child
Man charged in three-vehicle crash
Mark NIELSEN Citizen staff mnielsen@pgcitizen.ca
A 34-year-old man with a history of trying to evade police while behind the wheel of a stolen vehicle faces five charges from his arrest Friday at the scene of a three-vehicle collision.
Paul Daniel Shaw faces two counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm and one count each of possession of stolen property over $5,000, dangerous driving and fleeing police.
Shaw was apprehended near the corner of 15th Avenue and Ewert Street after police were alerted that a 2010 Chevrolet pickup truck had been stolen from the parking lot of a Prince George business. When plainclothes RCMP tried to box the vehicle in, the driver made “overt efforts to escape the area” and collided with a civilian vehicle and an unmarked police truck.
Shaw was last in the news in December 2013 when he was sentenced to a further 669 days behind bars followed by 18 months probation for dangerous driving, possession of stolen property and possession for the purpose of trafficking. That outcome stemmed from an October 2013 incident when an RCMP officer recognized Shaw, who had been issued a three-year driving prohibition for a December
SHAW
2011 conflict with police, as he was driving along River Road. It turned out he was driving a 2006 Ford F-350 pickup truck.
Knowing Shaw’s reputation, police deployed a spike belt near the Cameron Street Bridge to intercept him, but he drove over it and continued for nearly two more kilometres and then rammed a police vehicle on North Nechako Road.
Police were then able to surround the truck and bring it to a halt but, despite warnings from RCMP, he attempted to flee out the passenger side. However, he was quickly apprehended by a police dog and taken to hospital with minor bite wounds. Significant quantities of heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine were found on Shaw, police said
at the time of that incident.
In December 2012, Shaw was sentenced to 11 months in jail for an incident 12 months before.
In that case, an RCMP member responded to a call about a man sleeping in a running vehicle in the parking lot of a 900-block Abhau Street apartment building.
The member woke Shaw to see if he was alright. Shaw then put the vehicle in gear and rammed five vehicles and two police cars before escaping. He was arrested later that day.
In September 2011, Shaw was sentenced to 30 days in jail for one count of possession of a break-in instrument and two counts of breach of an undertaking or recognizance following a March 2011 incident in which three police cars were rammed with a stolen truck.
Shaw had originally been charged with theft over $5,000, failure to stop at the scene of an accident, possession of stolen property over $5,000, flight from a peace officer and dangerous driving. But he had been arrested while on foot about four hours after the vehicle had been abandoned and could not be linked to the event beyond reasonable doubt, so those charges were stayed.
In December 2016, Shaw was sentenced to 263 days in jail for possession for the purpose of trafficking. He had been in custody for 67 days prior to sentencing.
Pack a Police Car benefits local seniors
Christine HINZMANN
Citizen staff chinzmann@pgcitizen.ca
Simultaneously there was a fundraising convergence of police vehicles that parked outside of the four Save-On-Foods locations in Prince George on Sunday. It was still early for a real rush to take place at about 11 a.m. but the annual Pack A Police Car event saw several shoppers exiting the building at Parkwood with a bag or two or three filled with what’s on the Christmas wish list of the Prince George Council of Seniors who are donating about 200 hampers to those seniors in need during what to some is a tough time of year. At Parkwood Mall’s Save-On location City of Prince George support staff for RCMP worker Aralee Hryciuk volunteered to take the first shift at the back of the police van loading up donations as fast as shoppers could pack them out of the store. On the way in people could take a list with them, which was provided by the volunteers so the guess work was taken out of deciding on what to purchase.
This was the third annual public event. For about a decade before that the police station workers would conduct their own fundraiser within the department and donate proceeds to the council of seniors.
Another staffer, Bev Livingstone, said she saw the police department in Hinton was doing the fundraising campaign in their community and she brought it to Prince George.
“I thought ‘we’re a bigger detachment, we can do more,’” Livingstone said.
“So I threw the idea out there.”
The response was resoundingly positive, she said. And still is.
“There was $4,000 in cash and gift cards collected last year and 22 police cars were filled and we’re always looking to beat our last year’s total and so we’re looking for even more donations this year,” Livingstone said.
“It’s always so humbling for us to come out here and see all these people donating to the cause.”
She said there are many times when she’s heard children encouraging their parents to donate to the seniors and it warms her heart to see that in the community’s young people. — see ‘THIS EVENT, page 3
Donna Zellman, Rudy Zellman, Gail Thomson, Al Beeson, Tim Thompson and Shirley Gratton, far right, from the BC Hydro Power Pioneers, presents Sandra Wyatt, second from right,
life specialist in the pediatric ward, with
books to give to children in hospital.
Sunny skate
Prince George provincial court docket
From Prince George provincial court, Dec. 3-7, 2018:
• Donovan Kale Graham (born 1998) was assessed a $100 victim surcharge for breaching probation. Graham was in custody for six days prior to sentencing.
• Boyd Alison Mattess (born 1983) was sentenced to 19 days in jail and assessed $200 in victim surcharges for willfully resisting or obstructing a peace officer and carrying a weapon or prohibited device. Mattess was in custody for five days prior to sentencing.
• William Wall (born 1958) was fined $200 plus a $60 victim surcharge for breaching an undertaking or recognizance.
• Micko Henry Bozykowski (born 1962) was issued a six-month $500 recognizance after allegation for causing fear of injury or damage.
• Terry Mark Morrell (born 1981) was sentenced to one day in jail and assessed a $100 victim surcharge for breaching probation, committed in Kelowna.
• Randy Joseph Ardell (born 1996) was sentenced to one year probation and assessed a $100 victim surcharge for assault.
• Chet Lee Bradley (born 1978)
was sentenced to 30 days in jail and assessed a $100 victim surcharge for fleeing police.
• Kim Morgan Bulmer (born 1958) was sentenced to 33 days in jail and 18 months probation, issued a 10-year firearms prohibition and assessed $200 in victim surcharges for assault and breaching a recognizance. Bulmer was in custody for 16 days prior to sentencing.
• Christopher Benjamin Emmorey (born 1983) was sentenced to one day in jail and one year probation and assessed $200 in victim surcharges for theft $5,000 or under, committed in Prince George, and breaching probation, committed in Peterborough, Ont. Emmorey was in custody for 21 days prior to sentencing.
• Riley Winston Garbitt (born 1995) was prohibited from driving for one year and fined $500 plus a $75 victim surcharge for driving while prohibited or licence suspended under the Motor Vehicle Act.
• Dylon Antoine Felix John (born 1995) was sentenced to one day in jail and one year probation and assessed $200 in victim surcharges for theft $5,000 or under and breaching probation. John was
in custody for 14 days prior to sentencing.
• Sophia Holly Mercer (born 1977) was fined $200 plus a $60 victim surcharge for breaching an undertaking, committed in Terrace.
• Kelsie Don Porter (born 1980) was assessed a $100 victim surcharge for breaching probation. Porter was in custody for 18 days prior to sentencing.
• Nikita Jean Teegee (born 1986) was assessed a $100 victim surcharge for breaching probation. Teegee was in custody for one day prior to sentencing.
• Carmen James Alexander Hodgson-McKay (born 1990) was sentenced to 10 and five days in jail respectively for two counts of breaching probation and to four days in jail and 18 months probation and issued a 10-year firearms prohibition for assault with a weapon and willfully resisting or obstructing a peace officer. Hodgson-McKay was in custody for 35 days prior to sentencing.
• Marcia Amber Joy Williams (born 1984) was issued a one-year $500 recognizance after allegation for causing fear of injury or damage.
NEWS IN BRIEF
Police searching for sex assault suspect
Prince George RCMP are on the lookout for a suspect in connection with a report of an attempted sexual assault. An 18-year-old girl told police she was walking alone near the 200 block of Ruggles Street on the evening of Dec. 3 when a man pushed her down from behind. She was able to get free and run away. The suspect is described as dark-skinned, possibly African descent, 20-to-30 years old, six feet tall with a medium build and very little or no hair. He was wearing a grey sweater, jeans and a toque. Anyone with information on who the suspect may be and where he can be found is asked to call Prince George RCMP at 250-561-3300 or anonymously contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at www.pgcrimestoppers. bc.ca (English only). If you provide information that leads to an arrest, you could be eligible for a cash reward.
Suspicious death
Dawson Creek police are seeking information after a man was found lying outside a pub on
Saturday morning.
Around 7:45 a.m., RCMP were called to the parking lot of the Pouce Pub, located at the Hart Hotel, where a man was found on the ground. The man was unresponsive and was rushed to hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
“The death appears to be suspicious in nature and police are looking to the public for information,” said Cpl. Madonna Saunderson in a media release issued Monday.
“The police have no information to suggest that the greater public is at further risk.”
Police are now asking anyone who was at the Pouce Pub on Friday evening or early Saturday morning to contact Dawson Creek police at 250-784-3700.
WorkSafeBC fines local business
WorkSafeBC has fined a Prince George business for an unsafe work practice. Maple Masonry Ltd. was issued a $2,500 fine in September after the agency found three of its workers on top of a concrete wall without fall protection. The wall was about 3.3 metres high. It was being built as part of a commercial construction project. The fine was posted in a Nov. 30 update on the WorkSafeBC website.
CITIZEN PHOTO BY BRENT BRAATEN
Skaters appear to be chasing their shadows as they enjoy a skate at the Outdoor Ice Oval on Monday afternoon.
