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

CANADA PRESSING AHEAD WITH LATVIA MISSION: Canada is pressing ahead with plans to deploy hundreds of troops to serve as a NATO buffer against Russia in eastern Europe, despite concerns about the military alliance’s future under the administration of Donald Trump. The president-elect repeatedly criticized NATO during the election campaign, calling it obsolete and warning that the U.S. would not automatically come to the defence of a member that was attacked. Defence minister Harjit Sajjan says Canada is committed to the Latvian mission and says the military plans to ensure the troops and their partners are well-equipped.

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SUZUKI WANTS HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT AS RIGHT: David Suzuki, one of the leading voices on environmental issues over the past half century, says he has embarked on the “last great fight” of his life as he tries to get environmental rights for all Canadians enshrined in the Constitution. The 80-year-old says that’s the only way to ensure environmental policies cannot be overturned with the hottest political flavour. U.S. president-elect Donald Trump has called climate change a “myth,” and said the concept of global warming was “created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive.”

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PM MEETS WITH POWERFUL GLOBAL INVESTORS: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spent Monday pitching some of the world’s most powerful institutional investors on Canada’s economic virtues, urging them to invest in the country — specifically in infrastructure. Trudeau talked about leveraging private capital to make taxpayer dollars “go even further” — the aim being to put the country in the global forefront when it comes to transit, green and other types of infrastructure. But in Ottawa, New Democrats vowed to fight “every step of the way” what they called Trudeau’s scheme to privatize public infrastructure.

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TRUDEAU TO TALK TRADE, INVESTMENT IN CUBA: Justin Trudeau’s visit to Cuba on Tuesday — the first official trip by a Canadian prime minister to the country in nearly two decades — is the first step in the Liberal government’s week-long bid to boost Canadian trade, investment and engagement in the region. Canada’s former ambassador to the Organization of American States says the visit is a necessary and symbolic stop en route to Argentina and Peru because Cuba is a political and diplomatic gateway to the Americas.

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FEDERAL STUDY TOUTS DRUG DECRIMINALIZATION: An internal federal study says alternatives to criminalizing a wide range of illicit drugs in Canada could result in lower rates of use and fewer harms such as addiction, overdoses and infectious diseases. The Justice Department research paper stresses there are healthier and less costly ways of addressing the problem of illegal drug use — including early education and treatment of those who become users — and that the biggest hurdles might be more political than practical. The Liberal government has promised to legalize, regulate and restrict access to marijuana to keep it out of the hands of children while denying criminals the financial profits.

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CAA URGES POT-IMPAIRED DRIVER EDUCATION: The Canadian Automobile Association is lobbying for a government-funded public education program to warn of the dangers of cannabis-impaired driving before Canada legalizes recreational pot. It says police will also need more funding to learn how to recognize and investigate drug-impaired drivers. The Liberal government has promised to introduce legislation legalizing recreational marijuana next spring. The CAA helped fund a study that suggests legalization will pose “incredible challenges” for managing pot-impaired drivers.

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B.C. MAN PLEADS NOT GUILTY TO TERRORISM CHARGES: A British Columbia man accused of posting Islamic State propaganda online has pleaded not guilty to four terrorism-related offences. Othman Hamdan faces charges of encouraging the commission of murder, assault and mischief, all for terrorist purposes. He is also accused of inducing and instructing someone to carry out a terrorist act, whether directly or indirectly. Hamdan was arrested in Fort St. John in July 2015 for alleged offences dating back to the previous September.

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The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

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

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