Canada column for
Sunday, April 26/20
THE CANADIAN REPORT
(c) By Jim Fox
The Canadian
government plans to tighten gun laws after the country’s worst case of violence
in which 22 people were gunned down and three wounded in rural Nova Scotia.
Gabrielle Wortman,
51, attacked friends, neighbors and strangers in an overnight rampage in five
towns after beating his girlfriend in the resort community of Portapique.
She escaped from
their home that he set on fire and hid in the woods until police rescued her.
It’s not clear if
gun laws would have changed anything as the denturist with a fascination with
the Royal Canadian Mounted Police had unregistered weapons.
These included
pistols and long-barrelled weapons, said Supt. Darren Campbell, four of which were
obtained in the U.S. and one in Canada.
Prime Minister
Justin Trudeau pledged to “ensure that we’re strengthening gun control.”
Complicating the
search for Wortman was that he was driving a replica police cruiser and wearing
a police uniform.
Victims included
Mountie Constable Heidi Stevenson, corrections officers, nurses, a firefighter
and teacher while Constable Chad Morrison was wounded. Wortman died in a shootout
with police at a gas station.
---
Government leaders
are pledging to fix the “broken” long-term care system hit hard by the novel
coronavirus outbreak.
The virus has taken
2,300 people across Canada, with more than half in nursing and retirement
homes.
Prime Minister
Trudeau said the situation is “extremely troubling and unacceptable” with understaffed
long-term care homes, particularly in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia.
As the army is
helping to support workers in Quebec and Ontario, Trudeau promises bonus
payments for front-line workers in senior’s facilities.
“We are identifying
what needs to be done – this is not a long-term solution,” Trudeau said, vowing
to make care improvements a priority.
---
News in brief:
- The revamped
North American free trade deal is set to go into effect on July 1. The U.S. has
made final changes of the USMCA pact with Canada and Mexico that could help
with the recovery from the pandemic. “This is great news for Canada, the U.S.
and Mexico, and for businesses and workers across North America,” said Kirsten
Hillman, Canada’s ambassador to the U.S.
- The European
Union is calling on Canada to help fund the World Health Organization now that
the U.S. has cut off payments. Brice de Schietere, the EU’s acting ambassador
to Canada, says the meeting on funding was being planned before U.S. President
Donald Trump stopped payments because of concerns it mismanaged the early
stages of the novel coronavirus outbreak.
---
Facts and figures:
The Canadian dollar is
down to 70.9 cents U.S. while the U.S. dollar returns $1.409 Canadian before exchange
fees.
The Bank of Canada’s
key interest rate is steady at 0.25 percent while the prime lending rate is
2.95 percent.
Canadian stock
markets are higher with the Toronto Stock Exchange at 14,420 points and the TSX
Venture index at 462 points.
The average price
for gas in Canada is lower at 77.2 cents a liter (Canadian) or $2.93 for a U.S.
gallon.
Lotto Max: (April
21) 9, 10, 13, 21, 40, 41 and 43; bonus 4. (April 17) 2, 15, 21, 29, 40, 47 and
50; bonus 35.
Lotto
6/49(April 22) 9, 10, 11, 14, 15 and 28; bonus 36. (April 18) 1, 10, 23, 32, 46 and 48; bonus 36.
---
Regional briefs:
- Rookie politician
Derek Sloan is being widely criticized for suggesting Canada’s top doctor, Dr.
Theresa Tam, is putting lives at risk “working for China.” The candidate for the Conservative leadership
said “Dr. Tam must go – Canada must remain sovereign over decisions.” He
accused Tam of “parroting” the Communist Party of China’s misinformation. Conservative
Leader Andrew Scheer refused to comment or expel Sloan.
- The Quebec Court
of Appeal has termed invalid a $500,000 debt from three games of rock, paper,
scissors. Edmund Mark Hooper lost in the hand game but won as the court ruled Quebec
law says games must require skill rather than chance and the amount must not be
excessive.
-30-
Jim Fox can be reached at canadareport@hotmail.com
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