Neglect of autistic boy highlights care gaps: report
Dirk MEISSNER Citizen news service
VICTORIA
— The plight of a 12-year-old boy who endured years of neglect and malnutrition should lead to an overhaul of the child welfare system in British Columbia to support kids with complex needs, says the children’s representative.
Jennifer Charlesworth said Monday when the boy was removed from his family home in January 2016 he weighed barely 30 kilograms and could only scream as he held onto paramedics.
Her report, “Alone and Afraid,” said the boy she called Charlie, which is not his real name, reached his shocking state despite multiple interactions with the Ministry of Children and Family Development as well as the health-care and education systems.
The report makes 11 recommendations to three government ministries, including a restructuring of services at the Children’s Ministry for those with special needs.
“Some of the first responders who found Charlie alone, naked and filthy, unable to walk and living in a bedroom covered in garbage and feces, were traumatized,” Charlesworth told a news conference.
She said Charlie is now living in specialized foster care, is back in school and thriving.
The boy and his family were known to the ministry since 2006, said Charlesworth. The ministry received eight child protection reports about Charlie but a social worker had never met with the boy until the day he was removed from his family, she added.
“The child welfare system caught snippets of Charlie but often failed to see him as a whole child beyond his severe special needs and too often failed to see and address the needs of his vulnerable family,” she said.
Children’s Minister Katrine Conroy said in a statement she was horrified to learn
Some of the first responders who found Charlie alone, naked and filthy, unable to walk and living in a bedroom covered in garbage and feces, were traumatized.
— Jennifer Charlesworth
what Charlie went through and the ways in which he was let down.
“It’s simply inexcusable,” she said. “The failings outlined in this case must be addressed. They are against policy and the province needs a system that ensures social workers are able to put eyes on kids who are the subject of protection concerns. Investigations must be complete, including seeing the child of concern, before closing a file.”
Charlesworth said Charlie, who has autism and is non-verbal, lived in extreme poverty with a mother who had difficulty caring for her son without supports. She said he was not diagnosed with autism until he was six years old and missed out on early life treatment programs that were available.
“His needs often went unrecognized and unaddressed,” said Charlesworth, who recommended the Children’s Ministry take the lead on helping families and children like Charlie receive government services.
“Charlie’s story shows us we need to make changes to those systems,” she said.
“Charlie and his family would have benefited from a case co-ordinator, one person to help them navigate this complex array of services.”
IDL wins award for work along Highway 16
Citizen staff
IDL Projects Inc. was presented with a Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure contractor of the year award in the grading category for its work on the project to four-lane Highway 16 west of the city.
“The work demanded a high degree of accuracy due to existing underground utilities and took place in one of the busiest corridors in the northern region of the province,” officials said in a press release.
The work, which was completed in October, stretches 3.4 kilometres from Bunce to Blackwater roads. Improvements included
a new deceleration lane onto Gauthier Road, a reconfiguration to prevent left turns from Haldi Road onto the highway and new traffic signals at Blackwater Road and Sykes Road.
The $22.8-million project was cost shared, with the federal government providing $8.4 million, the provincial government providing $13.8 million and the city providing $600,000.
The awards, which also included road and bridge maintenance, community service, workplace health and safety, paving, and bridge and structures, were presented on Friday in Victoria.
Natural gas bills in B.C. set to rise after pipeline explosion
SURREY — Most British Columbia residents will pay more for natural gas after an Enbridge pipeline exploded in October near Prince George.
FortisBC says it’s received regulatory approval from the B.C. Utilities Commission on interim rates for customers to take effect Jan. 1. Diane Roy, vice-president of regulatory affairs, says in a release that Fortis strives to deliver natural gas at the lowest reasonable cost.
But she says there has been an impact to costs associated with actions the utility had to take to stabilize supply after the rupture. Residential customers in Vancouver Island, the Lower Mainland and the Interior will see an annual increase of about nine per cent or $68 based on average annual usage. Those in Fort Nelson will pay about seven per cent more or $51, while those in Revelstoke receiving piped propane will see a decrease of about 11 per cent or $108.
Fortis says these are interim changes and permanent rate decisions are expected in the first
quarter of 2019, which may result in a bill adjustment for customers.
The utility adds that weather, supply and demand and economic conditions also affect the market price of natural gas and propane in North America.
The pipeline that ruptured two months ago has been fixed and the company has raised its maximum allowable operating pressure to 85 per cent.
‘This event really shows how generous the people of Prince George are’
— from page 1
“Sometimes you see a person approaching the van with a buggy full of food and you think ‘oh, maybe one of those bags will be for the seniors’ and they take out a bag for themselves and hand you the rest,” Livingstone added.
The best part, Hryciuk said, is to stand in the loading bay at the RCMP detachment where the items collected will be stored until delivery to the council.
“It’s just packed,” she said. “This event really shows how generous the people of Prince George are and it brings a tear to my eye when I think about that.”
Just then Terri Robillard strolled out of the grocery store with her cart and promptly handed a filled bag to Livingstone as her contribution to the cause.
This wasn’t her first time donating and so she knew to follow the list.
“But there’s a few surprises in there as well,” Robillard said with a smile. “I try to go with what they need but it’s nice to get treats, too. I think it’s important to help people. Not everybody is as fortunate and I know with the seniors sometime they need extra help. I donate to a lot of things but this is a big one at Christmas time.”
The donations can’t come soon enough for the team at the Prince George Council of Seniors.
“This is what I call wobble week,” LolaDawn Fennell, general manager at the Council of Seniors, said. “This is when I
look at all the applications and think about how we’re going to fill them.”
The last day for non-perishable donations is Wednesday and that gives the nonprofit organization four days to fill those hampers before delivery day on Dec. 17.
“And without the Pack a Police Car campaign we couldn’t do that,” Fennel said. “So all their efforts are very much appreciated.”
The seniors’ council is looking for healthy food donations, especially sodiumreduced items to make sure seniors dietary needs are met.
Some suggestions include canned vegetables and fruit packed in water, oatmeal or other hot cereals, rice or barley, pastas, canned fish, chicken, ham or corned beef, and peanut butter. Integris Credit Union will be delivering the hams and turkeys that go into the hampers for the seniors in an effort to avoid some of the heavy lifting that comes with the volunteer job of providing the high volume of Christmas hampers to those in need.
Sunday’s campaign saw 30 police vehicles filled with food and $3,100 in cash and gift cards donated to the cause.
People can still drop off their donations at the Prince George Council of Seniors Resource Centre at 721 Victoria St. Monday to Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. To volunteer to drop off even one or two hampers on delivery day, call Nicole at 250-564-5888.
CITIZEN PHOTO BY CHRISTINE HINZMANN
Bev Livingstone, left, and Aralee Hryciuk, right, both City of Prince George support staff for the RCMP, accept a donation from Terri Robillard, centre, at Parkwood Mall during the Pack a Police Car fundraising campaign that took place Sunday at all four locations of Save-On-Foods.
PR vote a Christmas lump of coal
Thankfully, the long provincial nightmare is over.
The proportional representation referendum is done and now we can all breathlessly await the results, sure to be a lump of coal regardless of the outcome.
Whoever wins will proclaim a great day for the province, proclaiming the power of the electorate. Whoever loses will insist the end is nigh.
Both sides behaved horribly throughout, spreading half-truths, misconceptions and illogical arguments meant to pump up themselves, portray their opponents as evildoers and confuse everyone else.
The PR proponents would have voters believe that PR will solve so many of B.C.’s political problems and voter apathy, all by having the number of seats a closer reflection of the popular vote. That’s a basic logical fallacy around causation and correlation.
Are fewer people voting because of first past the post?
Are difficult issues not being addressed because of first past the post?
It’s hard to pin both those questions on one cause, but that didn’t stop the PR people from saying PR would fix both.
Same goes for their “but most of the rest of the civilized democracies use PR” argument.
Has voter participation improved in those countries and can that improvement be linked conclusively to PR? And even if the electorate is happier in places like Ireland, Italy and Norway, will that happiness translate to B.C.?
Same nonsense came from the anti-PR folks, with their fear mongering about fascists getting elected to the legislature (wow, that’s some faith in the common sense of voters) and their circular complaints about reduced representation and complicated math.
Yes, the math can be complicated but does that make it wrong? Not necessarily.
And is reduced representation really a bad thing? Not necessarily. If Prince George had four MLAs in the legislature instead of two, would the city and surrounding area be worse or better off?
The referendum wasn’t even necessary in the first place. John Horgan’s NDP government could have arbitrarily changed the electoral system, with backing from the Greens.
Their leader, Andrew Weaver, urged Horgan to do it that way but Horgan insisted on a vote, which was wise. But a better choice for Horgan would have been to tell Weaver to forget about having a third provincial PR referendum in a 13-year span.
Weaver might have stomped his indignant little foot, but his other option was
Christy Clark and the B.C. Liberals.
Weaver’s urging of Horgan to just change the electoral system to one that would have put as many as 15 Green MLAs in the legislature if that system had been in place for the spring 2017 election is the kind of shameless political power grab that creates voter apathy. It seems once they all get elected, regardless of political stripe, the first order of business is to empower themselves, rather than their constituents.
If Horgan had followed Weaver’s advice and just rammed electoral reform through the legislature, B.C. residents would have had a preview of what’s currently happening south of the border in Wisconsin and Michigan.
In the U.S. midterm elections last month, those states tossed out their incumbent Republican governors and attorneys general in favour of Democrats. Before those Democrats are sworn in this coming January, Republican lawmakers in both states are trying to pass new laws that limit the powers of the governors and the attorneys general.
