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☆ WestJet to shut down Sunwing Airlines
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

June 17 (Reuters) - WestJet group is planning to wind down low-cost carrier Sunwing Airlines and integrate it into its main business, according to a memo seen by Reuters. The move is part of the integration process by WestJet which completed the acquisition of Sunwing airlines in May. Once the integration is complete, all Sunwing employees will continue to have employment with Westjet, said Len Corrado, President, Sunwing Airlines, in the internal memo sent to the employees. The news was first reported by Canadian Press in CBC. Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Westjet, Len Corrado, Gokul, Divya Rajagopal, Allison Lampert Organizations: Sunwing Airlines, Reuters, Canadian Press, CBC, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru

OTTAWA, June 16 (Reuters) - Flags flew lowered in the Canadian province of Manitoba on Friday and relatives braced for bad news after 15 mainly elderly people died in one of the country's worst recent road crashes. "It's a terrible, terrible thing that occurred, and our thoughts go out to the families that have been absolutely devastated by this news," he told reporters in Montreal. Ron Bretecher, whose parents were on the bus, told reporters his mother had survived the crash but his father was still unaccounted for. The bus, heading south, was crossing the Trans-Canada highway when it collided with the truck, which was traveling east. "The fire was about 10 to 15 feet high and the smoke was almost 20, 30 feet high," Vadera said.

Persons: Justin Trudeau, Ron Bretecher, It's, Mike Blume, David Bosiak, Ross, William Doherty, Nirmesh Vadera, Vadera, David Ljunggren, Nick Macfie, Jonathan Oatis, Nick Zieminski Organizations: OTTAWA, Flags, Police, Canadian Broadcasting Corp, CBC, Thomson Locations: Canadian, Manitoba, Carberry, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Montreal, Dauphin, Carberry , Manitoba, Canada, Saskatchewan

OTTAWA, June 15 (Reuters) - At least 15 people were killed in the Canadian prairie province of Manitoba on Thursday after a semi-trailer truck hit a small bus that was carrying a group of mainly elderly people, police said. The crash occurred at the junction of two major roads near the town of Carberry in southwestern Manitoba, 170 km (105 miles) west of Winnipeg. The bus passengers had been on their way to a casino in Carberry, CBC News reported, citing a casino spokesperson. THIS IMAGE MAY OFFEND OR DISTURB Police secures the area at the crash scene near Carberry, Manitoba, Canada June 15, 2023 in this still image obtained from a social media video. "My heart breaks hearing the news of the tragic accident near Carberry," Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson said on Twitter.

Persons: We've, Rob Hill, Hill, Mike Blume, Justin Trudeau, Heather Stefanson, David Ljunggren, Ismail Shakil, Nia Williams, Sandra Maler, Matthew Lewis, Grant McCool Organizations: OTTAWA, CBC News, Manitoba Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Police, REUTERS Media, Handi, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Winnipeg Free Press, Twitter, Thomson Locations: Manitoba, Carberry, Winnipeg, Canada, Carberry , Manitoba, tarpaulins, Saskatchewan, Quebec, Ottawa, British Columbia

☆ Canada freezes deportation of Indian students who used fraudulent university letters
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

OTTAWA, June 14 (Reuters) - Canada will freeze the planned deportation of dozens of students who entered the country using fraudulent university letters of acceptance, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser said on Wednesday. Fraser spoke after the Canadian Broadcasting Corp reported in March that several students from India had been served deportation papers for using forged documents to enter Canada in an alleged immigration scheme. Official data show there were more than 800,000 foreign students with active visas in Canada in 2022. Canada is a popular destination for international students since it is relatively easy to obtain a work permit. The Migrant Workers Alliance for Change has been supporting the students, saying they have spent years in Canada.

