Good morning,
The Canadian government will announce this morning the final list of retaliatory tariffs and financial aid to the steel and aluminum industry. The actions are in response to tariffs launched by the United States, which have been variously described by the Trump administration as being due to concerns about national security or part of the bargaining around a free-trade deal. Sources told The Globe and Mail that the aid package would be similar in design and scope to the one given to the softwood lumber industry last year, which was also prompted by sudden and punitive duties imposed by the U.S. government. That package included Employment Insurance measures for workers affected by the trade dispute and loans to help companies find new clients. The lumber industry has actually not tapped into that much of the aid over the past year, as demand for softwood has boomed and the help hasn’t yet been needed. We’ll see if the same holds true this summer for those in metals.
This is the daily Politics Briefing newsletter, written by Chris Hannay in Ottawa and James Keller in Vancouver. If you’re reading this on the web or someone forwarded this email newsletter to you, you can sign up for Politics Briefing and all Globe newsletters here. Have any feedback? Let us know what you think.
TODAY’S HEADLINES
Doug Ford becomes premier of Ontario today, as he seeks to implement election promises that shave off $6-billion in government spending without cuts to services. The swearing in happens at 12 p.m. ET, as the Progressive Conservatives take power and officially end the premiership of Liberal Kathleen Wynne. For a preview of what his fist year in power might look like, read our explainer.
An Ontario police chief is blaming the province’s crackdown on street checks, or carding, for a rise in violent crime. Ontario banned the practice amid allegations of racial profiling, and provinces and police forces in Western Canada are now facing similar pressure. Peel Region Chief Jennifer Evans says the ban on carding has “empowered” criminals.
The Ontario agency in charge of recreational marijuana sales is pressuring some growers to reduce prices, as governments across Canada struggle to ensure legal cannabis can compete with the black market.
Housing advocates and city officials in Vancouver are raising concerns about oversight around provincial welfare payments that are made directly to private landlords of derelict single-room hotels in the Downtown Eastside. Documents obtained by The Globe and Mail show that properties owned by the Sahota family have been flagged for poor record-keeping that have made it difficult to determine whether payments are actually being used to house the intended recipients.
A report that outlined how organized crime had turned B.C. casinos into “laundromats” for their dirty money revealed how the RCMP’s shifting priorities toward security issues such as terrorism turned its attention away from financial crimes. The review was also critical of the former BC Liberal government, which was warned of potential money laundering in casinos as early as 2011.
Border officers in Montreal say they are frustrated that they sometimes catch stolen cars on their way to being shipped out of the country, but local police choose not to investigate them.
The federal government is accelerating its push toward a national carbon price even as it continues to face resistance from conservative provincial politicians. Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr has endorsed an advisory committee report that calls for increased energy efficiency, switching off fossil fuels and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the oil and gas sector.
A new report says nearly 800,000 Canadians live in “child care deserts” where the number of children outstrips the available spaces in licensed homes and centres. The report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says smart policies are needed to meet federal promises around child care.
And five people are dead at a Maryland newspaper after an aggrieved gunman stormed the building. The alleged shooter, Jared Warren Ramos, had a long-running dispute with the paper. In an astounding testament to journalism, the publication’s staff covered the shooting and still put out a paper the next day.
Campbell Clark (The Globe and Mail) on strained Canada-U.S. relations: “The ambassador’s talking point about ties between Canada and the United States being deeper than any dispute is still true. But it’s getting tested.”
The Globe and Mail Editorial Board on boycotting July 4: “ While staying away will send a message of protest, it will be self-defeating. Its effect will not be nearly as positive as going and eating hot dogs, sipping bourbon and pressing the flesh with embassy officials and other Americans in attendance.”
Sharleen Gale (The Globe and Mail) on helping First Nations businesses: “Please understand something very important: First Nations are not looking for handouts or ‘free money.‘ We understand business and the value of large and long-term equity investments. Where possible, we leverage our resources to attract money for our business plans.”
Denise Balkissoon (The Globe and Mail) on urban transportation: “The other day, I realized I was actually surprised that a busy downtown Montreal intersection stayed clear during rush hour. In Toronto, impatient drivers clog every single one, because if they have to suffer after a long day earning barely enough to pay their mortgages, then so does everyone else.”
Gary Mason (The Globe and Mail) on money laundering in B.C.: “And that is one of the most frustrating aspects of this investigation by Mr. German: It is a fact-finding mission, not a fault-finding one. That’s a shame, because what becomes evident as you read the document is the systemic failure by people in senior positions of responsibility to do their jobs.”
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Chris Hannay
James Keller