That’s on top of the ridiculous gerrymandering that’s been going on across the United States for years, where elected officials have changed the borders of their districts, dropping areas that vote against them and picking up areas that vote for them, in order
YOUR LETTERS
B.C. climate change expensive, futile
There is a saying: “the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.”
This applies to the NDP/Green climate change plan. Such initiatives have been attempted in various other places with disastrous results – skyrocketing electricity prices by two, three and even four times, declining employment (two to four regular jobs lost for every green job created), small business unable to survive the high priced, unreliable energy, big business moving to friendlier, affordable jurisdictions, energy poverty resulting in the poor having to choose between heat and food, massive increases in government debt accompanied by declining revenues. These have been the results of every jurisdiction that has embarked on climate change plans. California, South Australia, Spain, Germany, Ontario and more, all have experienced similar results, which brings to mind
While a few foolish governments attempt such climate change plans, most of the rest of the world is doing the opposite –they’re ramping up fossil fuel use.
another saying – “experience is the best teacher.”
And if the experience is bad, better to learn from someone else’s experience than to repeat their mistake.
But our NDP/Green coalition seems to be blind to those experiences or perhaps they’re just in denial.
They, along with environmental groups, seemingly push to shut down well-paying jobs in resources.
They push for the highest level of taxation and regulation in history while subverting the
economic system that brought us one of the best living standards in the world (a living standard that depends on a plentiful and reliable supply of inexpensive energy) and they’re setting the same course that has failed so many times. And when their plan results in the inevitable consequences, they’ll complain about poverty, as if there’s no connection.
There’s yet another saying: “there’s nothing in the world that cannot be made worse by a meddling government.”
I wonder how bad it will have to get before they acknowledge that things aren’t working out the way they anticipated?
And it’s all for naught. While a few foolish governments attempt such climate change plans, most of the rest of the world is doing the opposite – they’re ramping up fossil fuel use. For example, there are 1,600 new coal fired electrical generating facilities under construction around the world. B.C.’s climate change plan will be an expensive act of futility.
Art Betke Prince George
LETTERS WELCOME: The Prince George Citizen welcomes letters to the editor from our readers. Submissions should be sent by email to: letters@pgcitizen.ca. No attachments, please. They can also be faxed to 250-960-2766, or mailed to 201-1777 Third Ave., Prince George, B.C. V2L 3G7. Maximum length is 750 words and writers are limited to one submission every week. We will edit letters only to ensure clarity, good taste, for legal reasons, and occasionally for length. Although we will not include your address and telephone number in the paper, we need both for verification purposes. Unsigned or handwritten letters will not be published. The Prince George Citizen is a member of the National Newsmedia Council, which is an independent organization established to deal with acceptable journalistic practices and ethical behaviour. If you have concerns about editorial content, please contact Neil Godbout (ngodbout@pgcitizen. ca or 250-960-2759). If you are not satisfied with the response and wish to file a formal complaint, visit the web site at mediacouncil.ca or call toll-free 1-844-877-1163 for additional information.
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to win re-election. Seen another way, B.C.’s PR referendum was simply gerrymandering the votes, starting with changing the way the ballots were counted compared to the last two polls. If it passes, Weaver and the Greens potentially secure a hold on the balance of power in B.C. for years to come. Is that what voters saw when they looked at their ballot? Also hard to say.
The majority had their say, however, and made a choice in this referendum by not voting at all – probably because they thought it was a stupid thing to be arguing about, compared to finding and keeping a decent job, protecting the environment, accessing health care, education or other priorities.
If the referendum fails, the Horgan government can get back to work on those kinds of priorities, having wasted months of time, energy and money on this unnecessary vote.
If it passes, those priorities will be pushed aside in favour of legal challenges, political negotiations and more Weaver tomfoolery to fill in the blanks on all those missing details regarding riding size and composition that was missing before voters cast their ballots.
If that’s the case, the nightmare’s just getting started.
— Editor-in-chief Neil Godbout
Lower taxes not the answer
As a species, humans have evolved with a natural sense of curiosity. It is an essential survival trait since understanding why or how something happens can prevent injury or death. Curiosity can also lead to rewards.
Our inherent drive to understand the world around us manifests in scientific curiosity and religious belief systems. But it also pushes us to find singular answers.
To think that there is an answer to every situation or question.
As an example, consider losing weight. We are told through advertising the answer is eat more broccoli or fewer bananas or use this or that exercise routine. We want an answer so things will be better. And we often come up with our own approach because it is “the answer” which works for us.
For the most part, this isn’t an issue in our lives. It can lead to frustration when the results are not what we would expect but most of us are able to shift gears. If a particular approach isn’t working, we are smart enough to try something different.
However, I would suggest in the world of politics, John Kenneth Galbraith may have had it right when he said “faced with the choice between changing one’s mind and proving that there is no need to do so, almost everyone gets busy on the proof.”
I mention this because politicians of all stripes seem to be fixated on a singular answer to just about every problem we face –lower taxes.
If the economy is underperforming, lower taxes. If the economy is going well, lower taxes. If the environment is in trouble, lower taxes. If businesses are moving, lower taxes. If inflation is too high, lower taxes.
Doesn’t seem to matter what the problem is, lower taxes always seems to be the answer. Politicians will go to great lengths to prove this is true. This seems to be particularly true for the right-wing portion of the political spectrum although I have heard many leftwing politicians starting to spout the same message.
But this answer isn’t the panacea it is portrayed to be. To begin with, lowering taxes doesn’t benefit everyone in the same way or to the same extent. For example, if you are earning $10,000 per year, you are already not paying income tax. Lowering the tax rate one or two per cent won’t benefit you at all.
On the other hand, if you are earning $100,000 per year, a one per cent decrease in the tax rate might save you a few hundred dollars whereas if you are earning $1,000,000 then it might be $10,000.
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Our income tax rates depend upon income and those with lower income are expected to pay less but they also benefit the least from a decrease in the progressive tax structure. However, decreasing the sales tax benefits individuals and families at the lower end of the income bracket more as they are a cost on fixed consumables. We all need certain basic necessities to live and paying less for the essentials benefits a low income earner much more than someone with excess income.
In either case, the simplistic answer of “lower taxes” will not work for everyone in the same way. There isn’t a singular answer despite what we hear. But in a recent television commercial, Conservative leader Andrew Scheer kicked off the next election campaign cycle by promising lower taxes. Yes, it will ensure hardworking Canadians will be better off and keep more of their money in their pocket.
Sounds good. Sounds like the right answer. Except it will not benefit everyone to the same extent nor in the same manner. A farmer in Saskatchewan or a fisher in British Columbia or a lawyer in Toronto won’t necessarily agree on which taxes should be lowered and how it will affect them.
Of course, the other side of the equation is to ask why we pay taxes in the first place. Generally, they support the things we use communally such as hospitals, schools, roads, bridges, transportation infrastructure, social security and such. The essential principle is that we should all be contributing to the collective good.
If we lower taxes, what happens to many of these institutions? Would anyone favour lower taxes if they knew it meant their loved one would not receive critical medical care? Would anyone be in favour of lowing taxes if knew our schools would be closed?
Taxes are a necessary component of the social contract by which we live. Those who can afford to do so help those less fortunate. This is a central teaching of every major religion on Earth as it is a basic principle we follow in our daily lives.
So, I find it curious that lowering taxes seems to be the singular answer politicians revert to. Maybe our sense of curiosity should lead us to think about alternatives.
Shawn Cornell, director of advertising: 250-960-2757 scornell@pgcitizen.ca
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TODD WHITCOMBE
As I See It
In this courtroom sketch, Meng Wanzhou, the CFO of Huawei Technologies, speaks to her lawyer David Martin during a bail hearing at B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver on Monday.
China ups pressure over arrested exec
Jim
MORRIS, Rob GILLIES and Paul WISEMAN Citizen news service
VANCOUVER — A jailed Chinese technology executive waited Monday to see if she’d get released on bail in a case that has raised U.S.-China tensions and complicated efforts to resolve a trade dispute that has roiled financial markets and threatened global economic growth.
Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei and daughter of its founder, was detained at the request of the U.S. during a layover at the Vancouver airport on Dec. 1 – the same day that U.S. President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping of China agreed to a 90-day cease-fire in a trade dispute that threatens to disrupt global commerce.
The U.S. has accused Huawei of using a Hong Kong shell company to sell equipment in Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions. It also says that Meng and Huawei misled banks about the company’s business dealings in Iran.
In urging the court to reject Meng’s bail request, Prosecutor John Gibb-Carsley noted the Huawei executive has vast resources and a strong incentive to bolt: she’s facing fraud charges in the United States that could put her in prison for 30 years.
On Monday, David Martin, Meng’s lawyer, said that Meng was willing to pay for a surveillance company to monitor her and wear an ankle monitor. Scott Filer of Lions Gate Risk Management group said his company would make a citizen’s arrest if she breaches bail conditions.
Martin said Meng’s husband would put up both of their Vancouver homes plus $1 million for a total value of $15 million as collateral.
But Justice William Ehrcke cast doubt on that proposal, saying Meng’s husband isn’t a resident of British Columbia – a requirement for him to act as a guarantor that his wife won’t flee – and his visitor visa expires in February.
Gibb-Carsley added that her husband has no meaningful connections to Vancouver and he only
spends two or three weeks a year in the city. The prosecutor also said he is concerned about the use of a security company paid by Meng.
