Yahoo! News Canada - Canada Headlines

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• Travel expenses: Are politicians only sorry when they’re caught?
• Alberta K-12 students to be taught painful legacy of Indian residential schools
• Downtown Eastside Washington Hotel fire keeps crews busy
• Ontario cracks down on unpaid internships at prominent Canadian magazines
• Container in radioactive scare was improperly secured: nuclear safety agency
• Change it or drop it, elections expert says of Conservative electoral reform act
• Wynne distances herself from McGuinty in wake of new allegations
• Gerry Gaston Barton, wrongly convicted of rape, set to sue
• Quebec election debate: Philippe Couillard takes a hit
• Engine room blaze aboard HMCS Protecteur raged for 11 hours, as vessel drifted
• Canada could be Europe's alternative to Russian gas — but not any time soon
• Ontario MPPs set to get pay increase after opposition blocks salary freeze
• Where will Brampton Mayor Susan Fennell rank on next list of highest-paid mayors?
• Many Inuit children regularly going hungry due to food insecurity: report
• Mulcair faces grilling on NDP use of parliamentary resources for partisan ends
• NDP MP slammed after 9/11 conspiracy theorist's event appears on website
• Nature group buys private land to preserve endangered B.C. grasslands
• P.E.I. home burns as firefighters spend three hours driving through blizzard
• Referendum talk again features prominently in Quebec leaders' debate
• Canada regulator seeks wiretap powers for insider-trading cases
• Flagging small Canadian miners hope for a boost from medical pot

Travel expenses: Are politicians only sorry when they’re caught? Posted: 27 Mar 2014 01:51 PM PDT We may be reaching a tipping point when it comes to citizens' tolerance of our political class's sense of entitlement. Politicians may be starting to realize it, but they still only seem to acknowledge it when they're caught. The latest … Continue reading →

Alberta K-12 students to be taught painful legacy of Indian residential schools Posted: 27 Mar 2014 11:03 PM PDT EDMONTON - Alberta students are to be taught about the horrors and the painful legacy of Indian residential schools. The province has announced that all kindergarten to Grade 12 curriculum will include mandatory content on the significance of residential schools and First Nation treaties. Aboriginal Relations Minister Frank Oberle made the announcement Thursday to wild applause at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings in Edmonton before hundreds of residential school survivors and their families. "Starting with the youngest members of our society, Alberta commits to residential school survivors, their families and communities, that Albertans will hear your stories and know your truths," he said.

Downtown Eastside Washington Hotel fire keeps crews busy Posted: 27 Mar 2014 09:41 PM PDT Vancouver firefighters are battling a fire at the top of the Washington Hotel, a Downtown Eastside rooming house at 177 East Hastings Street.

Ontario cracks down on unpaid internships at prominent Canadian magazines Posted: 27 Mar 2014 05:59 PM PDT The Ontario government has fired a shot across the bow of the province's magazine sector over the use of unpaid internships. The Ministry of Labour has ordered The Walrus and Toronto Life to kill their internship programs by Friday following … Continue reading →

Container in radioactive scare was improperly secured: nuclear safety agency Posted: 27 Mar 2014 01:36 PM PDT HALIFAX - Cylinders carrying radioactive material fell during unloading in Halifax because one end of a shipping container they were in wasn't properly secured to a crane, Canada's nuclear safety agency says. Four steel cylinders encased in concrete and each weighing 4.5 tonnes fell into the cargo hold of a ship during unloading at the Cerescorp container terminal on March 13. Andre Regimbald, the director general of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, said Thursday during a presentation in Ottawa that two connectors on the crane let go and the container then swung down and snapped off. "What happened is two of the lifting points on one side ... had not been properly anchored so all of 18,000 kilograms of weight was being supported by only one side," Regimbald told the commission.

