Canada column for Sunday, Sept. 12/21
THE CANADIAN REPORT
By Jim Fox
Attacks against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have become more violent as Canada is two weeks away from a federal election.
Anti-vaccine protesters have dogged Trudeau’s rallies with loud obscene chants and gestures throughout the campaign.
Now they pelted him with rocks as he left a rally in London, Ontario.
Trudeau was heading toward his bus and acknowledged that he was hit by chunks of gravel thrown in his direction.
At his next stop in Montreal, he said he won’t let “anti-vaxxer mobs” stop him from his outdoor campaigning for the Sept. 20 election.
“This is absolutely unacceptable and that’s not how we do things in Canada,” he said.
Trudeau said he is “inspired by those people who continue to do the right thing in the face of anti-vaxxer mob.”
The People’s Party of Canada has removed Shane Marshall, president of the local riding association, alleging he was involved in the rock throwing.
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Canada recorded impressive gains as the economic recovery continues with 90,000 new jobs last month.
Statistics Canada said most of those employment gains were in the private sector for the third consecutive monthly increase.
This resulted in the jobless rate falling to 7.1 percent for the month, down from 7.5 percent in July.
The rate is the lowest since the pandemic began last year, with gains largely in full-time work in services such as accommodation and food services.
On Labor Day, campaigning political leaders had varying ideas about support for workers as the “profound effect” of the virus is transforming the market for jobs.
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News in brief:
- Toys ‘R Us is alive and well in Canada with plans for several new smaller stores and looks for “significant growth,” said spokesman Frank Juhasz. A major hurdle has been that consumers believed wrongly the retailer closed all its stores as happened in the U.S. and Great Britain in 2018, he said. There is also a new emphasis on online shopping for Canadians. The chain has83 locations in Canada.
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Facts and figures:
Canada’s dollar is lower at 79 cents U.S. while the U.S. dollar returns $1.26 in Canadian funds before exchange fees.
The Bank of Canada again has kept its key interest rate unchanged at 0.25 percent while the prime lending rate is 2.45 percent.
Canadian stock markets are lower, with the Toronto index at 20,667 points and the TSX Venture index 903 points.
The average price for gas in Canada is steady at $1.385 a liter (Canadian) or $5.26 for a U.S. gallon.
Lotto Max: (Sept. 7) 5, 8, 31, 36, 41, 42 and 43; bonus 39. (Sept 3) 1, 2, 4, 10, 27, 33 and 45; bonus 31.
Lotto 6/49: (Sept. 8) 2, 7, 10, 16, 28 and 36; bonus 41. (Sept. 4) 6, 13, 18, 19, 29 and 49; bonus 2.
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Regional briefs:
- There are 28 candidates in the race for mayor of Calgary now that Naheed Nenshi, one of Canada’s longest-serving mayors, first elected in 2010, isn’t seeking re-election. One of the latest candidates to join the race for the Oct. 28 election is former Member of Parliament Kent Hehr. He served two terms for the Liberals in 2015 and was defeated in 2019. Also in the race are current city councillors Jeromy Farkas, Jeff Davison and Jyoti Gondek.
- One person was arrested after someone set a fire inside a Walmart store in Kitchener, Ontario causing $3 million in smoke and physical damage. It was the third such fire causing extensive damage at Walmarts in the city since last year and the second at this Sunrise Center location. Two young men were arrested in those incidents that caused $12 million in damage. In this fire, police arrested a 42-year-old woman after fires were set in the toilet paper section and an outdoor dumpster.
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Jim Fox can be reached at canadareport@hotmail.com
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