Meng’s arrest has fueled U.S.-China trade tensions at a time when the two countries are seeking to resolve a dispute over Beijing’s technology and industrial strategy. Both sides have sought to keep the issues separate, at least so far, but the arrest has roiled markets, with stock markets worldwide down again Monday.
The hearing has sparked widespread interest, and the courtroom was packed again Monday with media and spectators, including some who came to support Meng. One man in the gallery brought binoculars to have a closer look at Meng, while outside court a man and woman held a sign that read “Free Ms. Meng.”
Over the weekend, China’s Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng summoned Canadian Ambassador John McCallum and U.S. Ambassador Terry Branstad.
Le warned both countries that Beijing would take steps based on their response.
Asked Monday what those steps might be, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said only that “it totally depends on the Canadian side itself.”
The Canadian province of British Columbia has already cancelled a trade mission to China amid fears China could detain Canadians in retaliation for Meng’s detention (see story, right)
Stocks around the world fell Monday over investor concerns about the continuing U.S.-China trade dispute, as well as the cloud hanging over Brexit negotiations after Britain’s prime minister postponed a vote on her deal for Britain to exit the European Union. In the U.S., stocks were volatile, tumbling in the morning and then recovering ground in the afternoon.
The Huawei case complicates efforts to resolve the U.S.-China trade dispute.
The United States has slapped tariffs on $250 billion in Chinese imports, charging that China steals American technology and forces U.S. companies to turn over trade
secrets. Tariffs on $200 billion of those imports were scheduled to rise from 10 per cent to 25 per cent on Jan. 1. But over dinner Dec. 1 with Xi in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Trump agreed to delay the tariff increase for 90 days, buying time for more negotiations.
Bill Perry, a trade lawyer with Harris Bricken in Seattle, said China’s decelerating economy is putting pressure on Xi to make concessions before U.S. tariffs go up. “They need a trade deal. They don’t want the tariffs to go up to 25” per cent, said Perry, who publishes the “US China Trade War” blog. “This is Damocles’ sword hanging over the Chinese government.”
Huawei, the biggest global supplier of network gear for phone and internet companies, has become the target of U.S. security concerns because of its ties to the Chinese government. The U.S. has pressured other countries to limit use of its technology, warning they could be opening themselves up to surveillance and theft of information.
Lu, the Foreign Ministry spokesman, accused unnamed countries of hyping the “so-called” threat.
“I must tell you that not a single piece of evidence have they ever presented to back their allegation,” he said.
“To create obstacles for companies’ normal operations based on speculation is quite absurd.”
Canadian officials have declined to comment on Chinese threats of retaliation, instead emphasizing the independence of Canada’s judiciary and the importance of Ottawa’s relationship with Beijing. Gillies reported from Toronto. Wiseman contributed from Washington. Writers Ken Moritsugu, Christopher Bodeen and researcher Shanshan Wang in Beijing contributed to this report.
Forestry delegation cancels China trip
Citizen news service
VICTORIA — The detention of a top Huawei executive in Canada has derailed British Columbia’s trade mission to China.
The delegation led by B.C. Forestry Minister Doug Donaldson will no longer be stopping in China, and will instead end its trip after a visit to Japan.
The decision follows the arrest of Meng Wanzhou, Huawei’s chief financial officer, who was detained while changing flights last week in Vancouver.
“The Province of British Columbia has suspended the China leg of its Asian forestry trade mission due to the international judicial process underway relating to a senior official at Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.,” the province said in a statement, adding that B.C. values its strong trade relationship with China.
“It is anticipated that Minister Donaldson will work to reschedule events planned for the Chinese portion of this mission at the earliest convenient moment.”
Stefano Maron, a spokesman for Global Affairs Canada, said in an email the decision was made at the provincial level and deferred comments to the B.C. government.
B.C. Trade Minister Bruce Ralston declined an interview request Sunday.
The United States is seeking to have Meng extradited on allegations that she tried to evade American trade sanctions on Iran. The Chinese government has warned Canada that if Meng is not released, the country will face “grave consequences.”
A report by the official Xinhua News Agency carried on the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s website said that Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng called in Canadian Ambassador John McCallum on Saturday over Meng’s detention.
Huawei is the biggest global supplier of network gear for phone and internet companies
and has been the target of deepening U.S. security concerns over its ties to the Chinese government. The U.S. has pressured European countries and other allies to limit use of its technology, warning they could be opening themselves up to surveillance and theft of information.
Le told McCallum that Meng’s detention at the request of the United States was a “severe violation” of her “legitimate rights and interests.”
“Such a move ignores the law and is unreasonable, unconscionable, and vile in nature,” Le said in the statement.
“China strongly urges the Canadian side to immediately release the detained Huawei executive... or face grave consequences that the Canadian side should be held accountable for,” Le said.
On Sunday, Le summoned U.S. Ambassador Terry Branstad for a similar meeting, demanding Washington cancel the order for Meng’s arrest, Xinhua News Agency said.
Le called the United States to “immediately correct its wrong actions” and said it would take further steps based on Washington’s response.
Stephen Nagy, a distinguished fellow with the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada and fellow with the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, said both Canada and China are walking a tight rope in relations with one another. Canada could be concerned about retaliatory action that could range from the arrests of Canadians in China to the stonewalling of trade negotiations with British Columbia, he said. Even if British Columbia had nothing to do with Meng’s arrest, the appearance of B.C. officials in China would be taken “very, very negatively,” he said.
“This is just standard practice in diplomacy where you don’t smack the face of your host before you go there,” he said.
Mediator appointed in Canada Post labour dispute
Terry PEDWELL Citizen news service
Aformer industrialrelations heavyweight has been appointed to bring a conclusion to the Canada Post labour dispute, two weeks after the federal government legislated an end to rotating strikes by postal employees.
Elizabeth MacPherson, a former chair of the Canada Industrial Relations Board, will have up to 14 days to try to reach negotiated contract settlements between the Crown corporation and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers.
The two sides have not been at the bargaining table since the Trudeau Liberals brought in a back-to-work bill to halt the rotating walkouts – legislation that sparked protests outside a number of Canada Post facilities in support of the postal workers.
Bill C-89, which was passed into law Nov. 27, included provisions for the government to appoint a mediator with a mandate to bring
the two sides together.
“Canada Post and CUPW were unable to agree on a mediator-arbitrator as per the process outlined in the legislation,” Labour Minister Patty Hajdu said in a statement announcing MacPherson’s appointment.
“I remain hopeful that the two parties will be able to negotiate new agreements and continue to monitor the situation closely.”
Failing an agreement between the Crown corporation and CUPW, MacPherson will have the authority to impose a settlement through binding arbitration.
Canada Post said it would “fully participate” in the mediation process.
“We believe in our right to free collective bargaining but we will reluctantly participate in this legislated process,” CUPW said in a statement. It said it will try to negotiate an agreement so as to avoid arbitration.
The rotating strikes created havoc with the country’s postal system and caused delivery delays that are expected to continue through January.
Significant and uneven parcel backlogs persist across the country and continue to challenge our operations as heavy holiday parcel volumes arrive daily.
— Canada Post statement
While it said letter mail should be processed and delivered before Christmas, the Crown agency warned again Monday that parcel delivery dates remain “unpredictable.”
“Significant and uneven parcel backlogs persist across the country and continue to challenge our operations as heavy holiday parcel volumes arrive daily,” Canada Post said in a statement.
“Understanding the central role we play in delivering the holidays for Canadians and Canadian retailers, it is our priority to deliver as much as possible before Christmas.
“However, existing backlogs, along with other complicating factors such as protest blockades at our facilities and any potential severe winter weather events, means delivery will be hampered.”
Canada Post said Friday it was facing a backlog of about six million parcels but could not provide an accurate updated figure Monday, citing new incoming parcel volumes over the weekend.
Canada Post added that approximately 750,000 packages had been delivered.
CUPW, which represents 50,000 postal employees, has disputed Canada Post’s claims about the size of the backlog.
Whatever its magnitude, reducing the backlog has been encumbered by protests against the back-to-work order outside some Canada Post facilities since the strikes officially ended.
During the walkouts, Canada
Post requested that foreign postal services halt deliveries to Canada. That embargo has since been lifted, although Canada Post says overseas packages might still take longer to arrive as customs agents sift through their own backlogs of items that were held back.
Canada Post said it expects to receive “roughly half” the daily volumes of international shipments that are normal for this time of year.
MacPherson was recommended as a mediator by the Canada Industrial Relations Board after Canada Post and CUPW submitted their own lists of potential appointees.
When she was the chair at the CIRB, MacPherson was appointed in 2011 by then-Conservative labour minister Lisa Raitt to arbritrate a dispute involving flight attendants at Air Canada. In her ruling, which the Canadian Union of Public Employees called “profoundly disappointing,” MacPherson sided with Air Canada, imposing an agreement that the carrier’s flight attendants had rejected a month earlier.
of the Premium
& Trailer Cougars works his way through members of the Terrace Kermodes on Saturday afternoon at Kin 1 during the Up the Creek Garment Company
Tier 2 hockey tournament. The Cougars won this game 6-2 and beat the Kermodes in overtime in the championship final on Sunday.
Home gold
Ted CLARKE Citizen staff tclarke@pgcitizen.ca
Last shot wins in overtime hockey and Ethan Hamilton made sure he put all his might into that slapper from the point. Given the chance to end the Up the Creek Garment Company peewee Tier 2 tournament Sunday afternoon at Kin 2, Hamilton fired a shot that had just enough steam to slip through the pillows Terrace Kermodes goalie Ayden Fenske was wearing on his legs.
