NEWS
Monday, Oct. 24, 2016
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Belgium urged to break trade deadlock BELGIAN FRANCOPHONE REGION THE LONE HOLDOUT OF CANADA-EU TRADE DEAL BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS BRUSSELS — If Belgium cannot break a deadlock over the European Union’s landmark free deal with Canada by Monday night, EU leaders will consider cancelling a signing ceremony scheduled for later in the week, sources said Sunday. Two officials with knowledge of the negotiations said that EU leaders plan to have telephone talks with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about cancelling the Thursday summit if Belgium’s support for the deal isn’t secured by the deadline. The officials asked to remain anonymous because of the sensitivity of the talks. The deal needs unanimity among the 28 EU nations, and Belgium needs unanimity among its regions. The francophone region of Wallonia, population 3.5 million, has been the lone holdout and refused to approve the trade pact. During the past week, Belgium missed two earli-
er deadlines and Canada briefly walked out of the trade talks before returning the next day. Yet, if Trudeau is expected to sign at an official summit on Thursday, precious little time is left. Without the guarantee the EU is ready to finalize the deal, there would be no reason to have the summit, an EU official said. The Belgian region of Wallonia has stood in the way of the CETA accord, short for Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement. The deal between over 500 million EU citizens and 35 million Canadians would eliminate almost all tariffs. Politicians in Wallonia, which is smaller than the U.S. state of New Jersey, argue that the proposed deal would undermine labour, environment and consumer standards and allow multinationals to crush local companies. They have vowed to thwart a pact that the world’s biggest trading bloc and Canada are eager to secure. New attempts were made to sway Wallonia leader Paul Magnette to sign on over the weekend.
Magnette said Wallonia still saw “some small difficulties.” A better deal would bolster EU standards and set a strong precedent for future trade talks between Europe and its trading partners, he said. Canada’s International Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland walked away from the talks Friday on the verge of tears, saying the EU appeared incapable of signing the deal. Yet, she came back for some discussions on Saturday. EU leaders have warned that failure to clinch the deal with Canada could ruin the bloc’s credibility as a trade partner and make it more difficult to strike such agreements with the United States, Japan and other allies. A similar free trade agreement being negotiated between the EU and the United States is facing far more opposition than the Canada pact. Progress on the American deal appears unlikely until a new U.S. president takes office in January.
Stafford’s killer appeals PINS BLAME FOR MURDER OF EIGHTYEAR-OLD ON ACCOMPLICE BY THE CANADIAN PRESS
Photo by THE CANADIAN PRESS
Minister of Environment and Climate Change Catherine McKenna listens as she is introduced as the keynote speaker at the Canadian Climate Forum Symposium in Ottawa. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau committed last year to bring gender parity — an equal number of men and women — to the federal cabinet, responding to a question about “why” with the memorable retort, “because it’s 2015.”
Women in federal cabinet reflect on first year as ministers BY THE CANADIAN PRESS OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau committed last year to bring gender parity — an equal number of men and women — to the federal cabinet, responding to a question about “why” with the memorable retort, “because it’s 2015.” Now that 2016 is on its way out, female ministers reflect on what it has been like to be a woman in cabinet, working with so many other women. International Development Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau: “(When we are sworn in), we say something like, ‘I swear that I will say, obviously the truth, but I will say what I think sincerely and honestly.’ So, the first time I had to give my opinion on an important subject, I was not really aligned with the others in the beginning. It took a lot of courage the first time to dare and say my word, and after that, another young cabinet minister thought the same thing as I did, and said so. Finally, when the decision was made, it was different and that was OK. But a couple of weeks after, an older, male minister came to us and said, ‘You know, young girls, you were right.’ The decision eventually changed a little and we adapted to the situation. That was interesting to see, that young women around the cabinet table could bring this fresh way of looking at things that was useful and complementary to the experience that was already
GENDER PARITY around the table.” Environment Minister Catherine McKenna: “I think maybe what stood out is that nothing stands out… There was discussion, I remember, in the lead-up to cabinet being announced, where people were saying, ‘Oh no, what’s this going to mean?’ and ‘Are you going to be able to find good women?’ And the reality is that the answer is, I think, yes. And then you get on with the business of governing and actually doing what we were elected to do and delivering on our promises.” Public Services Minister Judy Foote: “Being around a cabinet table isn’t something new for me. I’ve had the opportunity before to work with very talented individuals who really do want to make a difference. Being around the table now, with such a diverse group of individuals who bring so much to the table, is truly rewarding, because you get to learn from each other. And, of course, the fact that half of my colleagues are women — I keep saying, it’s not that we do it better, it’s that we do it differently, based on our experiences. So, that’s really interesting for me, because it’s the first time I’ve been at a cabinet table where you’ve had an equal number of men and women.”
