The (Right) News Rundown
- The European Parliament approved a landmark free-trade agreement with Canada.
The EU Parliament backed the pact by a vote of 408 to 254 on Wednesday in Strasbourg, France, fending off a veto drive by far-left and far-right European parties that have echoed Trump’s criticism of globalization.
The deal, known as the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, is slated to end 98 per cent of tariffs on goods from the outset and 99 per cent after seven years (each side plans to dismantle all industrial tariffs and more than 90 per cent of agricultural duties).
The deal was proposed in 2008, negotiations started in 2009 concluding in 2014.
- Over 450 people made refugee claims at land border crossings in the province in January, according to the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).
- According to the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA), there were 7,022 land border crossings by asylum seekers in 2016, up from 4,407 in 2015.
As many as 21 asylum seekers braved the cold and crossed the border into Emerson, Man. on [this past] Saturday, after another 22 came over the previous weekend.
But refugees aren’t just coming from countries subject to Trump’s travel ban. As many as 27 Ghanaian men have crossed into Manitoba from the United States since the summer.
Canadian Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale has said that the RCMP and the CBSA are “keeping a very active watch” on refugees coming into Canada from the U.S.
He also said he will soon discuss border issues with U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, though a date hadn’t been set for discussions as of Tuesday.
- A federal plan to close Vegreville’s immigration case processing centre could result in 420 people leaving the town and house prices taking a 30 per cent cut, a new report says.
Although most of the 236 staff will be offered jobs at the new site, a report by consultant Nichols Applied Management Inc. released Tuesday shows more than half of them intend to stay in town and look for work, which could double the local unemployment rate.
This drop in population would hurt real estate values, cut municipal revenues by $1.2 million annually and reduce gross domestic product by $12.7 million, the report found.
The Firing Line
- That, in the opinion of the House, the government should: (a) recognize the need to quell the increasing public climate of hate and fear; (b) condemn Islamophobia and all forms of systemic racism and religious discrimination and take note of House of Commons’ petition e-411 and the issues raised by it; and (c) request that the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage undertake a study on how the government could (i) develop a whole-of-government approach to reducing or eliminating systemic racism and religious discrimination including Islamophobia, in Canada, while ensuring a community-centered focus with a holistic response through evidence-based policy-making, (ii) collect data to contextualize hate crime reports and to conduct needs assessments for impacted communities, and that the Committee should present its findings and recommendations to the House no later than 240 calendar days from the adoption of this motion, provided that in its report, the Committee should make recommendations that the government may use to better reflect the enshrined rights and freedoms in the Constitution Acts, including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Word of the Week
Islamophobia |izˌläməˈfōbēəiˌsläməˈfōbēə|
noun
dislike of or prejudice against Islam or Muslims, especially as a political force.
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Show Data
Episode Title: The Value of Trade
Teaser: The landmark free trade agreement between Canada and the EU has been ratified. Canada has an immigration problem on its southern border, poor economic news for Vegreville and discussion on motion 103 which condemns Islamophobia without defining it!
Recorded Date: February 18, 2017
Release Date: February 19, 2017
Duration: 34:30
Edit Notes: Firing line gun sounds