The 12-year-old defenceman’s power-play goal, 3:14 into overtime, broke the tension and triggered the celebration for the Premium Truck & Trailer Cougars. Their 6-5 clincher came as a huge relief, knowing how often they tempted fate while trapped in a revolving door to the penalty box.
The Cougars drew 11 straight minor penalties in a dicey stretch of the second and third periods and watched helplessly as the Kermodes chipped away at their 4-1 lead
Condors off to winning start
Citizen staff
Having just filled their tanks for the new high school senior boys basketball season, it appears the Duchess Park Condors are firing on all cylinders. They reeled off three wins in three weekend games playing in their home gym in a round-robin tournament. The Condors put their provincial preseason triple-A honourable mention ranking on the line and, in their last game on Saturday against the Westsyde Whundas of Kamloops – the secondranked double-A team in B.C. – they walked off with a 68-55 victory. Jackson Kuc led the Condors offensively with a game-high 21 points, while Dan Zimmerman hit for 16 points. Nolan Austin was Westsyde’s most productive shooter with 10. The Condors led 31-24 at the half and 54-40 through three quarters. Also Saturday, Caledonia of Terrace defeated the D.P. Todd Trojans (0-3) by a 61-57 count. The Trojans carried the No. 5 provincial double-A ranking heading into the weekend but will drop further down the list after three straight losses. Westsyde went 2-1 in the four-team round-robin while Caledonia finished at 1-2.
Peewee Cougars survive penalty problems on way to tournament win
and tied it with a pair of power-play goals.
“That was pretty lucky – we just kept pushing and my team really wanted it,” said Hamilton. “We had it in the bag and we started letting up. We kept getting lazier, taking penalties. Once you start taking a penalty it’s kind of like a goal.”
Cougars right winger Marek Brideau, who scored three times for a natural hat trick to give his team that three-goal lead early in the second period, watched helplessly as Kermodes player Jacob Suderman connected with linemate William MacKay to start the comeback with an even-strength goal just after the break midway through the second period.
The Cougars were still trying to kill their second 5-on-3 disadvantage when MacKay potted a rebound to make it a 4-3 game late in the second period and Gavin Bretherick tied it 2:59 into the third period on another Kermodes’ power play.
Then at the 13-minute mark of the third, right after Brideau forced the Kermodes to take a penalty as he beat three players on a left-wing rush carrying the puck into
Cats come up
Ted CLARKE Citizen staff
Ouch.
It’s been painful to watch what’s been happening to the Prince George Cougars lately and Saturday’s game in Portland did little to disperse the dark clouds that have descended upon the Cats the past month. The Portland Winterhawks offered no rays of sunshine, beating the Cougars 3-0 to ring up their second win of the weekend over Prince George. Now wallowing in a slump that’s resulted in six losses in their last seven games, the offensivelychallenged Cougars left the ice Saturday at Veterans Memorial Coliseum looking for answers. The Cougars (11-16-1-2) have now lost four straight road games and they’ve dropped to ninth place in the 10-team Western Conference. The Winterhawks (18-10-0-2), winners of six of their last 10, are heading in the opposite direction and they rank third in the West.
The Hawks picked up where they left off in their 5-2 win over the Cats Friday night, but it took them the better part of a
It was exciting for the boys, they worked hard and persevered.
— Cougars head coach Graham Laursen
Terrace territory, Jacob McLean was standing at the right place as Jesse Brideau let go a shot from the blueline and the puck deflected off McLean’s thigh and into the net for a 5-4 Cougars’ lead. But Terrace tied it with less than four minutes left, a powerplay goal from defenceman Owen Muller.
The Cougars started overtime with about a minute of power-play time and Hamilton scored the winner a couple minutes after that carryover penalty expired, with the Kermodes’ Shawn Devcic off for tripping.
Colton Cash of the Cougars and Terrace forward Ashton Forsyth opened the scoring in the first period. The shots ended up even,
35-35. Ryder Wogan was in goal for the Cougars and stood tall while making some timely and difficult saves in the third period that kept his team in the game.
“It feels really good to win, we played really well,” said Marek Brideau. “We were nervous at the start of the third period. It feels good because we haven’t had a (tournament) win for a long time.”
The Cougars, who won all five of their round-robin games, including a 6-2 triumph over the Kermodes on Saturday, exacted revenge after losing to Terrace in the final of a Williams Lake tournament a month ago.
“We battled back after 11 straight penalties and got a couple chances in overtime and we were able to bury it,” said Cougars head coach Graham Laursen. “It was exciting for the boys, they worked hard and persevered. It was good to see them bounce back, good to see them keep working hard and believe in the system and the process.
“Ethan has a good shot, with good puck movement, and it was a bit of retribution because they got a power-play goal on us to win it in Williams Lake.”
empty in Portland
period to find a hole in Taylor Gauthier’s armour. Jake Gricius gained the puck on the left side after the Cougars blocked Jared Freadrich’s point shot and in the scrum in front Gauthier dropped his stick. The Cougar goalie was trying to pick it up off the ice when Gricius doubleclutched and let go a short-side shot from a sharp angle that went in over Gauthier’s shoulder. That came 16:38 into the first period.
In the second period Portland continued to dominate the puck and had 76 seconds of 5-on-3 power-play time early in the period but could not score.
All it took was a momentary lapse of discipline to give the high-scoring Hawks what they needed to add to the count. The Cats were at the tail end of a power play when Vladislav Mikhalchuk got his glove up in the face of Hawks centre Cody Glass and it didn’t take long for Ryan Hughes to capitalize with the extra skater. He got down on one knee to one-time Glass’s cross-ice pass and launched a wicked blast for a 2-0 lead at the 14:39 mark.
“We have to be perfect and we took a bad penalty and put the best power play in the league on a power play and they made us pay for it,” said Cougars associate coach Steve O’Rourke.
The Cougars were outshot 2011 in the middle frame and the 20th Portland shot ended up in the net. Jaydon Dureau chased down a forward pass that skipped off the ice and Gauthier tried to poke it away but the rolling puck landed on Dureau’s stick and he went wide around Joel Lakusta and Gauthier and shot from the corner to make it a 3-0 game with just 35 seconds left in the second period.
“Taylor knows he made a mistake by trying to get involved in that play and we’re down 3-0,” said O’Rourke. “There’s just some detail things we can be better at. The power play had some looks and some chances but 5-on-5 we didn’t generate enough. It’s just those little details every night that kind of cost you games, cost you opportunities. We don’t finish. The guys battle, but it only goes so far, working like that. You have
to finish things off. You have to be better.”
The Cougars had eight minutes of power-play time in the third period, trying to avoid their third shutout loss of the season, but could not beat Shane Farkus. The 19-year-old from Penticton made 22 saves for his second shutout of the season and fourth of his threeyear WHL career.
Gauthier stopped 36 shots as his season record dropped to 7-12-1-1.
Cougars defenceman Rhett Rhinehart suffered an upperbody injury late in the second period and did not return for the third. Winger Reid Perepeluk took his place on the blueline.
The Cats resume their 11game road trip tonight in Kent, Wash., where they’ll face the Seattle Thunderbirds. They’ll also visit Victoria on Friday and Vancouver on Sunday before the Christmas break.
The Cougars and Winterhawks will meet again March 8-9 in Prince George, the second-last weekend of the WHL season.
CITIZEN
Brody Wood
Truck
Cariboo Cougars suffer a minor glitch
Ted CLARKE Citizen staff tclarke@pgcitizen.ca
Hunter Brown’s hockey helmet wasn’t built to stop an impact with a concrete wall but it had no choice.
It took the brunt of its owner’s frustrations when he took it off and whipped it against the wall in disgust as he headed to the dressing room after the Cariboo Cougars suffered the first major setback of their inaugural season the B.C. Hockey Minor Midget League.
The Fraser Valley Thunderbirds were the cause of the Cougars’ discontent when they rolled into Kin 1 and swept a three-game series.
The weekend started with a 4-3 overtime loss on Friday and the Thunderbirds took the next two, 4-1 and 3-1. The three defeats dropped the Cougars (9-4-1-1) into third place in the 10-team league, three points behind Fraser Valley.
“We came out slow in the first two games but I thought we had a good performance in the third one, it’s just the bounces weren’t going our way,” said Brown, the Cougars’ captain, one of three Fort St. John products on the team of 15-year-olds.
“We can’t take any teams lightly. We can’t take any shifts off. We have to go in with the right mindset. Every game counts with the season half done.”
The Cougars can take some solace in the fact Sunday was their best game of the three. They certainly had their share of chances around the T-birds net, especially in the third period. Trailing 2-0, Brown deflected a shot off the crossbar and just missed whacking in the loose puck three minutes into the period. Then, after an eight minute stretch without a whistle and several close calls in the T-birds’ end, Kellan Brienen scored with a sharp-angle shot from the left side to make it a onegoal game.
But with just 5:34 left, T-birds winger Zach Urquhart, the over-
time hero on Friday, slipped a low shot in under the glove of goalie Colton Phillips-Watts which pretty much sealed the Cougars’ fate.
They had a few more cracks at the net but goalie Ryan Siteman was locked in. He made 22 saves as his team outshot the Cougars 28-23.
Abram Wiebe, on a T-birds’ power play, and Nathan Frew scored the other Fraser Valley goals.
