By Canadian Press

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

Sep 26, 2017 | 3:00 PM

Highlights from the news file for Tuesday, Sept. 26

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INQUIRY INTO MISSING AND MURDERED INDIGENOUS WOMEN HOLDS HEARINGS: A second set of hearings began Tuesday into murdered and missing Indigenous women and girls near British Columbia’s Highway of Tears. Dozens of women have disappeared or been killed on the notorious stretch of highway. The inquiry is holding its second round of community meetings in Smithers, B.C., after being plagued by controversy following complaints from families about poor communications and delays. Its chief commissioner has blamed the problems on the federal bureaucracy. The inquiry is set to visit nine communities this fall, including Edmonton, Winnipeg and Thunder Bay, Ont.

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UBER THREATENS TO SHUT DOWN QUEBEC SERVICE: The Quebec government is trying to impose a rigid and outdated taxi model on Uber’s flexible way of doing business and if nothing changes, the ride-hailing company will disappear from the province’s roads by mid-October, Uber said Tuesday. Quebec already had the most “severe” rules regulating the ride-hailing company in Canada, said Uber’s Quebec general manager, Jean-Nicolas Guillemette. Transport Minister Laurent Lessard said he’s “surprised that a big company, a big multinational like Uber, can’t find a way to use its application to train its drivers.” “I am firm in my intention,” Lessard said.

Raiders win 5-3

Defensive scoring leads Raiders over Wheat Kings

1h ago

GST Holiday

Federal government's two-month GST holiday begins

16h ago

Imminent need

Council set to discuss possible location for homeless shelter on 15th Street

22h ago

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FREELAND TO MEET COUNTERPARTS AS NAFTA TALKS GRIND ON: Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland was set to welcome her Mexican and American counterparts to Ottawa Tuesday. Freeland was to host U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Mexican Economy Minister ldefonso Guajardo for a dinner meeting on the eve of the final day of talks in the national capital. The third of seven planned rounds ends Wednesday, with the goal of finishing by the end of the year becoming more elusive by the hour.

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CANADA SEEKS PROGRESSIVE LABOUR STANDARDS IN NAFTA: Canada is pushing for the inclusion of enforceable, progressive labour standards in a rewritten North American Free Trade Agreement. Such standards would be aimed at compelling Mexico to pay workers higher wages and do away with so-called “yellow” unions that represent employers rather than employees. Canada’s proposed chapter on labour standards also calls for an end to right-to-work laws in the United States, whereby workers in 28 states have the right to refuse to join or pay dues to a union while enjoying all the benefits of a unionized workplace.

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NO NETFLIX TAX IN NEW CULTURAL POLICY: The Liberal government’s plan to revitalize cultural industries won’t include a tax on Netflix. But expect Heritage Minister Melanie Joly to highlight this week that she expects more from companies like Netflix, Facebook and Google when it comes to supporting and promoting Canadian content. Sources tell The Canadian Press that Joly’s address Thursday will lay out three pillars for a revamp of the approach the government takes to culture.

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KIDS, TEENS SHOULD AVOID SPORTS DRINKS: Kids and teens should not drink sports or energy drinks, the Canadian Paediatric Society says in a new position released Tuesday that takes a stand against the sugary beverages. Dr. Catherine Pound, co-author of the statement and a pediatrician at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, says caffeinated energy drinks in particular can pose serious health risks and are unnecessary for most young people. “I wouldn’t recommend them for anybody that fits our target population, which is anyone between the ages of zero and 18,” said Pound.

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ONTARIO MINOR HOCKEY ENACTS TRANSGENDER TRAINING: Education on transgender athletes is mandatory for all of Ontario’s minor hockey coaches, trainers and managers this season, the latest step in a series of changes stemming from a human rights complaint filed by a transgender teen in 2013. A pair of online training modules must be completed by Sunday, or within a month of the person being assigned to a team. Non-compliance means the coach, manager or trainer will not be registered by their minor hockey association.

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FEDS WORK OUT DETAILS OF NEW HOUSING BENEFIT: Federal officials are working out the kinks in a government plan to tie housing assistance to the person who needs help, not the place where they are living. Benefits have traditionally been tied to a housing unit through rent-geared-to-income plans or rent supplements, meaning they can’t accompany a person who moves, such as women fleeing domestic violence. Officials with the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. are working with provinces and territories on how to deliver the supplement without driving prices higher in markets where affordable housing is in short supply, said Evan Siddall, the corporation’s president and CEO.

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SURVEY INDICATES CANADIANS CURIOUS ABOUT POT EDIBLES: Canadians appear to have an appetite for marijuana-infused munchies, according to a new survey. The survey found a healthy majority both supported the legalization of recreational pot use but had clear concerns about children’s access to edible products containing cannabis. The poll by researchers at Dalhousie University in Halifax found that about 68 per cent of people across the country favour the impending legalization of pot, with the bulk of that support in B.C. and Ontario.

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OTTAWA RESEARCHER NAMES SCIENCE ADVISER: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has selected Ottawa heart researcher Mona Nemer to be the country’s top scientist. Nemer leaves her position as the vice-president of research at the University of Ottawa after more than a decade to take on the title of Canada’s chief science adviser. The appointment fulfills an election promise and ticks off one of Science Minister Kirsty Duncan’s mandated deliverables. Nemer will head up a $2-million budget and report to Trudeau and Duncan as she provides scientific advice to government decision-makers, helps to keep government science accessible and public and protects federal scientists from being muzzled.

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The Canadian Press