Former Alberta premier Jim Prentice is one of the four people who died overnight in a plane crash in British Columbia. Alberta conservative leader Jim Prentice gives a keynote speech during the Edmonton Leaders Dinner in Edmonton in an April 30, 2015, file photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson
October 14, 2016 - 2:29 PM
Highlights from the news file for Friday, Oct. 14
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FORMER ALBERTA PREMIER DIES IN PLANE CRASH: Former Alberta premier Jim Prentice is one of the four people who died overnight in a plane crash in British Columbia. The Cessna Citation business jet went down minutes after taking off from the Kelowna airport on a flight to Springbank airport near Calgary. The former federal Conservative cabinet minister quit politics in May of last year after the Alberta NDP swept the Progressive Conservatives from power. The Mounties are securing the crash site until a team of investigators from the Transportation Safety Board arrives on scene.
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TRIBUTES POUR IN TO JIM PRENTICE: Jim Prentice's colleagues and political adversaries are paying tribute to the former Alberta premier who died in a plane crash Thursday. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau paid tribute to Prentice's public service and offered condolences to his family. Former prime minister Stephen Harper expressed shock and sadness over the death of Prentice, who served in Harper's cabinet before leaving for the private sector and eventuallty provincial politics. Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall says he enjoyed working with Prentice.
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FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PROMISES TO APPOINT JUDGES: Federal Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould says she is ready to appoint a number of new judges amid criticism from Alberta where a judge put the brakes on a first degree murder trial last week. Wilson-Raybould emerged from a meeting of her provincial counterparts in Halifax on Friday saying she's plans to announce more appointments in the "near future." An Alberta superior court judge ordered that a first degree murder trial set for next week not proceed because of a 62 month delay in getting the case to trial.
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EU-CANADA TRADE DEAL FACES DIFFICULTIES: A Belgian region's decision to vote down the proposed EU-Canada free trade deal has left politicians on both sides of the Atlantic trying to save the deal. They are working into the weekend to persuade Belgium's Walloons to abandon their opposition to the deal before a key meeting this coming Tuesday in Europe. EU trade ministers meet then to vote on the pact, a week before Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is to join his EU counterparts at a summit in Brussels, where the two sides are hoping to sign the deal. The Wallonia vote can't be dismissed outright because the Belgian constitution gives its three regional governments — Wallonia being one of them — a potential veto over the deal. Without the region's support, Belgium's national government can't move forward.
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LEGAL BATTLE CONTINUES OVER MONTREAL PIT BULL LAW: The city of Montreal is trying to appeal a Quebec Superior Court decision that saw all pit bull-related measures suspended until a legal challenge of a municipal bylaw can be heard. The court has reserved decision on whether the city can appeal the suspension or it should stay in place until the case is heard on its merits. A judge suspended several pit bull-related provisions of the city's animal control bylaw that came into effect Oct. 3rd.
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TRUDEAU SAYS CANADIANS ARE BEING MISINFORMED ABOUT CARBON PRICING: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he wants to counter misinformation on his government's carbon-pricing plan. During an event in Alberta on Friday, Trudeau said there are a lot of people using scare tactics on the issue by pointing out worst-case scenarios that have no basis in fact. He says he wants Canadians to know that money collected on carbon pollution will flow back to the provinces and territories.
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OBAMA LAUNCHES SARCASTIC ATTACK UPON TRUMP: U.S. President Barack Obama says Donald Trump is full of excuses now that his presidential campaign seems to be imploding. As he campaigned for Hillary Clinton Friday morning in Ohio, Obama rolled his eyes at the Republican nominee, mocking Trump's purported business acumen and newfound rage against the "global elite.'' On Thursday, Trump claimed Clinton is at the centre of a global conspiracy by wealthy elites and political big-wigs to rig the system against working people.
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B.C. PREMIER SAYS TRUMP WILL SCARE WOMEN OUT OF POLITICS: B.C. Premier Christy Clark is worried that the toxic American presidential campaign will scare women out of politics. She is worried that the ugly tone of the U.S. campaign and the attacks being launched against Democrat nominee Hillary Clinton will dissuade women from running for public office. Clark is calling on women to step up and "take it on the chin" so that another generation doesn't have to do that.
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ANOTHER TORY JUMPS INTO FEDERAL LEADERSHIP: Conservative MP Erin O'Toole is the latest candidate to enter his party's leadership race. He issued a statement saying that the Conservatives must show Canadians that government can be so much more than sunny ways, slogans and photo ops. Earlier on Friday, Conservative MP Lisa Raitt announced on Twitter she is stepping down from her role as finance critic to "continue discussions on the future leadership" of her party. Raitt's announcement suggests she is getting closer to declaring her intention to run, because interim Conservative leader Rona Ambrose has asked all leadership candidates to abandon such roles.
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OTTAWA MUST TIGHTEN CONTROL ON INFRASTRUCTURE SPENDING: Federal Infrastructure Minister Amarjeet Sohi was told this year that the government must change how it hands out infrastructure money to ensure tax dollars aren't wasted. During a January event at the University of Ottawa, Sohi and his top officials were told that up to a third of that potential economic impact could be lost without changes to the government's funding process. Former parliamentary budget officer Kevin Page, who helped host the January event, says Sohi was told that tightening the vetting process by forcing cities and provinces to provide more details on projects could reduce that loss by up to two-thirds.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2016