“We ended it on a positive note and we told them not to hang their heads,” said Cougars assistant coach Chase Astorino. “I thought overall they played a pretty hard game and it wasn’t quite the fate they deserved. There were some bounces that didn’t go our way.
“That’s a good team, they all
Prince George’s Megan Tandy poses with her skis and poles during a World Cup biathlon event in Pokljuka, Slovenia.
SPORTS IN BRIEF
Humboldt survivor involved in bus accident
CALGARY (AP) — Humboldt Broncos survivor Ryan Straschnitzki was a passenger on a bus that was rear-ended by a truck on his way home from physiotherapy.
The 19-year-old Straschnitzki was one of 13 survivors April 6 when the team bus was hit by a semi-trailer at an intersection north of Tisdale, Sask. Sixteen people died,
They need to learn that getting swept isn’t acceptable and we told them to keep that in the back of their minds...
— Assistant coach Chase Astorino
stick to their systems and they’re pretty well-structured and can roll all three lines so it was a good matchup for us,” he added. “We definitely outworked them and we
showed what we were made of in the third period.
“They need to learn that getting swept isn’t acceptable and we told them to keep that in the back of their minds and make sure they prepare themselves for next weekend. I know they all feel pretty bad about it and I’m sure it won’t happen again.”
Fraser Valley started the weekend in third place and the T-birds now occupy top spot with a league-leading 11-3-1-1 record, two points ahead of the Okanagan Rockets (10-1-1-0), who have three games in hand.
The Cougars host the fourthplace North Island Silvertips (8-5-2-0) in a three-game set which
for a loose
starts Friday night at Kin 1. Meanwhile, on the B.C. Hockey Major Midget League front, the Cariboo Cougars solidified their hold on second place in the 11team league after posting a pair of road wins over the Valley West Hawks.
Cariboo beat the Hawks 5-3 Sunday in Delta, after a 4-2 win Saturday in Langley.
Cariboo hosts first-place Fraser Valley (18-3-1-0) in a two-game series Saturday night and Sunday morning at Kin 1. The Cougars are four points back of the T-birds. After a few days off for Christmas the Cougars will head to Calgary for the Mac’s invitational tournament which starts Dec. 26.
Canadian women off target
Citizen staff
Cup biathlon sprint
No top-60 sprint result, no pursuit for the Canadian women’s biathlon team.
That was the story Saturday on the slopes of the Julian Alps at Pokljuka, Slovenia.
The women’s 7.5-kilometre sprint was one the Canadian women would rather forget. They had their difficulties on the shooting range and none of the four Canadians qualified for Sunday’s pursuit.
Megan Tandy of Prince George was the top Canadian in 73rd place. She missed two of her five targets in the standing bout and stopped the clock 2:46.6 after gold medalist Kaisa Makarainen of Finland, who won in 20:08.1 after she cleaned both shooting bouts. Rosanna Crawford of Canmore, Alta., was 77th with four penalties (+2:52.1, 2+2), followed by Nadia Moser of Whitehorse, Yukon, in 88th (+3:42.1, 2+2) and Megan Bankes of Calgary, who ended up 99th (+4:39.6, 1+4).
Dorothea Wierer of Italy won silver (+14.8, 0-0) and Justine Braisaz of France captured the bronze medal (+42.1, 0-0).
Makarainen went on to win the 10 km pursuit in 29:6.9. Wierer was 41.3 seconds behind in silvermedal position and bronze went to Paulina Fialkova of Slovakia (+59.2).
and Straschnitzki was paralyzed from the chest down.
“His transport bus was involved in a collision. In and of itself, would’ve been traumatic to anyone. To Ryan, and, ultimately Tom and I (on the other side of his SOS call), it was devastating,” mother Michelle Straschnitzki wrote on Facebook. She said he was returning Monday to his home in Airdrie when the accident occurred, and that the impact was so jarring it threw him from his wheelchair to the floor. The accident occurred on an off-ramp entering Airdrie, just north of Calgary.
Christian Gow of Canmore was the only Canadian to qualify for the pursuit after he placed 17th in Friday’s sprint (+1:01.2, 0-0). In the 12.5 km pursuit he picked up three positions and finished 14th (+1:09.1, 0-0-0-0-0). Gow is off to a great start in the season-opening World Cup races. He placed 16th in the individual race in Pokljuka on Thursday and teamed up with Bankes to place sixth in the single mixed relay last Sunday.
In the race for the medals in the men’s pursuit, less than two seconds separated the top three. Johannes Thingnes Boe of Norway took gold in 30:20.4, onetenth of a second ahead of silver medalist Quentin Fillion Mailler of France. Bronze medalist Alexander Loginov of Russia was 1.9 seconds behind Boe. All three shot clean.
The BMW World Cup tour visits Hochfilzen, Austria, next week. The women’s sprint is scheduled for Thursday, with the men’s sprint to follow on Friday. Pursuits and relay races will be held on the weekend.
Caledonia Nordic Ski Club members Sarah Beaudry of Prince George and Emily Dickson of Burns Lake are in Ridnaun-Val Ridanna, Italy, for IBU Cup races this week, starting with the single mixed and team mixed relays on Thursday.
Chamblin new Argos coach
TORONTO (CP) — Barely a year after the Toronto Argonauts’ defence clinched them a thrilling Grey Cup victory, the team has brought back the defensive specialist responsible.
Corey Chamblin was named head coach of the Argos on Monday, returning to the team he helped guide to a Grey Cup victory in 2017 as defensive coordinator. Toronto’s defence had six East Division all-stars and was tied for the league in sacks (50) when Chamblin was defensive
coordinator. And on that memorable Grey Cup evening in Ottawa, Cassius Vaughn ran back a fumble recovery 110 yards for a touchdown at a snowy TD Place stadium, then Matt Black intercepted Bo Levi Mitchell in the end zone with eight seconds remaining in Toronto’s stunning 27-24 win over Calgary. It’s been downhill ever since, ultimately costing head coach Marc Trestman his job. Now, the 41-year-old Chamblin, who will also be the team’s defensive coordinator, is tasked with turning around a team that lost nine of its last 10 games while going 4-14 this past season.
Hunter Brown of the Cariboo Cougars minor midget team battles Dylan Brooks of the Fraser Valley Thunderbirds
puck on Saturday at Kin 1.
Tandy 73rd in World
‘It’s hard to take’
Gagner stinging after second demotion to AHL
Joshua CLIPPERTON Citizen news service
TORONTO — Sam Gagner was back in the NHL and feeling great.
Playing an important role with the Vancouver Canucks – first-line minutes, No. 1 power play – following a surprise banishment to the minors before the season, his family had also been reunited on the West Coast.
The 29-year-old forward was all smiles at the team’s skills competition earlier this month, accompanied on the bench by one of his two young sons wearing dad’s blue No. 89 jersey.
Even though the Canucks were struggling, Gagner had a goal and two assists, and was regularly deployed late in games.
There was reason for optimism.
A couple of days later, however, Gagner got his second professional shock in two months when the Canucks returned him to the AHL’s Toronto Marlies, resuming their loan agreement.
“I played really well when I was in Vancouverthat’s the surprising part,” he said after his first game back with the Marlies over the weekend. “Both (Canucks GM Jim Benning and head coach Travis Green) said the same thing. They thought I played well.
“That’s why it’s hard to take.”
A veteran of 770 NHL games heading into this season, Gagner was demoted despite playing more than 18 minutes a night during that two-week stretch.
His average of 3:14 on the power play was tied for third with Bo Horvat, trailing only Brock Boeser and Elias Pettersson. Gagner also had the best evenstrength shot differential at 58.21 per cent, while his other advanced metrics suggest he was unlucky not to have scored more often.
It wasn’t enough to keep him up with the big club. “We weren’t finding wins,” Gagner said. “But that stint drove it home for me that I can play at that level and be effective.”
An eyebrow-raising training camp cut – he signed a three-year, US$9.45-million contract in free agency two summers ago, choosing the Canucks over a number of other suitors – Gagner was loaned to the Marlies in October instead of being assigned to Vancouver’s affiliate in Utica, N.Y., after clearing waivers.
And while Gagner, who had seven goals and eight assists in 15 games with Toronto before getting recalled on Nov. 18, said he would never ask for a trade, a move would clearly be welcomed at this point.
“I want an NHL opportunity,” said Gagner, whose rights are maintained by the Canucks. “I’d like for it to be in Vancouver, but it doesn’t really seem like I’m in their plans.
“I’ve proven I belong.”
Gagner, who is making US$3.5 million this season no matter where he plays, has 153 goals and 283 assists in parts of 12 NHL campaigns.
The sixth pick in the 2007 draft by Edmonton said he was told by the Canucks the reason for this demotion was simple – unlike some other veterans on the roster, he didn’t have to clear waivers a second time.
Caught in a numbers game with a rebuilding franchise, Gagner skated around the question when asked if he regretted signing in Vancouver following his 50-point season with Columbus in 2016-17.
“I had bounced around,” said Gagner, who like many Canucks had a tough 2017-18 with just 10 goals and 21 assists. “They seemed to be very excited about having me there. That’s kind of the surprising part. It’s the same coach and management.
“Definitely frustrating.”
Maple Leafs centre John Tavares, who grew up with Gagner in the suburbs west of Toronto, said he was surprised to see his close friend back in the minors.