Persons: Sean Fraser, Fraser, fraudsters, Sarom Rho, David Ljunggren, Aurora Ellis Organizations: OTTAWA, Immigration, Canadian Broadcasting Corp, Canada, Canada Border Services Agency, CBC, Migrant Workers Alliance, Thomson Locations: Canada, India

☆ Canada sends military to help battle blazes in Nova Scotia
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Steve Scherer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Smoke from the Tantallon wildfire rises over houses in nearby Bedford, Nova Scotia, Canada, May 28, 2023. Nova Scotia is battling two large fires that are threatening communities on the outskirts of the provincial capital, Halifax. The armed forces would provide equipment and personnel to relieve firefighters "who have been working tirelessly around the clock to protect communities right across Nova Scotia", Blair said. The federal government sent the military to Alberta last month to help battle blazes there and Canada is also getting help from other countries. Some 800 U.S. firefighters have come to battle the blazes, mostly in Alberta, with another 100 are scheduled to arrive in Nova Scotia over coming days, officials said.

Persons: Eric Martyn, Bill Blair, Blair, Justin Trudeau, Steve Scherer, Anirudh Saligrama, Sharon Singleton, Robert Birsel Organizations: REUTERS, OTTAWA, CBC News, CBC, Twitter, Thomson Locations: Bedford , Nova Scotia, Canada, Nova Scotia, Halifax, Alberta, Quebec, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa

☆ Raging wildfire empties homes in eastern Canada, pollutes air in US
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Eric Martyn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The fire, which is about 30 kilometres (19 miles) west of downtown Halifax, has already forced 18,000 people to evacuate their homes. No fatalities have been reported but about 200 homes, structures have been damaged, the CBC reported, citing the Halifax Regional Municipality. Forest fires also led to evacuations of about 400 homes in the province of New Brunswick over the weekend, officials said. "The stories and the images we're seeing coming out of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick are heartbreaking," Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters in Ottawa, pledging federal support for the Atlantic provinces. The Halifax wildfire was expected to cause poor air quality hundreds of miles to the south in parts of the U.S. East Coast and Midwest as smoke drifts across the regions.

Persons: David Steeves, Justin Trudeau, what's, Brendan O'Brien, Ismail Shakil, Sriraj Kalluvila, Marguerita Choy, Deepa Babington Organizations: HALIFAX, U.S, Nova, Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources, CBC, CBC News, U.S ., National Weather Service, Thomson Locations: Nova Scotia, Halifax, Canadian, Halifax Regional Municipality, New Brunswick, Ottawa, Atlantic, Bedford , Nova Scotia, West Bedford, Alberta, U.S . East Coast, Midwest, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania , New Jersey, New York, Philadelphia, Chicago

May 29 (Reuters) - United Conservative Party (UCP) leader Danielle Smith's election victory in Canada's main oil-producing province Alberta on Monday is likely to herald further friction with Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, particularly over climate change. The populist premier's win signals a further rightward shift in the traditionally conservative province, and comes despite a series of controversies and gaffes from Smith, 52, since she first became premier in October. In her victory speech, Smith was quick to take aim at Trudeau and what she described as the federal government's "harmful policies". "As premier I cannot under any circumstances allow these contemplated federal policies to be inflicted upon Albertans. In early 2022 she announced plans to run for leadership of the United Conservative Party, which was born in 2017 from a merger of the Progressives Conservatives and Wildrose Party.

May 1 (Reuters) - Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot, best known for folk-pop hits such as "If You Could Read My Mind" and "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald," died on Monday in a Toronto hospital, it was announced on his official Facebook page. Canadian news outlets CTV and the CBC cited a family representative, Victoria Lord, as confirming his death. Known for his evocative lyrics and melodic compositions, Lightfoot received five Grammy nominations over the years and won 17 Juno awards, Canada's equivalent. Lightfoot emerged from the folk music movement of the mid-1960s with signature tunes such as "Canadian Railroad Trilogy" and "Pussywillows, Cat-Tails." In it, Lightfoot coupled a soaring melody with poignant lyrics about the sailors' last hours.

