The Monday news briefing: An at-a-glance survey of some top stories

POLL SAYS CANADIAN FIRMS EXPECTING POST-ELECTION GROWTH: A new Bank of Canada survey finds few Canadian firms have factored in the potential impacts from the U.S. election into their sales outlooks. Its latest business outlook survey suggests a greater number of firms expect to benefit from what they anticipate will be stronger post-election growth in the United States. But it also finds many companies remain concerned about uncertainty linked to the possibility of new protectionist measures in the U.S. Overall, companies surveyed between mid-November and early December expected faster sales growth over the next 12 months, had stronger investment intentions and had more-widespread hiring expectations in most sectors and regions.

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OTTAWA AND ONTARIO GIVE ABOUT $42M EACH TO HONDA: The federal and Ontario governments are each providing Honda Canada with grants of up to $41.8 million for upgrades and research and development at its operations in Alliston, Ont. The government money, along with up to $408.3 million from Honda itself, will go toward vehicle-assembly technology, as well as the design and construction of a new paint shop that is expected to cut greenhouse gas emissions nearly in half. The conditional grants and Honda investment will also go toward research and development “to support production of future vehicle models, including software upgrades and prototyping of new components.” The investments aren’t expected to lead to any new jobs, but the provincial government says the money will ensure 4,000 jobs at the Alliston facility, which produces the Civic and CR-V models, are retained.

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TRUMP SON-IN-LAW TO TAKE SENIOR WHITE HOUSE ROLE: President-elect Donald Trump’s influential son-in-law, Jared Kushner, will join the White House as a senior adviser, according to two people briefed on the decision. He’s taking a broad role that could give him sway over both domestic and foreign policy. Kushner, who is married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka, is taking the West Wing job despite an anti-nepotism law that bars officials from appointing relatives to government positions. Some aides to Trump have argued that the law does not apply to the White House. Kushner’s lawyer has said he would step down as CEO of his family’s real estate business if he took a White House position and would divest some of his assets to comply with federal ethics laws that apply to government employees.

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TEEN WHO MADE PRO-ISIL COMMENTS SENTENCED: A Manitoba teenager who pleaded guilty to counselling terrorism will spend no more time in custody, but will have to live under strict curfew conditions and wear an electronic monitoring device for more than two years. The teen, who can’t be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, was 16 when he was charged with posting pro-terrorism comments on social media. Court was told the boy urged people to fight for the Islamic State and to “strike from within” if they could not go overseas. Provincial court Judge John Coombs sentenced the teen to six months deferred custody to be followed by two years of probation that is to include curfews, electronic monitoring and a ban on using computers. The probation is also to include religious and other counselling directed by his probation supervisor.

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MEMORIAL HELD FOR CANADIAN KILLED FIGHTING ISIL: An Ontario man who died while helping to fight Islamic State militants in Syria was remembered as a hero Monday with a memorial in Ottawa. Members of Canada’s Kurdish community honoured 24-year-old Nazzareno Tassone, who officials have said was killed last month fighting alongside the Kurdish People’s Defense Units. Family members in Niagara Falls learned of his death last week when they received a letter from the Kurdish group. Tassone’s sister says the family is overwhelmed but grateful for the memorial for her brother at the Canadian Tomb of the Unknown Soldier near Parliament Hill.

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ONTARIO SPCA SAYS MARINELAND FACES NEW ANIMAL CRUELTY CHARGES: Marineland was charged Monday with six counts of animal cruelty, but the company dismissed the allegations, calling them the “strangest” yet laid by the agency. Jennifer Bluhm of the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals says they have laid one count each of permitting elk, red deer and fallow deer to be in distress. She says the animal welfare agency has also laid one count each of failing to provide the standards of care for elk, red deer and fallow deer. The tourist attraction was charged with five counts of animal cruelty in late November relating to the treatment of peacocks, guinea hens and black bears. It has also denied those allegations. Marineland is expected to appear in court on Jan. 26 to face 11 counts of animal cruelty charges. None of the allegations has been proven in court.

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ONTARIO TO FUND TORONTO SAFE INJECTION SITES: Ontario is committing to fund three supervised injection sites in Toronto, as the city tries to combat rising numbers of overdose deaths amid a broader opioid crisis. Toronto city council approved the supervised injection sites at existing downtown health-care facilities during the summer, and six months later the province has confirmed its support for the plan, with an estimated annual cost of $1.6 million and about $400,000 to create the spaces. Health Minister Eric Hoskins spoke to Mayor John Tory ahead of a meeting Monday with politicians, public health officials and other stakeholders discussing how the city can tackle the growing and fentanyl-fuelled opioid problem. Hoskins also said he wrote to his federal counterpart Jane Philpott in support of the sites, as Toronto awaits word from Health Canada on its request for a federal exemption from the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.

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PROSTATE CANCER GENETICS COULD AID CURE, RESEARCHERS SAY: Canadian researchers have identified a genetic fingerprint that explains why up to almost a third of men with potentially curable localized prostate cancer develop aggressive disease that spreads following initial treatment. Co-principal investigator Dr. Robert Bristow of Toronto’s Princess Margaret Cancer Centre says the discovery could help doctors personalize more effective, targeted therapies from the moment a man is diagnosed with prostate cancer. The study published online Monday in the journal Nature analyzed the tumours of 500 Canadian men in the general population with localized, non-inherited prostate cancer. Bristow says the next step will be to translate the findings into a diagnostic tool that can be used in the clinic.

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FIRST NATIONS SUING OVER PIPELINE MAINTENANCE: Two northern Ontario First Nations are suing TransCanada in hopes of expanding the pipeline consultation process to include maintenance operations. The First Nations allege in their multimillion-dollar suit that the company should hold consultations, even when conducting maintenance operations like so-called “integrity digs” on pre-existing lines. They say the company violated their Aboriginal Treaty Rights by failing to do so in this case, and also name the National Energy Board and the federal government in the suit. The National Energy Board did not immediately comment on the suit, but a TransCanada spokesman says the company feels it should have the right to proceed with integrity digs as scheduled.

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The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

The Monday news briefing: An at-a-glance survey of some top stories

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