Change it or drop it, elections expert says of Conservative electoral reform act Posted: 27 Mar 2014 03:28 PM PDT "Either amend it or pull it," Harry Neufeld said of Bill C-23 — dubbed the Fair Elections Act — after appearing before a parliamentary committee Thursday. Neufeld, the former British Columbia chief electoral officer, was just one of five non-partisan experts in electoral process to tell MPs the legislation requires some major fixes. "My experience in 33 years in this business is that when you deny somebody the vote and they don't think there's a justified reason for it, they get really, really angry," Neufeld told reporters after an hour of blistering testimony. Following the 2011 federal election, Neufeld wrote a report for Elections Canada detailing serious irregularities in 42 per cent of cases where voters vouched for others who lacked proper identification.

Wynne distances herself from McGuinty in wake of new allegations Posted: 27 Mar 2014 04:24 PM PDT TORONTO - Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne struggled to distance herself Thursday from her predecessor Dalton McGuinty, amid explosive police allegations that his chief of staff may have committed a breach of trust in the ongoing gas plants scandal. Provincial police allege in unsealed court documents that they believe David Livingston gave an outside tech expert — the boyfriend of a senior staffer — access to 24 computers in the premier's office. According to the documents, Livingston sought high-level access to the computers to "wipe clean the hard drives" after McGuinty resigned amid controversy over the costly cancellation of two gas plants. Police believe Peter Faist, who wasn't a government employee, was the person who actually accessed the 24 computers using Wai's administrative privileges, including Miller's, Livingston's and other staffers.

Gerry Gaston Barton, wrongly convicted of rape, set to sue Posted: 27 Mar 2014 03:40 PM PDT A court date has been set in the case of Gerry Gaston Barton, a Nova Scotia man who is suing the provincial government and the RCMP over his wrongful conviction for the rape of a 14-year-old girl more than four decades ago.

Quebec election debate: Philippe Couillard takes a hit Posted: 27 Mar 2014 07:34 PM PDT Liberal Leader Philippe Couillard was leading in the polls going into Thursday's debate, but he walked out of the night wounded, after taking hits from all sides.

Engine room blaze aboard HMCS Protecteur raged for 11 hours, as vessel drifted Posted: 27 Mar 2014 01:54 PM PDT VICTORIA - A dramatic engine room fire that left a Canadian navy supply ship adrift in the Pacific Ocean raged for 11 hours, knocking out power and forcing the crew to fight the blaze in the dark, says the commanding officer. The Feb. 27 fire tore through HMCS Protecteur's engine room, a space Cmdr. Jules Elbourne described as being roughly the size of a school gymnasium. Elbourne said 17 attack teams rushed in and out of the area throughout the night to fight the blaze. For two days after the blaze, Protecteur was dead in the water, about 700 kilometres northeast of Hawaii.

Canada could be Europe's alternative to Russian gas — but not any time soon Posted: 27 Mar 2014 02:49 PM PDT CALGARY - With western sanctions threatening to tighten the taps on Russian energy exports to Europe, Canada could become an alternative supply source — but not any time soon. The Conservative government has been pushing for Canada to expand its energy export reach by building new oil pipelines to coastal waters, as well as multibillion-dollar plants that would enable natural gas to be transported by tanker overseas in an ultra-chilled liquid form. The crisis in Ukraine is adding urgency to those efforts, Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird said Thursday in Ottawa. "I think, if anything, it underlines the importance of moving ahead responsibly on the export of not just our oil but natural gas," he said.

