CanadaSep 15, 2020
Canada no longer announcing retaliatory counter-measures, reserves the right to take action if necessary: Mary Ng
International Trade Minister reserves the right to take action if necessaryis praising the Team Canada approach to fighting the tariff. Ng says Canada will no longer be announcing its own suite of retaliatory counter-measures but it reserves the right to take action if necessary. International Trade Minister Mary Ng says it's a good day for Canada's aluminum industry. And Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland says things are back to where they should be. The comments come after the United States stepped back from a tariff dispute with Canada and is lifting a 10 per cent levy on aluminum. The
CanadaSep 15, 2020
U.S. abruptly reverses course, lifts tariffs on Canadian aluminum
The United States is standing down in its tariff dispute with Canada and lifting a 10 per cent levy on aluminum imported from north of the border. The office of the U.S. Trade Representative says it will lift the tariffs retroactive to Sept. 1 because it expects Canadian exports to "normalize" over the remainder of the year. In a statement, the USTR says it will continue to monitor trade in aluminum and reimpose the tariff if levels spike unexpectedly. The sudden about-face comes just hours before the federal Liberal government was expected to announce a suite of countermeasures in retaliation
CanadaSep 15, 2020
Progressive Conservatives headed to a majority government in New Brunswick
New Brunswick's Progressive Conservatives are headed to a majority government. It's the first provincial vote in Canada to be called during the COVID-19 pandemic. Tory Leader Blaine Higgs' campaign repeated a message that his party had successfully guided the province through the pandemic's first wave. It's a disappointing night for the Liberals, whose leader Kevin Vickers lost his bid for a seat in the riding of Miramichi. Kevin Vickers says he's stepping down as leader of the provincial Liberal party. The leader lost his bid for a seat in the riding of Miramichi and his party failed to reg
CanadaSep 14, 2020
Bloc Quebecois leader and caucus isolating after staffer catches COVID-19
Every member of the Bloc Quebecois caucus, including leader Yves-Francois Blanchet, are in a COVID-19 lockdown. A statement from the party says an employee got a positive test today, days after the Bloc held a full caucus meeting. Bloc spokeswoman Carolane Landry says everyone potentially affected will be screened to ensure they're healthy and will follow public health guidelines. The news comes as the parties in the House of Commons continue debating how the chamber will work once business resumes next week.
CanadaSep 14, 2020
Office furniture shortages loom as Canadians stay home this fall
Canadians should brace for a shortage of office furniture, such as desks and chairs, as people continue to study and work from home this fall. Ikea Canada spokeswoman Kristin Newbigging says the company has seen an increase in demand for office furnishings and other gear needed for work-from-home setups. This comes as a looming second wave of COVID-19 means many Canadians are not returning to the office or school just yet. At the same time, she says the company is experiencing the impacts of overseas suppliers still being closed for business, making it hard to meet demand. And when those supp
CanadaSep 14, 2020
Ministers warn COVID-19 researchers anew of threat of foreign actors
A trio of federal cabinet minister is warning COVID-19 researchers to take additional precautions to protect their efforts from thieves and vandals.The statement today says the federal government is concerned about "hostile actors" targeting pandemic-related research in this country and urges government scientists, academics and private-sector workers to double- and triple-check their security measures.Signed by Industry Minister Navdeep Bains, Health Minister Patty Hajdu and Public Safety Minister Bill Blair, the statement recommends strong cyber- and physical-security protocols.It's not cle
CanadaSep 14, 2020
Canada hopes to avert new U.S. tariff war, but stands ready to fire: Champagne
Canada's foreign affairs minister says the federal government is still trying to cool its dispute with the United States over aluminum exports, but remains poised to retaliate if necessary.Francois-Philippe Champagne says he believes the standoff is an opportunity to figure out new ways to bring manufacturing back to life across North America. But in the short term, Champagne says, Canada is fully prepared to impose dollar-for-dollar countermeasures against U.S.-made aluminum and products that contain it, beginning Wednesday.The Trump administration imposed the new national-security tariffs l
CanadaSep 12, 2020
Increase in COVID-19 cases in Ontario and Quebec, Over 100 cases reported in Alberta and B.C.
There are 135,625 confirmed cases in Canada. Quebec: 64,463 confirmed (including 5,774 deaths, 56,843 resolved) Ontario: 44,068 confirmed (including 2,813 deaths, 39,598 resolved) Alberta: 15,415 confirmed (including 253 deaths, 13,718 resolved) British Columbia: 6,962 confirmed (including 213 deaths, 5,273 resolved) Saskatchewan: 1,688 confirmed (including 24 deaths, 1,598 resolved) Manitoba: 1,393 confirmed (including 16 deaths, 1,090 resolved) Nova Scotia: 1,086 confirmed (including 65 deaths, 1,019 resolved) Newfoundland and Labrador: 269 confirmed (including 3 deaths, 265 resolved) New B
CanadaSep 11, 2020
Trudeau, Tam defend Canadian response times to COVID-19 pandemic
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the Canadian government began preparing for a possible pandemic when it first got word of a mysterious cluster of cases of pneumonia in China on New Year's Eve. The federal government is facing accusations it didn't act quickly enough to warn Canadians about how dangerous COVID-19 was to their health and the economy. Canada's chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam says there was a lot of work done in January and February, including getting labs ready to test for the novel coronavirus. Federal Health Minister Patty Hajdu told Canadians as late as March 1