“It’s a great test of his character and his willingness to dig in,” said Tavares, who spoke with Gagner after he was demoted. “I always tell him he’s someone for me to look up to because I haven’t been in that situation and I can’t imagine how difficult it is.”
Added Gagner: “You just keep pushing forward and hopefully there’s another opportunity.”
Either with the Canucks or elsewhere.
Win puts Seattle on brink of playoffs
Citizen news service
SEATTLE — Bobby Wagner blocked Dan Bailey’s field goal attempt midway through the fourth quarter, sparking the Seahawks to two late touchdowns and a 21-7 win over the Minnesota Vikings on Monday night, Seattle’s fourth straight victory.
Chris Carson followed the blocked kick with a two-yard TD run with 2:53 left, and Justin Coleman provided the capper with a 29-yard fumble return touchdown 18 seconds later.
What was an ugly and mostly forgettable first three quarters turned into a Seattle party in the fourth as the Seahawks (8-5) moved to the brink of wrapping up a wildcard spot in the NFC. One win in Seattle’s final three games – including matchups with lowly San Francisco and Arizona – should be enough to put the Seahawks into the post-season.
Minnesota (6-6-1) twice had scoring chances in the fourth quarter when it was still a one-score game but was turned away each time. Minnesota’s chances of winning the NFC North took a major hit, but the Vikings still hold the No. 6 spot in the NFC.
Wagner has been one of the top linebackers in the NFL this season, but it was a debatable special teams play
that made the difference. The question was whether his leap over the line of scrimmage was legal to block Bailey’s 47-yard field goal attempt with 5:38 left. Wagner’s jump through a gap in Minnesota’s offensive line was fine, but it appeared he used his teammates to gain leverage, which allowed him to come through and block the kick. A flag was initially thrown but was picked up by the officials.
Seattle took possession and Russell Wilson immediately scrambled 40 yards deep into Minnesota territory. Five plays later, Carson scored and Seattle finally had a cushion.
Two plays after that, Jacob Martin sacked Minnesota’s Kirk Cousins and the ball popped to Coleman, who weaved his way for the clinching touchdown.
Cousins threw a six-yard touchdown to Dalvin Cook with 1:10 remaining, but Seattle recovered the onside kick.
Wilson had one of the worst passing games of his career, completing 10 of 20 for career-low 72 yards and a baffling interception late in the first half, one of the many mistakes by Seattle that allowed Minnesota to hang around. But Seattle’s ground game was outstanding against one of the better run defences in the NFL. The Seahawks finished with 214 yards rushing, led by
90 yards from Carson.
Minnesota hung around despite failing to run a play in Seattle territory until there was 4:16 left in the third quarter. Cousins was 20 of 33 for 208 yards, most of that coming late. But he failed to get the Vikings into the end zone from inside the Seattle five while trailing 6-0 early in the fourth quarter. The Vikings had first-and-goal at the Seattle four but turned the ball over on downs with 9:06 remaining. Two short runs and an incompletion brought up fourth-and-goal at the one, and Cousins’ pass for Kyle Rudolph was knocked away by Bradley McDougald. Bailey’s field goal was blocked on Minnesota’s next drive. Sebastian Janikowski hit field goals of 37 and 35 yards to account for all of Seattle’s scoring until the closing minutes.
Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen tied Cris Carter as the fastest Minnesota player to reach 100 receptions in a season, both accomplishing the feat in 13 games. Carter did it in 1994 when he finished the year with 122 catches. Thielen is the first Minnesota receiver to get to 100 catches since Randy Moss in 2003.
UP NEXT
Minnesota: The Vikings return home to host Miami on Sunday.
Seattle: The Seahawks play their final road game Sunday at San Francisco.
Milestone night for Stamkos in Tampa triumph
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Steven Stamkos and the Tampa Bay Lightning are piling up points.
Stamkos had three goals to become the first player from the 2008 draft to reach 700 points, and the NHL-leading Lightning won their seventh consecutive game by beating the New York Rangers 6-3 on Monday night.
“Stammer is finding his groove,” Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. Stamkos scored power-play goals that tied the game in the first and second
periods. The centre completed his ninth hat trick and first since Oct. 13, 2014, against Montreal from the slot at 10:41 of the third.
“I knew it had been a while,” Stamkos said with a laugh.
The Lightning star, coming off a two-goal, two-assist outing in Saturday night’s 7-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche, has 701 points in 696 career games. He joins Martin St. Louis (953) and Vincent Lecavalier (874) as the only Tampa Bay players reaching the
700-point milestone. Ryan McDonagh had a go-ahead goal, Anthony Cirelli had the other two Tampa Bay goals, and Louis Domingue made 23 saves. Kevin Hayes had two goals and Jesper Fast also scored for the Rangers, who have lost six of eight (2-51). Henrik Lundqvist stopped 30 shots. New York defenceman Kevin Shattenkirk left in the second period with an upper-body injury. He took a check around the left shoulder and had a sling on his left arm postgame.
AP PHOTO
Justin Coleman of the Seattle Seahawks, right, catches the foot of Minnesota Vikings ball carrier Laquon Treadwell after a pass reception by Treadwell during Monday night’s game in Seattle.
Drama students taking stage for deceased classmate
Frank PEEBLES Citizen staff fpeebles@pgcitizen.ca
Chelsey Fiddler will be one of the stars of the show, although she won’t be on stage when her classmates perform their school play this week at College Heights Secondary School.
Scripts were handed out to all the Grade 11s and 12s (even some Grade 10s) taking part in the farcical comedy Kodiak Flapjack: Man of the Frozen North, except to Fiddler who went home from school early that day. The next day the school got the news that Fiddler had taken her own life. It was especially hard on the drama class, because she was one of the veterans in that course that is always more than a course, it is a tight-knit family of students and teachers.
Each performance starts at 7 p.m. and the opening night box office proceeds go to the bursary set up in Chelsey Fiddler’s name.
Their teacher/director Audrey Rowell told them she did not require the class to carry through with the performance. There were other ways to get graded without going through an onerous theatrical production. That idea got shot to the frozen northern ground by the grieving cast and crew. Chelsey would never want them to quit the play. In fact, they decided, it was going to be the best effort they’d ever given.
A second commitment was also needed. This was a zany comedy. It asked of the cast to channel the fun and delight that Chelsey represented in their lives. It shows when the cast talks of her. There are no tears and plenty of smiles.
Drama is the kind of program where peer relations are different in the first place than the core academics. The commodities are emotion and interpersonal connections. It’s the kind of setting where people can work through their innermost intuitions together.
“She’d have loved seeing me in drag,” said Lino Zemliak, a young man playing a female school principal, decked out in a wig, pearls and conservative skirt-suit.
“She was always trying to get me to wear skirts and I never liked to, so she’d have loved to see this costume I have to wear,” said Grace Norn, who portrays the daughter of the uptight principal.
Their world at a private girl’s school is upended when the owner dies and wills the facility not to the principal, as was expected, but to a young Alaskan trapper who, to their chagrin, takes the gift seriously and moves in to take over
and run the place.
All the school’s previous conventions get flushed as swarthy Kodiak Flapjack takes over and replaces their hoits and toits with some back-country common sense.
“Yeah, an 18-year-old bush man taking over a girls’ school – nothing creepy about that,” said Hannah Bilodeau, who plays one of those students suddenly having to adjust to a surreal turn of events. She assured the viewers, though, that this was a script loaded in laughs.
“It’s so great after all that’s happened at our school this year,” said Bilodeau, who listed multiple crises, the most recent being a bus crash that injured members of a CHSS sports teams on a road trip.
Flapjack’s costume alone is worth the price of hilarity, from his coon-skin cap to his too-short shorts. Actor Kohan O’Connor joked (it was a joke, right?) that he dresses this way all the time. The play was a coincidence, but it’s where he likes to be as much as out on the field of sports battle where he’s also an active participant.
“Theatre is where you get to be yourself around a bunch of people who feel the same way,” O’Connor said. “You get to do all kinds of goofy things, without judgment.” Bilodeau connects so well to theatre “it’s something I might want to do after high school,” she said. “I don’t know what I want to be when I grow up, so I could just, instead of going to school for years to become a doctor, just pretend to be one.”
Norn said “I come back time after time because of Mrs. Rowell, and I was actually not going to take drama this semester but it was the only class that Chelsey and I had the option of taking together, so we both went for it.”
Norn has also been in productions with Zemliak since elementary school, so that was more continuity in the cast.
“Lino lives for roles like this,” said Norn, giving him an up-down glance in his heels and pantyhose. “There’s a lot of physical humour, too, a lot of action.”
“We actually have stunts. There’s a fight scene. I get to slap people,” said Zemliak. “So that’s nice. It’s heartwarming, and it’s always setting up a joke, but there are tones of seriousness when you look deep into the meanings.”
The layer that underlies even that is the dedication of this play to Fiddler.
“I taught her for four years, and now there is no part of the drama department that doesn’t have some kind of attachment or memory to her,” said Rowell. “I told the cast ‘look, I don’t know how to step forward, I don’t know how to help you get through this, I am not doing well getting through it for myself, but we just have to know for each other that there are going to be good days and bad days, and we will always have each other.’” Kodiak Flapjack: Man of the Frozen North has performances on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at the CHSS school theatre. Each performance starts at 7 p.m. and the opening night box office proceeds go to the bursary set up in Chelsey Fiddler’s name.
CITIZEN PHOTO BY BRENT BRAATEN
Kohan O’Connor, right, plays the title character in the College Heights Secondary School drama department production of Kodiak Flapjack: Man of the Frozen North.
