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Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:

B.C. government declares state of emergency over flooding

British Columbia Premier John Horgan has declared a state of emergency after flooding and landslides devastated the southern part of the province.

He says the government will bring in travel restrictions to ensure that essential goods and medical and emergency services are able to reach the communities that need them.

The declaration was made hours after nearly 200 people were safely evacuated from Abbotsford, B.C., and after officials confirmed Fraser River levels were dropping.

Earlier today, Abbotsford Mayor Henry Braun warned that more rain could turn the situation dire again, especially because the pumping station that removes excess water flowing into the former lake at Sumas Prairie was never designed to handle overflow water coming in from the Nooksack River in the United States.

More stories on the floods prompting British Columbia’s state of emergency:

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People who were stranded by high water due to flooding are rescued by a volunteer operating a boat in Abbotsford, B.C., on Nov. 16, 2021.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press

Ottawa dropping costly COVID-19 PCR test for Canadians returning home, sources say

The Canadian government is going to drop the costly polymerase chain reaction COVID-19 test for Canadians returning to Canada, sources say.

Canadians and permanent residents will still have to get an antigen test when coming back from travel to the United States and other countries.

A PCR test will still be required for fully vaccinated Americans or other travellers coming to Canada, according to the sources. The Globe and Mail is not identifying the sources, who were not authorized to speak on the matter.

Rogers removes CEO Joe Natale after boardroom power struggle for control of telecom giant

Joe Natale has been removed as chief executive officer of Rogers Communications Inc RCI-B-T by the company’s board, led by chair Edward Rogers, whose desire to replace the CEO led to an unprecedented power struggle that split one of Canada’s wealthiest families and left the telecom industry veteran caught in the middle.

The company’s former chief financial officer, Tony Staffieri, will be interim CEO, the company said late on Tuesday.

The high-stakes family feud erupted in the midst of the company’s $26-billion takeover of Shaw Communications Inc. The boardroom showdown pitted chair Mr. Rogers against his mother, Loretta Rogers, and sisters Martha Rogers and Melinda Rogers-Hixon.

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ALSO ON OUR RADAR

Canada’s annual inflation rate hits 4.7% in October, fastest pace in nearly 19 years: The consumer price index rose 4.7 per cent in October from a year earlier, up from 4.4 per cent in September, Statistics Canada said today. The swift uptick could leave households to pay sharply more for gasoline, new vehicles and meat products.

‘Top of the table’: The world reacts to Canada’s historic ‘Iceteca’ win over Mexico in World Cup qualifier: Canada’s national men’s soccer team, which hasn’t been to a World Cup since 1986, is tops. A point up on the Americans. Two points up on the Mexicans and Panamanians. The top three qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, while the fourth-place team gets a final shot to qualify through an intercontinental playoff.

Europe’s least-vaccinated countries are back in pandemic crisis: Romania and Bulgaria in particular are going through a fresh pandemic hell, not because of a lack of vaccines – they are in surplus – but because of extreme vaccine skepticism and resistance to isolating people who are unvaccinated, as Austria and a few other countries are now doing.

Stats to amaze and depress all who own a house or hope to own: Housing is hot – again. Across the country, in cities big and small, prices are surging after a summer lull. Here are some numbers that document what’s happening.

Listen to The Decibel: Lessons from the life of Lee Maracle


MARKET WATCH

Canada’s main stock index fell on Wednesday as risk appetite lost some positive momentum, with investors looking for the next catalyst that could help drive stocks to new highs. Wall Street benchmarks also closed down on Wednesday on inflation fears and supply chain concerns, with investors betting the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates sooner than expected to tame rising prices.

The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index ended down 64.14 points at 21,653.02, extending its pullback from a record intraday high on Tuesday at 21,796.16.

The energy sector also fell 0.5 per cent as rising COVID-19 cases in Europe weighed on oil prices. Industrials were down 0.91 per cent, while the heavily weighted financial services sector declined 0.17 per cent.

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TALKING POINTS

With Denise Batters’ expulsion, Erin O’Toole finally finds his voice as Leader – two months after the election

“If Erin O’Toole’s position on vaccine mandates, conscience rights, guns, defunding the CBC and carbon taxes is any indication, his expulsion of Senator Denise Batters from the Conservative caucus should last only a few days.” Robyn Urback

Curiosity is at the core of education. Canada’s largest school board has showed a stunning lack of it

“It’s one thing to be ignorant. It’s another to be ignorant and powerful – and in the business of education.” Naomi Buck

With win over Mexico, Canadian men’s soccer team isn’t up and coming - it’s here

“Was Canada-Mexico on Tuesday a good soccer game? No. By any sensible measure of quality, it was terrible. For long stretches, 20 guys doing cardio in the hopes of staying alive and two more guys (the goalkeepers) slowly dying of exposure. But was it a great spectacle of soccer? It would be hard to think of a match that will stick in the collective memory in quite the same way.” Cathal Kelly


LIVING BETTER

Vitamin K’s most famous role is helping our blood clot normally. Scientists are learning, though, that the nutrient has important roles beyond blood clotting. Growing evidence suggests this lesser-known nutrient plays an important role in healthy aging.


TODAY’S LONG READ

What doesn’t break Adele, Britney and Taylor only makes them stronger

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Confetti falls on Britney Spears supporters outside a hearing concerning the pop singer's conservatorship at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse, Nov. 12, 2021, in Los Angeles.Chris Pizzello/The Associated Press

Speaking in the Los Angeles Superior Court this summer, Britney Spears delivered an impassioned speech in a bid to end a legal conservatorship that had ruled her life, cash and career for more than 13 years.

In an internet minute, a hashtag flipped from #FreeBritney to #FreedBritney. Not present for the declaration, Spears ecstatically tweeted “best day ever.” A mob of fans outside the court building celebrated by hollering along to the lyrics of the Spears’s defiant Stronger: “I’ve had enough, I’m not your property as from today, baby.”

These are redemptive days for female artists. In addition to Spears’s freedom, November has seen a flurry of breakup music that includes Adele’s first album in six years (30, released Nov. 19) and Taylor Swift’s emancipative rerecording of her 2012 album Red, this time possessively marked like an office refrigerator’s yogurt container: Red (Taylor’s Version).

The actions of Swift, Spears and Adele have excited fans, media and the music industry. These are events of empowerment by female artists – You Oughta Know 2.0. – that are cheered on by an empathetic public.

Evening Update is written by Emerald Bensadoun. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.

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