National RSS
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Toronto Mayor Rob Ford’s chief of staff no longer in office
Mark Towhey left city hall, escorted by security. He did not say why he was no longer Ford’s chief of staff, but said it followed discussions earlier in the day with the mayor.
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TV importers accuse border officials of misleading advance tariff rulings
OTTAWA – Importers of popular electronics such as big-screen TVs and MP3 players are ramping up their fight against federal tariff changes, accusing the government of misleading them by offering tariff breaks that it planned to claw back later. Importers of televisions are already on the hook for about $16 million in retroactive duties from
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Number of EI beneficiaries fell for fifth straight month in March: StatsCan
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says the number of people receiving regular employment insurance benefits continued to trend down for a fifth consecutive month in March. It says the number of recipients declined by 1.0 per cent or 5,200 people, to 523,700. The number of beneficiaries was down 8.1 per cent compared with a year earlier.
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Decriminalize hard drugs, even crack: drug policy coalition
The Canadian Drug Policy Coalition blasts the feds for its “backwards” and “punitive” drug policies. It says governments spend money on harm reduction programs instead of law enforcement.
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Pressure mounts on Rob Ford to address reports of drug use
Media cameras and microphones will once again follow Mayor Rob Ford wherever he goes, as Ford refuses to directly address allegations of videotaped drug use.
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Canada and Pacific Alliance trade bloc size each other up for trade prospects
CALI, Colombia – The leaders of Canada and the Pacific Alliance will be sizing each other up today to see if Canada might be a good fit with the nascent Latin American trade bloc. Stephen Harper wants to see if it’s worthwhile engaging in yet another round of talks to free up trade and investment.
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Man pleads guilty to five charges in Nova Scotia confinement case
BRIDGEWATER, N.S. – A 48-year-old man pleaded guilty Thursday to kidnapping, confining and sexually assaulting a 16-year-old boy at a cabin in rural Nova Scotia last fall. David James LeBlanc appeared in Nova Scotia Supreme Court in Bridgewater, where he entered guilty pleas to charges of kidnapping, forcible confinement, sexual assault, uttering threats and breach
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Search continues for missing Canadian hiker as calls for army help grow
TORONTO – The family and friends of a Canadian missing in Australia’s Snowy Mountains region for more than a week are calling for additional manpower to search for the hiker. The calls came as hopes briefly rose Wednesday of finding Prabhdeep Srawn when “voices” were heard in the search area in the Kosciuszko National Park.
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Second suspect in test drive killing charged with first-degree murder
HAMILTON – A second suspect in the death of Tim Bosma, a Hamilton father who took two men on a test drive and never returned, appeared briefly in court Thursday and was charged with first-degree murder. Mark Smich, 25, of Oakville, Ont., was led in shackles into a Hamilton courtroom Thursday morning and turned his
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Quebec government polls public on ‘problem’ of religious accommodation
QUEBEC – The Parti Quebecois government, already involved in a political battle to toughen the province’s language law, has placed another emotionally charged identity issue on the back burner. The government has delayed its plan to set limits on religious accommodations until the fall and even begun referring to it in less contentious terms. The