Ontario MPPs set to get pay increase after opposition blocks salary freeze Posted: 27 Mar 2014 11:56 AM PDT This doesn't look very good for Ontario's Progressive Conservatives and the New Democrats. On a day both parties should have been pouncing on the governing Liberals about a report regarding new gas plant allegations, it's them that are on the … Continue reading →

Where will Brampton Mayor Susan Fennell rank on next list of highest-paid mayors? Posted: 27 Mar 2014 02:24 PM PDT Toronto politics tends to dominate the headlines, especially in southern Ontario. But beyond the circus tents at Toronto City Hall, to borrow a phrase, there are elections looming in cities across the Greater Toronto Area worth watching. Mississauga will choose … Continue reading →

Many Inuit children regularly going hungry due to food insecurity: report Posted: 27 Mar 2014 12:12 PM PDT Making a life in northern Canada has never been easy and it's no secret food prices are astronomical compared with south of 60. But a study just released by the Council of Canadian Academies offers a picture of just how … Continue reading →

Mulcair faces grilling on NDP use of parliamentary resources for partisan ends Posted: 27 Mar 2014 03:24 PM PDT OTTAWA - A procedural foul-up by the NDP has left leader Tom Mulcair facing a Commons committee grilling over his party's alleged use of parliamentary resources for partisan purposes. The Conservatives took advantage of the fact that the NDP had fewer than 25 MPs in the House of Commons early Thursday to force a snap vote on a motion from Tory MP Blake Richards. Richards' motion requires Mulcair to appear before the procedure and House affairs committee to answer questions about the NDP's use of parliamentary resources to staff satellite party offices in Quebec and Saskatchewan. And they're countering with a motion of their own, asking that Prime Minister Stephen Harper also be invited to committee to explain the Conservative party's use of government resources to fund partisan activities.

NDP MP slammed after 9/11 conspiracy theorist's event appears on website Posted: 27 Mar 2014 03:43 PM PDT OTTAWA - An NDP MP is coming under fire for allowing her website to publicize a speech given by a 9/11 conspiracy theorist. Megan Leslie's events page includes a listing for San Francisco architect Richard Gage's presentation March 31 in Halifax, part of a cross-Canada tour.

Nature group buys private land to preserve endangered B.C. grasslands Posted: 27 Mar 2014 02:02 PM PDT VANCOUVER - A huge tract of endangered grasslands in southern British Columbia will be preserved, after it was bought from private landowners by a non-profit conservation group. The Nature Conservancy of Canada said the new Sage and Sparrow Conservation Area near Osoyoos, B.C., is home to more than 30 species at risk — including sage thrashers, an extremely threatened bird species with only a handful of breeding pairs remaining in Canada. "It weighs as much as a Hershey's Kiss," Barb Pryce, area director for the group, said Thursday as the group announced the new conservation area.

P.E.I. home burns as firefighters spend three hours driving through blizzard Posted: 27 Mar 2014 02:43 PM PDT NEW GLASGOW, P.E.I. - A crew of firefighters spent three hours trying to reach a burning home in central P.E.I. on Wednesday, only to be thwarted by huge drifts created by the intense blizzard that left much of Atlantic Canada paralyzed. New Glasgow fire Chief Jason Peters said the lone occupant of the home managed to escape to her car, where she called for help from her cellphone.

Referendum talk again features prominently in Quebec leaders' debate Posted: 27 Mar 2014 08:58 PM PDT MONTREAL - The possibility of an independence referendum again featured prominently Thursday as Quebec's political leaders clashed in their second televised debate in a week. Liberal Leader Philippe Couillard accused his Parti Quebecois counterpart, Pauline Marois, of failing to come clean with Quebecers on the referendum issue. Polls repeatedly suggest that a majority of Quebecers do not want a plebiscite and Couillard's strategy was similar to his approach in last week's debate: try to cast the PQ as a party that fosters political uncertainty at the expense of economic prosperity. Marois countered with the argument she repeatedly used last week — that there will be no such vote until Quebecers are ready for one.

Canada regulator seeks wiretap powers for insider-trading cases Posted: 27 Mar 2014 01:33 PM PDT By Cameron French TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's largest capital markets regulator is pushing for an amendment to the country's Criminal Code that would allow investigators to use wiretaps to investigate insider trading. Such a step would give Canadian investigators a tool that their U.S. counterparts already have, and one that Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) Chairman Howard Wetston said on Thursday is needed to successfully prosecute a crime where proving intent is key. The OSC is the largest and most influential of Canada's provincial and territorial securities regulators, and has jurisdiction over the Toronto Stock Exchange. "In my opinion, we are missing a key tool that would assist in more effectively enforcing provisions against insider trading," he said in a speech to a Toronto business audience.