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MONEY IN BRIEF
OTTAWA (CP) —
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The markets today
TORONTO (CP) — North American investors endured another wild ride Monday as markets rebounded from deep declines in trading on broad-based weakness led by the energy sector.
“This is a market that just lacks conviction at the moment,” said Craig Fehr, Canadian markets strategist for Edward Jones.
“Not only is today a good example of that when we’ve seen some steep losses midday get reversed... but I think we’ve seen that show up over the past two weeks as well where two weeks ago we posted very strong gains in equities and last week gave them all back.”
The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 66.85 points to 14,728.28 after hitting a tripledigit decline to a low of 14,610.18 in earlier trading.
The consumer discretionary and energy sectors led on the downside as oil prices fell again despite last week’s decision by OPEC and Russia to cut production by 1.2 million barrels per day.
The technology sector gained 1.6 per cent.
The January crude contract was down US$1.61 at US$51 per barrel and the January natural gas contract was up 5.7 cents at US$4.54 per mmBTU.
The Canadian dollar traded at an average of 74.62 cents US compared with an average of 75.19 cents US on Friday.
The February gold contract was down US$3.20 at US$1,249.40 an ounce and the March copper contract was down 3.95 cents at US$2.72 a pound.
Fehr said the market was hit early Monday with uncertainty related to Brexit, where British Prime Minister Theresa May postponed the parliamentary vote on her deal with the European Union. Concerns about trade were raised by the release of data showing that exports from China had decelerated, raising concerns that tariff tensions between the U.S. and China would actually impair trade. In addition, uncertainties about interest rate hikes and monetary policy hit cyclical sectors, energy, financials and technology. But markets turned positive as Apple staged a rebound that helped the tech sector as a whole.
Fehr said there doesn’t appear to have been a clear catalyst for the shift in the market.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 34.31 points at 24,423.26 after being down nearly 480 points and following Friday’s loss of 558.72 points. The S&P 500 index closed up 4.64 points to 2,637.72 after hitting an eight-month low, while the Nasdaq composite was up 51.27 points at 7,020.52.
Brexit deal in turmoil
Jill LAWLESS, Danica KIRKA Citizen news service
LONDON — Facing almost certain defeat, British Prime Minister Theresa May on Monday postponed a vote in Parliament on her Brexit deal, saying she would go back to European Union leaders to seek changes to the divorce agreement.
May’s move threw Britain’s Brexit plans into disarray, intensified a domestic political crisis and battered the pound. With EU officials adamant the withdrawal deal was not up for renegotiation, the country does not know on what terms it will leave – and whether May will still be Britain’s leader when it does.
In an emergency statement to the House of Commons, May accepted that the divorce deal she struck last month with EU leaders was likely to be rejected “by a significant margin” if the vote were held Tuesday as planned. May said she would defer the vote so she could seek “assurances” from the EU and bring the deal back to Parliament. She did not set a new date for the vote.
The U.K.’s departure is supposed to take place on March 29.
Opposition lawmakers, and ones from May’s Conservative Party, were incredulous and angry. Some accused her of trampling on parliamentary democracy.
“The government has lost control of events and is in complete disarray,” Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said.
Corbyn demanded, and was granted, an emergency debate Tuesday on the postponement. But Labour lawmaker Lloyd Russell-Moyle was expelled from Parliament for the day after he grabbed the House of Commons’ ceremonial mace as a sign of protest.
The centuries-old gilded staff is the symbol of royal authority. Without it, the Commons can’t meet or pass laws.
Jacob Rees-Mogg, a lead-
Opposition lawmakers, and ones from May’s Conservative Party, were incredulous and angry.
Some accused her of trampling on parliamentary democracy.
ing pro-Brexit Conservative, expressed despair at the Brexit shambles.
“It’s not really governing,” he said. “It’s just an awful muddle.”
Monday’s turmoil sent the pound to a 20-month low against the U.S. dollar of $1.2550.
It was a new blow for May, who became prime minister after Britain’s 2016 referendum decision to leave the EU. She has been battling ever since – first to strike a divorce deal with the bloc, then to sell it to skeptical British lawmakers.
May insisted the agreement hammered out with the EU after a year and a half of negotiations was “the best deal that is negotiable.” But it has been scorned by lawmakers on all sides of Britain’s debate about Europe.
Derisive laughter erupted in the House of Commons when May claimed there was “broad support” for many aspects of the deal.
Pro-Brexit lawmakers say the deal keeps Britain bound too closely to the EU, while pro-EU politicians say it erects barriers between the U.K. and its biggest trading partner and leaves many details of the future relationship undecided.
The main sticking point is a “backstop” provision that aims to guarantee an open border between EU member Ireland and the U.K.’s Northern Ireland after Brexit. The measure would keep Britain under EU customs rules, and is supposed to last until it is superseded by permanent new trade arrangements.
Critics say it could leave Britain tied to the EU indefinitely, unable to strike new trade deals around the world.
May said she would hold talks
with EU leaders ahead of a summit in Brussels on Thursday and Friday, seeking “further reassurances” over the backstop.
“Nothing should be off the table,” she said.
EU leaders signalled they are prepared to help Britain, up to a point, but insisted the Brexit agreement could not be changed.
“The deal is the deal,” Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said. “It’s taken two years to put together. It’s a fair deal for both sides.”
European Council President Donald Tusk tweeted: “We will not renegotiate the deal, including the backstop, but we are ready to discuss how to facilitate U.K. ratification.”
A key member of the European parliament’s Brexit team, Green lawmaker Philippe Lamberts, predicted May’s shuttle diplomacy would fail to secure changes.
“The only net result of this round of capitals will be an additional amount of CO2 in the atmosphere,” he said.
Despite May’s dogged determination to press on, the tumult leaves her in a precarious position. Conservative rivals are preparing for a potential leadership challenge, and Labour has threatened call for a no-confidence motion in the government.
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said her Scottish National Party would support an attempt to topple the government and trigger a new election.
“This shambles can’t go on – so how about it?” Sturgeon tweeted at Corbyn.
Corbyn stopped short of calling a no-confidence vote Monday, but said if May could not renegotiate with the EU, “then she must make way.”
Delays in approving the Brexit deal increase the chances of Britain crashing out of the EU with no agreement. The government and the Bank of England have warned that could bring logjams to British ports and plunge the country into its deepest recession in decades. May said the government would step up preparations for a no-deal Brexit in order to mitigate its worst effects. It has already stockpiled medicines and other key goods.
Carolyn Fairbairn, head of the Confederation of British Industry, said the delay was “yet another blow for companies desperate for clarity.”
“Investment plans have been paused for two-and-a-half years,” she said. “Unless a deal is agreed quickly, the country risks sliding towards a national crisis.”
May has also warned that rejecting her deal could result in Britain not leaving the EU at all. Some campaigners in the U.K. want just that. They got a boost Monday when the EU’s top court ruled that Britain can change its mind over Brexit if it wants.
Britain invoked Article 50 of the EU’s Lisbon Treaty in March 2017, triggering a two-year exit process. A group of Scottish legislators had asked the European Court of Justice to rule on whether the U.K. could pull out of the withdrawal procedure on its own.
The court said Monday that when an EU member country has notified the bloc of its intent to leave, “that member state is free to revoke unilaterally that notification.”
May has repeatedly said the government will not seek to delay or reverse Brexit. She said Monday that Parliament had a duty to “get Brexit done and get it done right. ” And she urged lawmakers to unite in a spirit of conciliation – a plea that has, so far, fallen on deaf ears.
“There will be no enduring and successful Brexit without some compromise on both sides of the debate,” May said.
Musk won’t be deferring to Tesla’s new chairwoman
Citizen news service
Tesla CEO Elon Musk dismissed the idea that the company’s new chairwoman can exert control over his behaviour.
Robyn Denholm, an Australian telecommunications executive, was appointed chairwoman of Tesla’s board last month, replacing Musk of as part of a securities fraud settlement with U.S. government regulators.
But Musk said “it’s not realistic” to expect Denholm to watch over his actions because he remains the electric car company’s largest shareholder.
“It’s not realistic in the sense that I am the largest shareholder in the company,” Musk said in an interview with CBS’ 60 Minutes, broadcast Sunday evening, adding that a
large percentage of shareholders support him and all he needs is about one-third of them.
“I can just call for a shareholder vote and get anything done that I want,” he said.
Musk, who owns 20 per cent of Tesla, gave up the chairman role under a settlement with the Securities Exchange Commission, which had charged the CEO with misleading investors in August with a tweet that said he had “funding secured” for taking the company private.
The SEC settlement also required the company to vet Musk’s tweets and other comments about the company before they are released to the public. Musk also shrugged off that provision, saying none of his tweets have been censored so far and the company does not review his posts to determine beforehand whether they could potentially affect the com-
pany’s stock price.
“I guess we might make some mistakes. Who knows?” Musk said. Musk said he does not respect the SEC, but when asked if he would obey the settlement, he said: “Because I respect the justice system.”
After the interview was aired, Tesla said in a statement that the company is complying with the SEC settlement. The part that requires pre-approval of communications that could affect the stock price technically must be in place by Dec. 28, the company said.
Denholm’s appointment in November drew a mixed response from corporate governance experts, who praised her financial expertise but questioned her ability to carve out an independent path for a board that has been dominated by Musk.
In this screen grab taken from video, British Prime Minister Theresa May makes a statement in the House of Commons in London on Monday.