TORONTO — The man convicted of killing eightyear-old Victoria Stafford seven years ago will ask Ontario’s top court for a new trial Monday, trying to pin the blame on his accomplice. Michael Rafferty was sentenced to life in prison in 2012 with no chance of parole for 25 years for kidnapping, sexual assault causing bodily harm and first-degree murder in the death of the Woodstock, Ont., girl. His former girlfriend, Terri-Lynne McClintic, pleaded guilty in 2010 to first-degree murder, initially telling police Rafferty killed the girl, but testifying at his trial that she delivered the fatal blows. Rafferty’s lawyer, Paul Calarco, argues in documents filed with the Court of Appeal for Ontario that the judge made several errors, including failing to warn the jury against relying on the testimony of McClintic, “a person of unsavoury character, with a serious history of violence and lying.” The Crown’s case was strongest on the kidnapping count, Calarco concedes, but since forensic evidence could not prove a sexual assault, that conviction was almost entirely dependent on McClintic’s version of events, he argues. “While the Crown had some evidence against Mr. Rafferty, the worst aspects of the case depend almost entirely on McClintic’s evidence,” Calarco writes. “It was essential the trial judge give a clear, sharp warning against relying on her in the absence of substantial corroboration.” But the Crown argues there was in fact a significant amount of corroboration. “Her testimony was supported by a compelling body of confirmatory evidence, including surveillance video footage cellphone records cell tower location data forensic evidence and analysis of the victim’s blood and DNA from the appellant’s car,” Crown lawyers Howard Leibovich and Randy Schwartz write in documents filed with the court. Defence at trial asked the judge not to give jurors such a warning, the Crown notes. The judge concluded that the jury could assess McClintic’s demeanour in videotaped police statements, as well he took into account that the defence could cross-examine her, the Crown argues. “The trial judge gave a fair and balanced charge and provided the jury with all the requisite tools to properly assess McClintic’s testimony without highlighting the confirmatory evidence,” the lawyers say. “In the context of this trial it was impossible for the jury to not have been aware of McClintic’s credibility problems. The trial judge properly exercised his discretion and committed no error.” Rafferty did not testify at trial, but argues in his appeal that he was “at most” an accessory after the fact to murder — a concept the judge did not put to the jury. His actions proven by evidence other than McClintic’s testimony, such as cleaning the scene, destroying evidence and giving a false alibi, are “equally consistent with being an accessory,” Calarco writes.
Key advisers to finance minister set lofty population goal 100-MILLION CANADIANS BY 2100 BY THE CANADIAN PRESS OTTAWA — Imagine Canada with a population of 100 million — roughly triple its current size. For two of the most prominent voices inside the Trudeau government’s influential council of economic advisers, it’s much more than a passing fancy. It’s a target. The 14-member council was assembled by Finance Minister Bill Morneau to provide “bold” advice on how best to guide Canada’s struggling economy out of its slow-growth rut. One of their first recommendations, released last week, called for a gradual increase in permanent immigration to 450,000 people a year by 2021 — with a focus on top business talent and international students. That would be a 50 per cent hike from the current level of about 300,000. The council members — along with many others, including Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains — argue that opening Canada’s doors to more newcomers is a crucial ingredient for expanding growth in the future. They say it’s particularly important as more and more of the country’s baby boomers enter their golden years, which eats away at the workforce. The conviction to bring in more immigrants is especially significant for at least two of the people around the advisory team’s table. Growth council chair Dominic Barton, the powerful global managing director of consulting firm McKinsey & Co., and Mark Wiseman, a senior managing director for investment management giant BlackRock Inc., are among the founders of a group dedicated to seeing the country responsibly expand its population as a way to help drive its economic potential.
The Century Initiative, a five-year-old effort by well-known Canadians, is focused on seeing the country of 36 million grow to 100 million by 2100. Without significant policy changes on immigration, the current demographic trajectory has Canada’s population on track to reach 53 million people by the end of the century, the group says on its website. That would place it outside the top 45 nations in population size, it says. Barton believes the demographic challenge will make Canada increasingly irrelevant over time, particularly given its already-small population size. “Relevance is not just determined by your population, but it’s a factor given all the strengths we have,” Barton, a sought-after expert who has consulted government and business leaders around the world, said in an interview. “Why wouldn’t we make that a strength if our diversity and multiculturalism is a strength, but it’s winnowing away as we’re getting older? Why wouldn’t we do the opposite and goose it?” He believes Canada’s international influence would grow considerably with a bigger population. On top of that, Barton said the world would benefit from having a larger version of Canada’s stable, diversified democracy and economy. “It’s a big number — to me, it’s more of an aspirational number,” he said when asked about the group’s goal. “It would obviously change the country considerably. It’s a different path… But I don’t think it’s crazy.” The discussions that eventually blossomed into Century Initiative began in 2011 during a weekend gathering of friends at Barton’s cottage in Ontario’s Muskoka region, north of Toronto. Sitting near the edge of Lake of Bays, surrounded by the Canadian Shield, they started brainstorming about the best ways to shelter the country’s economy from the gathering, predictable demographic storm.
‘IT’S A BIG NUMBER — TO ME, IT’S MORE OF AN ASPIRATIONAL NUMBER’ DOMINIC BARTON GROWTH COUNCIL CHAIR Barton said the first informal get-together was followed by a few other meetings, including two group treks into the High Arctic. “We were total nerds, basically,” he said of their talks about the costs and benefits of increasing immigration. The idea evolved and the group hired staffers and started funding research into the topic. Barton sees a dovetail between some of the ideas behind the Century Initiative and the growth council, but he says they are separate. In fact, behind the closed doors of the growth council meetings, Barton said the Century Initiative’s 100-million goal didn’t come up. He did acknowledge that he and Wiseman were among the biggest proponents behind the immigration-boosting idea that the group presented to Morneau. “Probably because Mark and I have been in (Century Initiative) we’re obviously more naturally bullish towards it,” said Barton, who also noted that there was a lot of debate on the scope of the immigration proposal. Some people in the room wanted a more-aggressive approach, while others were “nervous” about moving too quickly, he added. The Liberal government has committed to increasing immigration, but the cabinet minister in charge of the dossier has indicated that raising it to 450,000 in five years is likely too ambitious. “We have an aging population, we have labour shortages, but there are also constraints,” John McCallum, who will announce Ottawa’s 2017 target on Nov. 1, said last week. “It costs a lot of money. If we have more immigrants, we want to integrate them well.”