Flagging small Canadian miners hope for a boost from medical pot Posted: 27 Mar 2014 01:40 PM PDT By Nicole Mordant VANCOUVER (Reuters) - Looking for ways to boost their flagging fortunes, a handful of tiny Canadian mining exploration companies are considering swapping their hard hats and shovels for bongs and baggies. In the past couple of months, nearly a dozen of these so-called junior miners, hard hit by a downturn in the mining industry, have announced they might branch out into Canada's budding medical marijuana industry. The announcements from Satori Resources Inc, which owns a moribund gold project in Manitoba, and Victory Ventures Inc, which has staked mineral claims in British Columbia, have propelled these rock-bottom penny stocks upward. Until now, the medical marijuana industry has consisted mostly of small-scale home-grown operations.

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Yahoo! News Canada - Canada Headlines

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• Vancouver port truckers reach deal to end strike
• Which B.C. MLAs spend the most on travel partners?
• TTC updated on Union Station construction projects
• Toronto mayoral debate: Rob Ford says crack scandal is ‘rewind, rewind, rewind’
• Toronto mayoral debate: Who won, who lost?
• Why Stephen Harper deserves praise for his action on Ukraine
• Parti Quebecois says it was told to keep quiet about anti-corruption meeting
• Major blizzard forces ‘snow day’ on most of Atlantic Canada
• Public sector, feds reach deal on retiree health benefits
• Quebec election heats up as Couillard challenges Marois to reveal her personal wealth
• Rob Anders threatens to sue Calgary Signal Hill competitor
• Philippe Couillard legally deposited money in an off-shore account
• Six charged in Ontario after feds allegedly defrauded of more than $200M
• Rob Ford warned not to crash Toronto’s Garrison Ball; forced to leave 2013 event
• Toronto’s ‘Hobocop’ tactic a sneaky yet smart way to catch distracted drivers
• While its own navy waits, Canada sells military helicopters to the Philippines
• Ontario inks framework agreement with First Nations in Ring of Fire region
• Montreal students’ video counters QC values charter, cites Marois’ 1997 policy
• Saskatoon woman files human rights complaint for transgender daughter
• Canada exacts C$6.7 billion from public retirees for health costs
• Deal reached to end month-long strike at Canada's largest port

Vancouver port truckers reach deal to end strike Posted: 26 Mar 2014 07:30 PM PDT "This agreement means our port is open for business starting tomorrow morning," B.C. Premier Christy Clark said at the provincial legislature in Victoria, after a flurry of meetings between government officials and the truckers. Clark and two of her cabinet ministers — Transportation Minister Todd Stone and Jobs Minister Shirley Bond — could be seen shaking hands with union negotiators and congratulating each other as the talks wrapped up at the B.C. legislature's Hemlock Room. Clark said the deal means the government will withdraw back-to-work legislation it introduced this week. The truckers had been scheduled to hold a morning news conference to respond to back-to-work legislation that was on its way to becoming law, but the event was repeatedly delayed.

Which B.C. MLAs spend the most on travel partners? Posted: 26 Mar 2014 09:09 PM PDT The B.C. legislature has released a partial list showing how much B.C. MLAs have spent flying their spouses and their staff around the world on the taxpayer's dime.

TTC updated on Union Station construction projects Posted: 26 Mar 2014 08:56 PM PDT The construction out front of Union Station could soon be cleared, and Front Street fully reopened by the end of the year, as crews race to finish major projects ahead of the 2015 Pan Am Games.

