Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during an event marking International Women's day in Ottawa, Wednesday March 8, 2017. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Highlights from the news file for Wednesday, March 8

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BORDER-CROSSERS FACE BLIZZARD IN MANITOBA: Nineteen asylum-seekers braved a fierce overnight blizzard to cross into Canada near the Manitoba border community of Emerson, the area's reeve said Wednesday. "It was not pretty out here. Some heavy snow squalls, zero visibility, and these people are walking north straight into the wind," Greg Janzen said. "I think they walked almost right through Emerson without knowing they were here." Two people were found Tuesday night, Janzen said, and the other 17 were discovered huddled together shortly after sunrise in a carport at an old golf course. Winds were gusting up to 80 kilometres an hour overnight, which created a wind chill of -28 C. Visibility was so poor, highways in the area were closed until early Wednesday morning. An ambulance managed to get through, Janzen said, and one person who had an injured arm was tended to. Many of those making the journey are originally from African nations such as Somalia and Ghana and fear deportation from the United States under toughened immigration laws.

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TRUDEAU TRUMPETS WOMEN'S RIGHT TO CHOOSE: Justin Trudeau's self-proclaimed feminist bona fides were on full display Wednesday as the prime minister known for his gender-balanced cabinet and support for equal rights showed his government's support for International Women's Day. To mark the occasion, Trudeau announced $650 million over three years for sexual and reproductive health projects around the world and fielded pointed questions from a House of Commons filled with young female delegates from the country's 338 ridings. And he gave an impassioned defence of a woman's right to choose an abortion — a message of particular resonance in the wake of his recent meeting with a U.S. president many around the world have branded as a misogynist. "For far too many women and girls, unsafe abortions and lack of choices in reproductive health mean that they either are ... at risk of death or else simply cannot contribute and cannot achieve their potential," Trudeau said. The funding — twice Canada's current investment on reproductive health — will go towards promoting sexuality education, improving services and investing in family planning and contraceptives, he added.

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STATISTICS CANADA SAYS GENDER GAP IN LABOUR FORCE THINS: Statistics Canada says that more women are in leadership roles in the public sector where pay equity is the law than in the private sector, where similar rules don't apply. The report from the national statistics office released on International Women's Day says that gender parity existed in the public sector in 2015, when 54 per cent of legislators and senior government managers and officials were women. The percentage of women in similar positions in the private sector was 25.6 per cent, the report says. The number of women in the workforce has risen considerably over the past 70 years, jumping rapidly between the 1950s and 1990, but rising at a slower pace since then. As of 2014, women's labour force participation reached 82 per cent, Statistics Canada says, compared with 91 per cent for men, narrowing a gap that was more than 70 percentage points in the early 1950s. Women remain outnumbered in natural and applied science occupations that usually require a university degree. As a result, women tended to occupy lower-paying jobs and earned less overall than men: Statistics Canada calculated that women earned 87 cents for every dollar earned by a man. Looking across 46 occupation groups, Statistics Canada found that women's wages would rise on average by $2.86 per hour if men and women were paid equally.

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U.S. COMMERCE CZAR REVEALS SOME NAFTA PLANS: NAFTA negotiations will probably start late this year, might take about a year, and will include serious changes that could see the addition of several entire new chapters to the landmark agreement. That's according to U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, tasked by President Donald Trump to assist negotiations. And while the president suggests he simply wants minor tweaks in the arrangement with Canada, his point man foresees substantive changes. In the interview, Ross revealed multiple aspects of his thinking on the upcoming renegotiations of the seminal 1993 agreement with Canada and Mexico. Ross hopes to add entire new chapters to NAFTA, which currently has 22 chapters. He says the additions would reflect the modern digital economy. He also hinted at substantive changes on auto parts — significant enough to require a phase-in period as car companies adjust their global supply chains. Ross has made no secret of his desire to adjust the rules of origin for tariff-free vehicles, to bring auto-parts production closer to home. What's unclear is whether his intended target would be limited to Asian parts suppliers, or whether Mexican and Canadian ones might also get hit.

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MPS IN U.S. HEAR CALL FOR MORE DEFENCE SPENDING: Canadian MPs visiting Washington this week say they keep hearing a familiar message in the U.S. capital: Canada and other NATO partners will be expected to pony up more money for the military. It's something that members of the parliamentary committee on national defence say they'll be taking home after three days of meetings at the Pentagon, the U.S. Capitol and think-tanks. But they also say the U.S. recognizes Canada's non-financial contributions — such as volunteering for roles in combat zones including Afghanistan, Libya and Iraq, in addition to efforts in eastern Europe. The committee's Liberal chairman, Stephen Fuhr, says there's no question U.S. policy-makers expect allies to spend more, but he says they also recognize that part of that contribution can be counted in other ways. He says there's also discussion about how countries calculate their military spending — and whether things like the coast guard should be counted toward the NATO spending target of two per cent of GDP. Canada is currently one of the lowest-spending members of NATO according to that metric; it spends less than half the guideline target and was already facing pressure from the Obama administration to increase its expenditure, before Donald Trump promised to take a harder line on defence spending.

