Sign up for the battlefordsNOW newsletter

The Wednesday news briefing: An at-a-glance survey of some top stories

Jul 5, 2017 | 3:15 PM

Highlights from the news file for Wednesday, July 5

———

CANADIAN COURT ASKED TO ENFORCE U.S. KHADR AWARD: Lawyers acting for the widow of an American special forces soldier have filed an application in Canada seeking to enforce a massive U.S. damages award against former Guantanamo Bay prisoner, Omar Khadr. The application comes amid word the federal government is set to pay the Toronto-born Khadr $10.5 million and apologize to him to settle his long-running lawsuit for breaching his rights. The filing in Ontario Superior Court, obtained by The Canadian Press, also says the applicants might ask for an order blocking Ottawa from paying Khadr any compensation. Alternatively, it wants any government money flowing to Khadr to go instead to relatives of Sgt. Chris Speer and retired U.S. sergeant Layne Morris. The application was filed on behalf of relatives of Speer, who was killed in Afghanistan in July 2002 during a fierce firefight in which Khadr, then 15 years old, was captured badly wounded. Retired U.S. sergeant Layne Morris, who was blinded in one eye during the same battle, is a co-applicant. 

———

KIM SAYS NORTH KOREA’S NUKES NOT ON NEGOTIATION TABLE: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vows his nation would “demonstrate its mettle to the U.S.” and never negotiate its weapons programs after watching the test-launch of its first intercontinental ballistic missile. The hard line suggests that more tests are being prepared as North Korea tries to perfect a nuclear missile capable of striking anywhere in the United States. Tuesday’s ICBM launch, confirmed later by U.S. and South Korean officials, is a milestone in Pyongyang’s efforts to develop long-range nuclear-armed missiles. The ensuing uproar only seemed to inspire the North’s rhetoric in official media, which described Kim as smiling as he urged his scientists to “frequently send big and small ‘gift packages’ to the Yankees,” an apparent reference to further tests.

———

TRUDEAU GIVES CANADA DAY FLAG TO QUEEN: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau marked Canada’s 150th birthday with the Queen on Wednesday by giving her the Canadian flag that flew on the Peace Tower on Canada Day. On a daylong stop in Edinburgh, Trudeau met with the Queen for a private audience at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, her official Scottish residence, where he presented her with the Maple Leaf raised last weekend. The meeting was arranged to mark Canada’s sesquicentennial since the Queen, 91, is no longer able to travel as far as Canada, and Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall had attended Canada Day events in her place. While Trudeau was inside the palace, a small number of protesters approached the gates holding placards calling for an end to the “tar sands” and to grant Indigenous rights. It was but a tiny taste of what is to come for Trudeau at the G20 summit in Germany where tens of thousands of anti-globalization protesters have already started to descend on the northern port city of Hamburg.

———

VANCOUVER CONDO MARKET UP WHILE HOUSE SALES COOL: Vancouver’s housing sales have divided into two separate markets with condominium’s being snatched up while detached homes remain on the market longer. Figures released Wednesday by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver showed an 11.5 per cent drop in the market last month compared with the over-heated market in June last year. However, the board says last month’s sales were still 14.5 per cent above the 10-year sales average for the month of June. The ratio of sales to listings for June by property type is 24.5 per cent for detached homes, 62 per cent for townhomes and 93.2 per cent for condominiums. The board says analysts expect downward pressure on home prices when that ratio dips below 12 per cent and say there is upward pressure when the figure goes over 20 per cent for several months. The MLS composite benchmark price for all residential property types in Metro Vancouver was $998,700 — a 7.9 per cent increase from a year ago and up 1.8 per cent compared with May 2017.

———

FEDS BEING ‘PRUDENT’ WITH JETS, RCAF CHIEF SAYS: Royal Canadian Air Force commander Lt.-Gen. Mike Hood is pushing back against critics who say the Liberal government is taking too long to launch a competition for new fighter jets. Those critics include more than a dozen of Hood’s predecessors, who have blasted the Liberals for delaying the competition to replace Canada’s aging CF-18s until 2019. They and others allege that a competition could be launched much faster, and that the delay is simply part of a plan to buy Super Hornet fighter jets instead of the F-35. But Hood says the government is being prudent, as choosing the right fighter jet for Canada is a big decision, particularly since it will likely be flying for the next 40 years. The Liberals’ recently released defence policy promises Canada will buy 88 new fighter jets, an increase from the 65 promised by the previous Conservative government. Hood says having the extra fighters will give Canada much-needed flexibility in meeting its defence needs both at home and with NATO. 

