Canada column for
Sunday, May 3/20
THE CANADIAN REPORT
(c) By Jim Fox
Less than two weeks
after Canada’s most deadly shooting rampage, the government is taking aim at
gun owners with an outright ban on assault weapons.
Now banned are
1,500 models and versions of “assault-style firearms” that can no longer be
legally used, sold or imported.
This includes the
AR-15 rifle and the Ruger Mini-14 that was used to kill 14 women at Montreal’s
Ecole Polytechnique university in 1989.
“Every single
Canadian wants to see less gun violence and safer communities,” Prime Minister
Justin Trudeau said.
The government was
reacting to the rampage by denturist Gabriel Wortman who killed 22 people and wounded
three with unlawful weapons from the U.S. and one from Canada in rural Nova
Scotia on April 18.
There is a two-year
amnesty period to allow current owners to receive compensation for turning in designated
firearms or keep them through a “grandfathering process.”
Public Safety
Minister Bill Blair, a former Toronto police chief, said “these guns have no
legitimate civilian purpose.”
---
Canadian provinces
are taking “cautious first steps” to relax the rules surrounding daily life in
efforts to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chief public health
officer Dr. Theresa Tam said Canadians “appear to have bent the curve, so
bravo.”
However, it is “far
too early for anyone to let down their guard” and rising to the challenges
since mid-March have be difficult, she added.
This weekend’s
count shows 55,000 Canadians have tested positive for the virus and 3,400 have
died.
Tam said the challenges
include physical distancing that has closed many businesses and forced people
to isolate themselves at home.
The government has
promised additional measures to help seniors and others in hard-hit sectors of
the economy that so far have not benefited from billions of dollars in
emergency aid.
---
News in brief:
- There is little
hope of any survivors in the crash of a Canadian Forces helicopter off the
coast of Greece with six onboard, military commanders said. The Cyclone
helicopter crashed for unknown reasons as the crew returned to the
Halifax-based frigate, HMCS Fredericton. The helicopter was part of a NATO
mission training exercise.
- Tiff Macklem, who
was named governor of the Bank of Canada, said his priority is for “bold,
unprecedented responses to the economic crisis fuelled by COVID-19.” Macklem,
who succeeds the retiring Stephen Poloz at the central bank, said there is a
“need to try and overwhelm the crisis to stabilize the economy and restore
confidence.” The bank has slashed its key rate to 0.25 percent and started a bond-buying
program to fund federal fiscal stimulus of $146 billion.
---
Facts and figures:
The Canadian dollar is
down to 70.81 cents U.S. while the U.S. dollar returns $1.412 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 14,620 points and the TSX
Venture index473 points.
The average price
for gas in Canada has climbed to 82.2 cents a liter (Canadian) or $3.18 for a
U.S. gallon.
Lotto Max: (April
28) 9, 18, 23, 36, 39, 43 and 48; bonus 46. (April 24) 8, 9, 19, 26, 27, 31 and
46; bonus 48.
Lotto
6/49(April 29) 6, 7 21 30 40 and 41; bonus 27. (April 25) 6, 10, 11, 22, 32
and 48; bonus 17.
---
Regional briefs:
- The Cargill meatpacking
plant in High River, Alberta plans to reopen on Monday after 921 of its workers
tested positive for coronavirus. The provincial Occupational Health and Safety
office has given its approval for the plant to start up after a 14-day quarantine. The United Food and Commercial Workers
International Union is trying to stop the opening over health concerns.
- Newfoundland and
Labrador tourism officials and operators are hopeful they can survive this
summer with the “staycation” market. The provincial government will ban
out-of-province travelers due the virus outbreak beginning on Monday.
Non-essential travel rules will keep out the key visitors from
Ontario, the United States and other prime areas.
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