Welcome to The Globe and Mail’s news quiz. Join us each week to test your knowledge of the stories making the headlines.
The year is on its last legs, and what a year it’s been. This week, we’ve put together a quiz to test your knowledge on the top stories of the year, from foreign interference to wildfires to messy public resignations.
Do you remember these stories? Take our news quiz to find out.
1Back in August, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife Sophie Grégoire Trudeau announced they were separating. How long were they married?
a. 5 years
b. 25 years
c. 18 years
d. 12 years
c. 18 years. The couple were married in May, 2005. They have three children and, at the time, his office said both parents would remain a “constant presence” in their kids’ lives. Trudeau is only the second prime minister, after his father, to split with a spouse while in office.
2Which Canadian city did The Globe rank as the most livable city in Canada?
a. Victoria
b. Winnipeg
c. Toronto
d. Halifax
a. Victoria. The Globe’s list of most livable cities ranked Victoria high on amenities, transportation and climate, which counterbalanced its biggest drawback – housing affordability. However, residents say years of economic and population growth have transformed Victoria into a dreamy, vibrant city.
3In February, longtime Toronto Mayor John Tory
resigned from office after admitting to a months-long affair with a woman who had been an employee in his office. Which of his former mayoral election opponents took over the job?
a. Doug Ford
b. Olivia Chow
c. Jennifer Keesmaat
d. Gil Penalosa
b. Olivia Chow. Chow won the June by-election and became the first racialized mayor in Toronto history. The former NDP MP ran against Tory in the 2014 mayoral election.
4For the first time in decades, a total eclipse of the sun will pass through Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes in April 2024. If you miss it, when is the next solar eclipse expected to pass through a major Canadian city?
a. 2025
b. 2124
c. 2044
d. 2079
c. 2044. If you miss the eclipse, you’ll have to wait another 20 years to catch the next one in 2044 around the Western provinces, and 2079 in the Maritimes.
5Wildfires raged all over Canada this summer, and thousands of Canadians were forced to evacuate their homes. How many hectares of land burned across the country?
a. 2.7 million hectares
b. 11.5 million hectares
c. 15 million hectares
d. 18.5 million hectares
6Michael Spavor, one of the two Canadians jailed by China for nearly three years, is seeking a multimillion-dollar settlement from the federal government for unwittingly providing intelligence to Canada on which country?
a. Russia
b. North Korea
c. India
d. China
b. North Korea. Spavor is among only a handful of Westerners who has met North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. He alleged that Michael Kovrig, who was also detained by China, passed along information on North Korea to intelligence services through the Global Security Reporting Program.
7In September, Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced he was backtracking on a plan to open up a section of the Greenbelt for development. What was the reason for the reversal?
a. Urban planners found a rare and protected species of turtle on the land
b. The land-selection process was biased toward developers close to the government
c. Doug Ford took a walk through the Greenbelt and fell in love
d. A petition signed by 100,000 Ontarians opposing the project
b. The land-selection process was biased. Two reports from independent watchdogs revealed that certain developers were favoured in the Greenbelt land swap. In his announcement, Ford called the decision to open up the land a ‘mistake.’
8Foreign interference was a big topic in Canada this year, starting with a February report outlining China’s strategy to disrupt the 2021 federal election. In an effort to help combat foreign interference, Canada’s spy agency has proposed it should be given legal authority to disclose intelligence on foreign-interference threats to which places or institutions?
a. Universities
b. Provinces
c. Municipalities
d. All of the above
d. All of the above. CSIS said its governing legislation as currently written prevents it from speaking frankly to certain institutions about the threats they face. Hearings in the public inquiry into foreign interference are set to begin Jan. 29.
How well did you do?
Answer all of the questions to see your result