived in Ottawa in the midst of a major political crisis. … The second factor was the infiltration within the convoy of white nationalists who used it to protest the UN Global Compact, immigration, and racist causes. By not properly vetting participants, a percentage of the media coverage and social media commentary was not about oil and gas policy, but about the more odious aspects of the convoy.” Duane Bratt is a political science professor and Chair, Department of Economics, Justice, and Policy Studies, at Mount Royal University in Calgary.
A LIFE WELL LIVED
(Courtesy of the Wiener family)Courtesy of the Wiener family
He was Canada’s only male supercentenarian: Dr. Robert Wiener was born in Montreal on Oct. 27, 1908, and died there on Sunday – 110 years and 113 days later. Asked what his secret was in a recent interview at his home, he demonstrated his daily regimen, pedalling on a stationary bike for 30 minutes. The first modern toothbrush didn’t go on sale until two years after he graduated from McGill’s dental school; Wagner would go on to a storied 55-year-career in the field. (for subscribers)
MOMENT IN TIME
First phone book is published
(Archives & Special Collections at the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center, University of Connecticut Libraries)Archives & Special Collections at the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center, University of Connecticut Libraries
Feb. 21, 1878: When the telephone directory made its debut on this date in 1878, it wasn’t even a phone book: It was a piece of cardboard. But in New Haven, Conn., a couple of years after Alexander Graham Bell patented his harmonic telegraph, there were only 50 phones. So the simple listing included 11 homes, 38 businesses and the police department. As use of the phone grew, so, too, did the need for a directory to list names and addresses of everyone within distinct geographic areas. Over the decades, entire forests were felled to feed the ever-expanding and annually disposable phone book. It grew in its scope, too, becoming known as the residential white pages as it begat the advertising-driven Yellow Pages and the useful-yet-boring blue pages (for government numbers). Millions and millions of the thousand-page, alphabetically listed tomes also found uses as hockey shin pads, heavy weapons against small insects and, for almost every small child, booster seats. Eventually, the advent of the internet and smartphones made the residential directory obsolete. Still, in our information-overloaded lives, who wouldn’t yearn for the days when every number you’d ever need could be found on a single piece of cardboard? – Philip King
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