By Canadian Press

In the news today: Territorial premiers make pitch in DC, prorogation two-day hearing

Feb 13, 2025 | 3:17 AM

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed…

Territorial premiers to talk Arctic policy in D.C.

Territorial premiers are making the case in Washington that Northern Canada is key to continental security, diplomacy and economic opportunity as Canadian leaders continue their diplomatic push against threatened U.S. tariffs.

Yukon Premier Ranj Pillai, Northwest Territories Premier R.J. Simpson and Nunavut Premier P.J. Akeeagok are set to take part in a discussion at the Wilson Center this morning on prospects for collaboration between Canada and the United States in the Arctic.

All 13 of Canada’s premiers were in the United States capital Wednesday for the first time in history – part of a diplomatic full-court press against U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to impose steep tariffs on Canadian goods.

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Canadians cling to Netflix despite tariff threats

A new poll suggests many Canadians are willing to use their spending power to protest U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threats and attacks on Canadian sovereignty — but not if it means they have to kick their Netflix and Disney+ addictions.

A Leger survey that polled 1,590 Canadians between Feb. 7 and Feb. 10, 2025 suggests an overwhelming majority of Canadians — 81 per cent — have significantly increased how many Canadian-made products they buy, or will do so soon.

But only 28 per cent of Canadians told the pollster they have or will be cancelling their subscriptions to U.S. streaming services, compared with 34 per cent who say they will not be cancelling them.

About one in three people polled also said they are unwilling to stop making online purchases from U.S.-based companies.

Prorogation power ‘not absolute,’ challengers say

Two Nova Scotia men are asking the Federal Court to declare the current suspension of Parliament illegal because there must be a “reasonable justification” for hitting the pause button.

Federal lawyers contend in response that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s advice to the Governor General to prorogue Parliament is not subject to review by the courts, and that the ultimate judgment rests with the voting public.

The court will hear arguments from both sides of the dispute during a two day-hearing that gets underway this morning.

In their application filed last month, David MacKinnon of Amherst, N.S., and Aris Lavranos of Halifax seek an order setting aside Trudeau’s decision to advise Gov. Gen. Mary Simon to exercise her power to prorogue Parliament until March 24.

Gould promises to work toward basic income

Liberal MP Karina Gould says she would work toward establishing a basic personal income if she wins the party’s leadership race next month.

Gould is in Fredericton this morning visiting the city’s food bank, where she will speak about the policy.

The Liberal grassroots have backed at least four resolutions for basic income programs at policy conventions including by a vote of 77 per cent at a virtual convention held in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, it has never appeared in a campaign platform.

Ontario election campaign reaches halfway point

As Ontario’s snap winter election campaign reaches its halfway point, Progressive Conservatives’ main opponents are still scrambling to pitch themselves to voters, while polls suggest the incumbents maintain a significant lead.

Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford called the early vote for Feb. 27, more than a year before the next fixed election date, in what some observers say was a strategic move intended to catch his rivals at a disadvantage.

Ford has said his government needs an even bigger mandate from Ontarians in the face of looming tariffs and four years of U.S. President Donald Trump.

But other party leaders have accused Ford of calling the snap election for his own benefit, calling it unnecessary and a waste of money.

Couples reflect on 20 years of same-sex marriage

A hotel hot tub changed Erin Beckwell’s life.

The Saskatoon woman had been to dinner with her partner, who then endlessly drove her around the city.

“I’m like, ‘Where are you taking me?'” said Beckwell, a university professor. “I’m not great at waiting for surprises and I just wanted to know.”

The suspense continued at a hotel suite on that chilly December night in 2002. Under the guise that it was a staycation, Beckwell took a dip.

“She proposed to me while I was lounging in the hot tub,” she said. “She did the whole down-on-one-knee, and I just remember thinking, ‘Oh, my God. This is really happening.’

“There was no doubt about saying yes.”

Erin and Lisa Beckwell were the first gay couple to legally tie the knot in Saskatchewan, after it became the seventh province to recognize same-sex unions in November 2004.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb, 13, 2025

The Canadian Press