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SENATORS SEEK EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT TRUMP'S WIRETAP CLAIM: The leaders of a congressional inquiry into Russia's efforts to sway the U.S. election called on the Justice Department on Wednesday to produce any evidence that supports President Donald Trump's explosive wiretapping allegation. Declaring that Congress "must get to the bottom" of Trump's claim, Sen. Lindsey Graham and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse asked Acting Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente and FBI Director James Comey to produce the paper trail created when the Justice Department's criminal division secures warrants for wiretaps. Trump tweeted last weekend that former president Barack Obama had tapped his phones at Trump Tower during the election. But Trump offered no evidence to back up the accusation. Through a spokesman, Obama said neither he nor any White House official had ever ordered surveillance on any U.S. citizen. Obama's director of national intelligence, James Clapper, said nothing matching Trump's claims had taken place.

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PARKS CANADA REJECTS MOVIE AFTER SEEING PLOT: A movie production team was denied permission to shoot in the Rocky Mountain national parks after Parks Canada staff learned the film's plot involved an indigenous gang leader. "They expressed a real concern that this was not something they would favour," said Mark Voyce, location manager for a film project that had been scheduled to start shooting later this month. Voyce is working for Michael Shamberg, a film producer whose past credits include movies such as "Erin Brockovich," "A Fish Called Wanda," "Garden State," "Gattaca" and "Get Shorty." Shamberg is currently working on a project called "Hard Powder," a crime drama ostensibly set in a Colorado ski town. Action star Liam Neeson is to play an honest snowplow driver whose son is murdered by a local drug kingpin. He then seeks to dismantle the cartel, but his efforts spark a turf war involving a First Nations gang boss, played by First Nations actor, musician and Order of Canada member Tom Jackson. In an email, Parks Canada confirmed it has concerns over the script. The decision was made despite a letter of support from Jackson.

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CROWN TO APPEAL NEWFOUNDLAND OFFICER'S ASSAULT ACQUITTAL: The Crown will appeal the acquittal of a police officer in Newfoundland who was accused of sexually assaulting an intoxicated woman. Last month, a jury found Const. Doug Snelgrove not guilty. Court heard that after a night of drinking, the woman approached the officer's parked police cruiser in December 2014 and asked for a ride home because she thought it would be safer than taking a cab. She testified the night ended with her passing out — then waking up as the constable with the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary was having sex with her. Snelgrove's acquittal on Feb. 24 became a flashpoint for public outrage about "rape culture" and the issue of consent. The Crown had argued the 10-year veteran of the police force took advantage of a vulnerable woman, but Snelgrove testified he had the woman's consent for sex, and she did not appear drunk.

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SASKATCHEWAN NDP CALLS FOR BIGGER PAY CUT FOR CABINET: Chants of "no ifs, no buts, no public sector cuts" rang out on the front steps of the Saskatchewan legislature as several hundred people rallied against the government. There was a giant yellow and black sign that said "The cuts end here" and black coffins with the label "Workers rights & benefits." The protest comes one day after Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall said the government is cutting compensation costs across the public sector by 3.5 per cent in the coming fiscal year, which starts in April. He said cutting public sector wages could save the government about $250 million. Wall also said that all MLAs and cabinet ministers will take a 3.5 per cent salary cut, too. Staff in the premier's office, as well as ministers' offices, will take nine unpaid days off a year to reduce their pay by about 3.5 per cent. Both measures are expected to save about $500,000 a year. But the Opposition NDP say cabinet ministers should take an additional 20 per cent cut to help tackle the province's $1.2-billion deficit. New Democrats say that's why they did not attend a legislative committee Wednesday morning that would have approved the cut for all members of the assembly — effectively shutting down the meeting.

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ADIDAS SEEKS BUYER FOR CCM HOCKEY BRAND: Adidas says it's putting the CCM Hockey brand up for sale. The German sports equipment and apparel giant made the announcement Wednesday as it reported its fourth-quarter and year-end results for 2016. The company reported a 14.3 per cent decline in net sales for CCM Hockey last year compared to 2015, and a bigger drop of 21.6 per cent in the fourth quarter compared to the same period a year earlier. Now headquartered in Montreal, CCM Hockey can trace its roots to its founding in September 1899 in Weston, Ont., as Canada Cycle & Motor Co. Ltd. A veritable who's who of the NHL have geared up with CCM Hockey equipment, including Darryl Sittler, Mark Messier and Sidney Crosby. In 2004, CCM Hockey was bought by Reebok, which was acquired by Adidas two years later.

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News from © The Canadian Press, 2017