Toronto mayoral debate: Rob Ford says crack scandal is ‘rewind, rewind, rewind’ Posted: 26 Mar 2014 04:18 PM PDT Toronto's first televised 2014 mayoral debate resolved very little on Wednesday evening as Mayor Rob Ford and his four top opponents shouted and scratched at one another while repeating reheated talking points and, occasionally, reminding the public of the laughingstock … Continue reading →

Toronto mayoral debate: Who won, who lost? Posted: 26 Mar 2014 04:49 PM PDT The Toronto mayoral debate Wednesday night featured more fidgeting than fireworks, more campaign slogans than strong campaign platforms. Mayor Rob Ford defended himself against four of the top contenders for his job — Karen Stintz, John Tory, Olivia Chow and … Continue reading →

Why Stephen Harper deserves praise for his action on Ukraine Posted: 26 Mar 2014 03:43 PM PDT Maybe there's some political motive involved or maybe Stephen Harper is taking a principled position. Regardless, Canada's prime minister is earning praise — in this country — for his action on Ukraine. Harper has emerged as one of the world's … Continue reading →

Parti Quebecois says it was told to keep quiet about anti-corruption meeting Posted: 26 Mar 2014 12:43 PM PDT MONTREAL - Parti Quebecois Leader Pauline Marois was put on the defensive Wednesday over her party's decision to keep quiet about a meeting two of its senior officials had with provincial anti-corruption officials in February. With the Quebec election campaign focusing in recent days on integrity and corruption, Marois said there was nothing sinister about the PQ's silence on the meeting with the UPAC anti-corruption unit. Marois told a news conference it was UPAC that asked the party not to talk about a meeting the party has described as informal and centred on party financing. "My director general told me that UPAC asked him not to talk about this visit," Marois said, adding she was informed by party officials a few days after it happened.

Major blizzard forces ‘snow day’ on most of Atlantic Canada Posted: 26 Mar 2014 08:39 AM PDT Although snow days have always been one of the joys of childhood, the powerful blizzard sweeping through Atlantic Canada today is spreading anything but joy. In Nova Scotia, which is expected to see some of the worse impacts of the … Continue reading →

Public sector, feds reach deal on retiree health benefits Posted: 26 Mar 2014 02:06 PM PDT Treasury Board president Tony Clement has announced that the government has reached a deal with its public sector unions to double the amount retired federal employees pay in premiums for health benefits.

Quebec election heats up as Couillard challenges Marois to reveal her personal wealth Posted: 26 Mar 2014 10:55 AM PDT Quebec Liberal leader Philippe Couillard offered-up a provocative challenge on Tuesday. He said that he would make public his 2012 tax return and a listing of all his and spouse's assets prior to Thursday's televised leaders' debate. He challenged Parti … Continue reading →

Rob Anders threatens to sue Calgary Signal Hill competitor Posted: 26 Mar 2014 04:33 PM PDT Rob Anders says he is pursuing legal action against Ron Liepert over "defamatory claims" about phone calls placed to residents in the newly-created riding of Calgary Signal Hill.

Philippe Couillard legally deposited money in an off-shore account Posted: 26 Mar 2014 06:39 PM PDT Liberal leader Philippe Couillard put $600,000 he earned in the 1990s in an offshore bank account in the Channel Islands, reveals a report by Radio-Canada's investigative team Enquête.

Six charged in Ontario after feds allegedly defrauded of more than $200M Posted: 26 Mar 2014 06:31 PM PDT TORONTO - Six Ontario residents are facing charges after RCMP say the federal taxman was allegedly defrauded of upwards of $200 million in a bogus investment scheme that stretched across the country. Police say their investigation began in April, 2012 when they received information about people involved in a possible "tax avoidance scheme." The Mounties say they have identified 493 people who participated in the alleged scheme between 2009 and 2012, and that individual investments ranged between $1,000 and $300,000. Sgt. Richard Rollings says that more than 5,000 investors had participated in the alleged fraud since 2004, and that they received at least $200 million in rebates from the Canada Revenue Agency for what were illegitimate claims.

