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Canada’s inflation rate tumbles to 2.8%, but economists warn inflation fight not over

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:29 GMT

OTTAWA — Canada’s inflation rate has fallen back to the country’s target range for the first time in more than two years, but economists say the fight against high inflation is far from over.Annual inflation tumbled to 2.8 per cent in June, Statistics Canada reported Tuesday. The deceleration was broad-based, though lower gasoline prices compared with last year led the slowdown.But Canadians continue to pay substantially higher prices for groceries, as prices rose 9.1 per cent year-over-year, slightly faster than in May.The annual inflation rate was 3.4 per cent in May. The last time it fell below three per cent was March 2021.Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland called the return of inflation to the target range a “milestone moment.”“That is a significant moment. It should provide a lot of relief to Canadians,” Freeland told reporters in a virtual news conference on Tuesday. However, it’s not all good news on the inflation front. Core measure...

RCMP union calls for clarity amid questions about future of force

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:29 GMT

The head of Canada’s RCMP union is calling for clarity from the federal government after reports the role of the force could be changing.National Police Federation President and cofounder Brian Sauvé says his members deserve respect and certainty about their future“The ongoing speculation and vague language from government representatives, the media, and pundits is demoralizing to our members whose careers, lives, and even families have been built around service to their communities large and small,” he said.“Our members are not pawns — they are people and proud Canadians who care deeply about their jobs, their families, and their communities. They deserve respect and certainty in their future.”The Star reports there are ongoing talks between federal and provincial governments about changing the nature of the RCMP.According to reports, the political discussions centre around eliminating many of the front-line policing duties of the RCMP, and havin...

Oakville carjacking leads to missing dog, search ongoing for ‘Louie’

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:29 GMT

Halton police say a dog is missing after its owner was the victim of an armed carjacking in Oakville early Tuesday morning.Authorities said at approximately 1:00 a.m., a woman was driving her vehicle and had stopped at the intersection of Dundas Street West and Trafalgar Road.It’s alleged that a suspect vehicle made contact with the woman’s vehicle. A male driver then exited the suspect vehicle and distracted the victim while exchanging information. Two additional suspects wearing balaclavas then got into the woman’s car.Police said the suspects brandished a handgun and threatened the woman before stealing her car, described as a 2021 Mercedes.The woman’s dog was inside her vehicle at the time of the carjacking and has not been recovered. Police noted it is possible the dog was dropped off in the Oakmead Boulevard and Wembley Road area in Oakville after the incident.The dog is described as a brown, tea-cup Poodle wearing a blue halter and responds to the name...

A closer look at Panmunjom, the famous border town where a US soldier crossed into North Korea

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:29 GMT

Low-slung buildings, blue huts and somber soldiers dot the border village of Panmunjom inside the DMZ, or demilitarized zone, the swath of land between North and South Korea where a U.S. soldier on a tour crossed into the North under circumstances that remained murky. The soldier was on a tour of the storied border town, inside the heavily fortified 154-mile-long (248-kilometer-long) DMZ, when the crossing happened, U.S. officials said Tuesday. It remained unknown exactly what prompted the soldier’s actions, though U.S. officials said he was facing disciplinary action after he had been held in South Korea on assault charges. The soldier was believed to be in North Korean custody. The DMZ is lined with observation posts on both sides, whose soldiers watch the border and each other carefully for any signs of transgression. North and South Korea remain technically in a state of war since the hostilities in Korean War ended and an armistice was signed — at Panmunjom — in 1953. Nei...

Day and night, Phoenix has sweltered from heat that will break a record for American cities

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:29 GMT

PHOENIX (AP) — Phoenix’s streak of dangerously hot days was poised to smash a record for major U.S. cities on Tuesday, the 19th straight day the temperature in the desert city was to soar to 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 C) or more.The nights have offered little relief from the brutal heat. Phoenix’s overnight low only dropped to 94 F (34.4 C) on Tuesday, the ninth straight day of temperatures not falling below 90 F (32.2 C), another record.It’s “pretty miserable when you don’t have any recovery overnight,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Matt Salerno.The thermometer reached 100 F (37.8 C) before 9 a.m. for the sixth straight day on Tuesday.The length of Phoenix’s heat wave is notable even during a summer in which much of the southern United States and the world as a whole has been cooking in record temperatures, something scientists say is stoked by climate change.What’s going on in a metropolitan area known as the Valley of the Sun is...

