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

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Nighttime construction on Hwy 3 in Lethbridge starts April 17

Apr 17, 2025

SASHA launches #BuyABed fundraiser to support vulnerable Lethbridge residents

Apr 04, 2025

$20K grants available: TELUS STORYHIVE Pan-Asian Edition opens applications April 1

Mar 18, 2025

MULRONEY SAYS TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP DOOMED: Former prime minister Brian Mulroney says the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal is doomed to fail because of hostility in the U.S. Congress. Mulroney says he believes Canada should shift its efforts toward making deals with countries like India and China. Mulroney made the comments in Nova Scotia where he was attending a ceremony to announce plans for the Brian Mulroney Institute of Government at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish.

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TORIES DEMAND ANSWERS ABOUT CANADIAN ROLE IN IRAQ: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the government’s clampdown on information about Canada’s mission in Iraq is necessary to protect Canadian soldiers on the ground. But interim Conservative leader Rona Ambrose says the government is trying to hide the fact the troops are engaged in combat with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. The heated exchange in the House of Commons came after military officers revealed recently that Canadian soldiers are spending more time on the front lines and engaging in more firefights with ISIL.

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CANADIANS USING INTERNET MORE THAN TV: A report by the CRTC says Canadians spent more on Internet access than television services for the first time last year. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission said that in 2015 communications service industry revenues from Internet access were $9.8 billion, while subscription television services accounted for $8.9 billion. The shift also saw wireless data usage increase by 44 per cent from 2014 to 2015.

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FIRST NATIONS TO SUE OVER LNG PROJECT: First Nations groups are planning to file a lawsuit Thursday against the federal government and Malaysian state-owned oil firm Petronas in an attempt to stop a liquefied natural gas project on British Columbia’s northern coast. The $36-billion Pacific NorthWest LNG project received conditional approval from the federal government last month. First Nations claim the project — which includes a pipeline and terminal proposed for Lelu Island, near Prince Rupert — could have a severe impact on communities in the area by destroying habitat for local salmon stock.

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CMHC SAYS HOUSING PRICES OUTSTRIPPING ECONOMY: Canada’s federal housing agency says there is rising evidence of risk in the country’s real estate markets as home prices have climbed faster than income and population growth. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. has increased its risk rating for the national housing market to strong, from the moderate rating that CMHC gave in July. It cites continued overvaluation, which means that home prices are not fully supported by economic fundamentals such as income, mortgage rates and population growth.

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NEB PREDICTS SLOWER GROWTH IN OIL PRICES: The National Energy Board has downgraded its long-term outlook for oil prices and Canadian production in the face of lower global industry costs and stricter environmental regulations. In an update released Wednesday, the regulator projects inflation-adjusted oil prices rising to US$68 a barrel by 2020 and US$90 by 2040, $12 and $17 a barrel lower, respectively, than in its January report. The lower prices are expected to translate to lower long-term production for Canada, where costs are comparatively high.

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POWERFUL AFTERSHOCKS HIT ITALY: A pair of powerful aftershocks shook central Italy on Wednesday, knocking out power, closing a major highway and sending panicked residents into the rain-drenched streets just two months after a powerful earthquake killed nearly 300 people. The first quake carried a magnitude of 5.4, but the second one was even stronger, with a preliminary magnitude of 6.1. Two people were injured in the Visso area, but otherwise there were no other immediate reports of victims.

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CLINTON CELEBRATES 69TH BIRTHDAY IN FLORIDA: Hillary Clinton is praising celebrity chef Jose Andres for declining to open a restaurant inside rival Donald Trump’s new Washington, D.C., hotel. Clinton told a rally in Tampa, Fla., that when Andres heard Trump’s talk about immigrants, he refused to open a restaurant in that hotel. Clinton says it was a “really gutsy” decision. Clinton was greeted with chants of “Happy birthday” as she arrived at the rally on her 69th birthday.

The Canadian Press