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

TRUDEAU DEFENDS HANDLING OF ELECTORAL REFORM: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he abandoned a promise to overhaul Canada’s electoral system because he was afraid the result would be political discord and instability. He told a town hall in Yellowknife that he knows people are disappointed but suggests he’s prepared to accept the political consequences, whatever they may be. He explained that the idea of a ranked ballot was abandoned because too many people believed it would be a system that would favour the governing Liberals.

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QUEBEC STUDENT BLOCKED FROM ENTERING U.S.: A Quebec student athlete is mystified as to why he was barred from entering the U.S. this week. Yassine Aber underwent a five-hour interrogation in which he was asked about religion and his Moroccan roots. The track and field athlete with the Universite de Sherbrooke said he was travelling to a weekend competition in Boston on Thursday when he ran into trouble at the Stanstead crossing on the Quebec-Vermont border. Aber was told he did not have a valid passport or visa to enter the country. Aber, who was born and raised in Sherbrooke, Que., says his Canadian passport is valid and does not expire until 2026.

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TRUMP SAYS HE’LL PREVAIL ON TRAVEL BAN: U.S. President Donald Trump says his administration will do whatever is necessary to keep the country safe. And he says he has “no doubt” that he will win the court fight over his travel ban. His comments at a news conference came hours after Trump tweeted that Wednesday’s appeals court decision on the ban was “disgraceful.” The court ruled against reinstating the refugee and immigration order. Speaking at a White House news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Trump says the administration will continue to work the case through the court process

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PAYPAL FREEZES MEDIA ORGANIZATION’S ACCOUNT: A community newspaper’s payment to enter a feel-good story about a family of Syrian refugees in an awards competition prompted PayPal to freeze the account of a national media organization as a suspicious transaction. The weekly Flin Flon Reminder entered the article as part of its submissions to the annual Canadian Community Newspaper Awards. Flin Flon publisher, Valerie Durnin, said when she tried to pay the $242.95 for the paper’s entries, PayPal flagged the payment as possibly not in compliance with its “acceptable use policy.” In an email, PayPal promised to follow up within 72 hours of its investigation, which it never did. Instead it reversed the payment.

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CLASS ACTION SUIT FILED AGAINST WALMART CANADA: A Calgary-based law firm has launched a class-action suit against Walmart Canada, alleging the retailer sold potentially contaminated food after the Fort McMurray wildfire. The lawsuit seeks damages for anyone who was not refunded for food that had to be thrown out — whether or not it was contaminated — as well as anyone who got sick. The Alberta government has charged Walmart with 174 violations of the province’s Public Health Act. Some of the charges include failing to dispose of food items, including candy, potato chips, beans and condiments. Walmart did not comment on the allegations, which have not been proven in court.

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JOBLESS RATE FALLS MARGINALLY: Canada’s jobless rate dropped marginally in January to 6.8 per cent from 6.9 per cent. Statistics Canada says there was an increase in part-time jobs and a lesser gain in full time work. Economists described the overall job growth as “very impressive” and “remarkably strong.”

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CANADA’S EAST AND WEST COASTS GET BLAST OF WINTER: Snow storms caused havoc in both the Atlantic provinces and British Columbia’s south coast Friday. Drivers in parts of the Maritimes faced snow squalls and blinding whiteouts as a fast-moving winter storm blew into Atlantic Canada. Parts of southwestern New Brunswick ended up with more than 30 centimetres of snow. The storm in British Columbia tied traffic in knots between the south coast and the interior.

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POLICE TO SKIP CANADA’S LARGEST PRIDE PARADE: Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders says his force won’t participate in the city’s annual pride parade. Saunders pointed to divisions within the LGBTQ community as the primary reason for his decision, but emphasized it “will have no impact” on the force’s outreach efforts. The presence of police in the parade emerged as a contentious issue when the parade was interrupted last summer by a protest from the local chapter of Black Lives Matter.

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BC PREMIER APOLOGIZES FOR HACKING CLAIM: British Columbia Premier Christy Clark has apologized to New Democrat Leader John Horgan over her accusations that the Opposition was involved in criminal hacking of her Liberal party’s website. Clark said she made a mistake and jumped to conclusions. The apology came as an Independent member of the legislature came forward to say her staff had access to the private information — without any attempt at hacking. Vicki Huntington says her staff uncovered the private information on the B.C. Liberals website while looking for 2016 donations to the party.

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The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

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

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