Judge grants acquittal of two men convicted in 1973 killing in Winnipeg

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:29 GMT

WINNIPEG — A judge has granted an acquittal to two First Nations men convicted of killing a restaurant worker in Winnipeg a half-century ago.Chief Justice Glenn Joyal of the Court of King’s Bench told Brian Anderson and Allan Woodhouse that they are innocent and deserve acquittals.People in the courtroom gallery erupted in cheers as the judge announced his decision.The Crown asked for an acquittal of Anderson and Woodhouse, saying systemic racism had affected the investigation and prosecution.Anderson and Woodhouse were sentenced to life in prison for the death of Ting Fong Chan, a restaurant worker who was stabbed in 1973.Both men professed their innocence in court today, saying they did not kill Chan.This report by The Canadian Press was first published on July 18, 2023. The Canadian Press

TikTok needs to do more to comply with Europe’s new digital rules, official says

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:29 GMT

LONDON (AP) — TikTok needs to do more to get ready for new European Union digital rules designed to keep users safe online, a top official said Tuesday. The results of a “stress test” that the popular video-sharing platform carried out at its Dublin office showed that “more work is needed to be fully ready” for when the Digital Services Act takes effect next month, European Commissioner Thierry Breton said in a statement. Breton, who oversees the 27-nation bloc’s digital policy, tweeted a silent video of himself discussing the results by video call with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew. “TikTok is fully committed to implementing the DSA and enhancing transparency and accountability,” said Caroline Greer, TikTok’s Brussels-based public policy official. “We welcome these opportunities to be open about our efforts and look forward to continuing to engage with the EU Commission.” The world’s biggest online platforms will have to comply with the DSA’s sweeping new standards when they ...

California 3-year-old fatally shoots 1-year-old sibling in accident

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:29 GMT

FALLBROOK, Calif. (AP) — A 3-year-old Southern California child accidentally shot and killed their 1-year-old sibling after getting ahold of an unsecured handgun, authorities said.The shooting was reported around 7:30 a.m. Monday in Fallbrook, a city 56 miles (90 kilometers) north of San Diego. Firefighters took the child to Palomar Hospital where she was pronounced dead an hour later, the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department said in a press release.The identities of the child and the family were not immediately released.The department said homicide detectives are working to gather more information about the circumstances and the district attorney’s office has been notified.In California, firearms kept at home are required by law to be stored in locked containers or disabled by security devices. There have been more than 200 unintentional shootings by children in the U.S. so far this year, including six others in California, according to the Everytown for Gun Safety advocacy ...

Drones, ATVs hamper B.C.’s wildfire fighting efforts during record-breaking season

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:29 GMT

Firefighters battling hundreds of blazes in British Columbia say they’ve been facing more than  the usual obstacles, blaming members of the public for interfering with operations.The BC Wildfire Service says it’s had to deal with several people riding all-terrain vehicles around active work sites and in one case a drone in the air forced firefighters to halt operations.The service says in a statement there have been several reports of people getting in the way of heavy equipment operators and firefighters fighting multiple fires in the Burns Lake area in northwestern B.C.It says public interference has a direct effect on the effectiveness of fire suppression and poses safety risks to both the public and firefighters.Last weekend, aerial firefighting operations in the province’s northwest were temporarily suspended due to a drone being flown near a wildfire.The service says anyone caught operating a drone in the vicinity of a wildfire could face fines or jail time.T...

What went up, what went down? A closer look at Canada’s inflation data for June

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:29 GMT

TORONTO — Canada’s inflation rate fell to 2.8 per cent in June, down from 3.4 per cent in May, and putting it within the Bank of Canada’s target range for the first time since March 2021.Here are some of the most notable things about the trends in Statistics Canada’s consumer price index report released Tuesday.GroceriesWhile headline inflation continues to tick down, Canadians are still feeling the pinch on their grocery bills, as food inflation showed no improvement last month. Overall, the cost of food rose 8.3 per cent year-over-year in June — the same rate of increase Canada saw in May.Canadians are likely noticing that most at the grocery store checkout. Statistics Canada reported that grocery prices remained one of the largest contributors to the Consumer Price Index for June, with a 9.1 per cent year-over-year increase, nearly unchanged from the nine per cent increase in May.On a yearly basis, price increases were recorded for meat (6.9 per cent), dairy products (7.4 per cen...