———

MINISTER URGES PATIENCE ON PENSIONS FOR INJURED EX-SOLDIERS: Veterans’ Affairs Minister Kent Hehr urged patience from injured ex-soldiers who are growing frustrated waiting for details on government plans that would allow them to receive pensions for life. The Liberal government promised in this year’s budget it would announce plans by the end of this year for the option of life-long pensions for those injured in uniform. The Liberals were the only party to promise in the election to re-introduce the pensions, which were replaced by a lump-sum payment, career training and targeted income-replacement programs in 2006. Hehr said Wednesday says the government is committed to a pension-for-life option for veterans and the details will be released before the end of the calendar year. He declined to reveal how much progress has been made so far.

———

OILERS SIGN CONNOR McDAVID TO EIGHT-YEAR EXTENSION: The Edmonton Oilers have signed star captain Connor McDavid to an eight-year contract extension with an average annual value of $12.5 million US. The Oilers announced the extension at a press conference Wednesday. It will kick in after McDavid completes the final year of his entry-level deal next season. McDavid led the NHL in scoring with 100 points last season, en route to winning the Hart Trophy as league MVP. Drafted first overall by the Oilers in 2015, the 20-year-old McDavid has been the catalyst of Edmonton’s transformation from league bottom dweller to exciting up-and-coming contender. With McDavid leading the way the Oilers reached the playoffs for the first time in a decade last season, eliminating San Jose before falling in seven games to Anaheim.

———

CANADA URGED TO SHARE PLANS ON DRUG TREATIES: Opposition parties and legal experts are urging the Liberal government to be clear on how it plans to handle the legalization of cannabis while Canada remains party to three UN treaties that control and criminalize drug access, noting failure to provide clarity soon could cause confusion on the world stage. Canada needed to give notice on July 1 if it intended to withdraw from the treaties and stick to its plan to legalize marijuana by this time next year, said Steven Hoffman, a York University professor who specializes in global health law. It didn’t, and Hoffman said he is concerned about the message this sends. “The lack of clarity around how the federal government is going to address its international legal obligations under the UN drug control treaties is concerning given it sends the message to countries around the world … that our international law obligations are not at the forefront of our minds,” Hoffman said. Canada is currently one of more than 185 parties to three United Nations drug-control conventions — the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances and the 1988 Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances.

———

CALL FOR RYERSON UNIVERSITY NAME CHANGE PROMPTS BACKLASH: A student-led campaign at Ryerson University is pushing for the school to change its name out of respect for residential school survivors. But the proposal from the Ryerson Students Union and the Indigenous Students Association has prompted considerable backlash from the wider student community, who criticize it as being impractical and disrespectful in its own right. The downtown Toronto university is named for Egerton Ryerson, a pioneer of public education in Ontario who is widely believed to have helped shape residential school policy through his ideas on education for Indigenous children. The school has previously stated that Ryerson’s ideas did help contribute to the system that has since been described as a “cultural genocide” and acknowledged the need to commit to respectful relationships with Indigenous students. The request for a name change is one of 11 demands the students union posted on its Facebook page on Canada Day under the hashtag #resist150.

———

MOLSON COORS BUILDING NEW MONTREAL BREWERY: A landmark tract of land at the edge of Old Montreal will undergo a transformation after Molson Coors announced plans to spend up to $500 million to build a new brewery instead of modernizing North America’s oldest brewery along the St. Lawrence River. The brewer’s decision, which follows a two-year study, was announced to employees on Wednesday Molson Coors Canada CEO Fred Landtmeters said the company is exploring options to ensure Molson’s heritage is commemorated at its original location which opened in 1786. The brewer has said it plans to maintain a microbrewery and store at the 231-year-old site near Old Montreal, with the rest being sold for redevelopment under the auspices of the city. Landtmeters said building the new brewery will be more efficient than updating the existing operations. The location of the new operation hasn’t yet been determined, but it is expected to remain in the Greater Montreal area. The next step will be to develop a business plan for the construction of a new Quebec brewery in about five years.

The Canadian Press