Rob Ford warned not to crash Toronto’s Garrison Ball; forced to leave 2013 event Posted: 26 Mar 2014 01:10 PM PDT Toronto's Garrison Ball is one of those old-school affairs where the men wear black tie (dress uniforms if they're in the military) and women their best cocktail dresses. Normally it's a must for Toronto's mayor but the city's current chief … Continue reading →

Toronto’s ‘Hobocop’ tactic a sneaky yet smart way to catch distracted drivers Posted: 26 Mar 2014 09:53 AM PDT A Toronto police officer in the city's east end recently dressed himself in a hoody, baseball cap, jeans and sunglasses, wrote a message on a piece of cardboard and, not unlike many members of Toronto's homeless community, wandered along a … Continue reading →

While its own navy waits, Canada sells military helicopters to the Philippines Posted: 26 Mar 2014 03:49 PM PDT There's a certain amount of irony in word that Canada is selling new military helicopters to the Philippines when it's in its third decade of trying to procure replacements for the navy's ancient Sea Kings. Postmedia News reports the sprawling … Continue reading →

Ontario inks framework agreement with First Nations in Ring of Fire region Posted: 26 Mar 2014 03:28 PM PDT TORONTO - The Ontario government says the signing of a framework agreement with First Nations in the mineral-rich Ring of Fire region is an important "first step" that will ensure they benefit ...

Montreal students’ video counters QC values charter, cites Marois’ 1997 policy Posted: 26 Mar 2014 11:52 AM PDT The Parti Quebecois hoped to steer its stumbling re-election campaign back on track this week by refocusing on its proposed values charter but some Montreal high school students are skewering the controversial document, apparently using policy that Premier Pauline Marois herself supported in the past.

Saskatoon woman files human rights complaint for transgender daughter Posted: 26 Mar 2014 07:27 PM PDT SASKATOON - A Saskatoon woman has filed a complaint with the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission, saying she wants to be able to change the sex listed on one of her children's birth certificates. Fran Forsberg says six-year-old Renn was born a male but has always identified as female. She says her commission complaint is similar to one being fought in British Columbia by relatives of 10-year-old Harriette Cunningham, who was also born a boy but has transitioned to being a girl. In that case, Harriette's grandmother Cathie Dickens also helped her start a letter-writing campaign asking politicians to have sex removed from birth certificates altogether.

Canada exacts C$6.7 billion from public retirees for health costs Posted: 26 Mar 2014 11:29 AM PDT By Randall Palmer OTTAWA (Reuters) - Retired federal workers will pay more of their supplemental health costs under an agreement with the Canadian government intended to align the public sector with the private sector, Treasury Board President Tony Clement said on Wednesday. Retirees' contributions will rise to 50 percent of the cost of their health plan from 25 percent now. The new deal is projected to save C$6.7 billion ($6.0 billion) over six years, less than the C$7.4 billion flagged in the Conservative government's February 11 budget, but it avoids the threat of a court challenge if Ottawa had tried to impose the changes through legislation. There was a low-to-medium legal risk before." The broad lines of the changes had been announced in the federal budget, but agreement had not been reached with the unions and retirees.

Deal reached to end month-long strike at Canada's largest port Posted: 26 Mar 2014 07:21 PM PDT By Julie Gordon VANCOUVER (Reuters) - Negotiators on Wednesday reached a deal to end the month-long container truck strike that has crippled operations at Canada's largest port and slowed the transport of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of goods. The new deal, brokered by the province, means that the more than 1,000 striking drivers will return to work at Port Metro Vancouver on Thursday morning. "We have been clear from the very beginning that negotiation is the only way to achieve labor peace," said Jerry Dias, national president for Unifor, which represents the union drivers. "This is an agreement that working truckers can be satisfied with," said Paul Johal, president of the Unifor local, in a statement.

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