☆ Princess Anne: Slimmed-down royal family 'doesn't sound like a good idea'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Issy Ronald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —King Charles III’s sister Princess Anne has said that a slimmed-down monarchy “doesn’t sound like a good idea.”Comments by the Princess Royal, who is 16th in line to the British throne and is considered to be one of the hardest-working royals, were made during a wide-ranging interview Monday. In the years before Queen Elizabeth II’s death, the royal family’s advisers had been promoting the idea of a slimmed-down monarchy that saw senior family members like Charles and Camilla as well as the Prince and Princess of Wales take on more duties. “Well, I think the ‘slimmed-down’ [comment] was said in a day when there were a few more people around … [to] make that seem like a justifiable comment,” Anne told CBC News’ Adrienne Arsenault. “It doesn’t sound like a good idea from where I’m standing, I would say. King Charles III and Princess Anne pictured at their mother's funeral.

☆ How Elon Musk upended Twitter and his own reputation in 6 months as CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

But it’s not clear just how and when Musk might return Twitter to growth. Musk’s primary plan to grow Twitter’s business through an overhauled subscription strategy has resulted in much chaos but only a limited number of actual subscriptions. In the process, Musk has also upended his own reputation. Disrupting the digital town squareFor years, what differentiated Twitter from other social platforms was that it served as a central hub for real-time news. Tesla (TSLA) shareholders recently complained to the company’s board that Musk appears “overcommitted.”“His reputation has been diminished significantly with Twitter … and once you lose it, it’s very difficult to recover,” Klepper said.

☆ Twitter grants UK far-right party Britain First 'official organization' label
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Twitter labeled the British far-right political party Britain First an "official organization," raising questions about the direction in which Elon Musk has taken the platform after its content moderation and verification overhaul. When clicking on the checkmark, a textbox shows the message: "This account is verified because it's an official organization on Twitter." On April 20, about 400,000 legacy-verified Twitter accounts lost their blue checkmarks as part of Musk's drive to gain the platform more money from subscriptions. Individual users must pay $8 for a membership with Twitter Blue, which gives them features such as the blue tick and the ability to edit tweets. In response to those labels, NPR and CBC announced they would stop using Twitter in an official capacity to disseminate reporting.

☆ Twitter drops 'government-funded' label on media accounts, including in China
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 21 (Reuters) - Twitter dropped the "Government-funded" and "China state-affiliated" labels, which implies government involvement in editorial content, from the accounts of various global media organizations, their profiles showed on Friday. Twitter dropped the "Government-funded Media" label from the accounts of U.S.-based National Public Radio (NPR), British Broadcasting Corp and Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). It also dropped the "China state-affiliated media" tag on the accounts of Xinhua News as well as of journalists associated with government-backed publications. That led NPR and CBC to stop posting to their Twitter accounts, arguing that the label did not accurately capture their governance structure. Twitter, NPR, CBC and BBC did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the removal of the tag.

☆ Pope loses verified status on Twitter, US basketball star LeBron James remains
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Yuvraj Malik | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 20 (Reuters) - Twitter on Thursday began removing legacy blue checkmarks from user profiles, with famous people including pop icon Beyonce and Pope Francis losing their verified statuses. Some personalities such as basketball star LeBron James and author Stephen King still had their checkmarks. "The Shining" author King, who has previously called Musk a terrible fit for Twitter, tweeted: "My Twitter account says I've subscribed to Twitter Blue. My Twitter account says I've given a phone number. U.S. non-profit National Public Radio (NPR) stopped posting content on its 52 official Twitter feeds after Twitter labeled it "state-affiliated media" and later "government-funded media".

☆ Twitter drops 'government-funded media' tag on NPR, other media accounts
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 21 (Reuters) - Twitter dropped the "Government-funded Media" tag, which implies government involvement in editorial content, on some accounts like National Public Radio (NPR) and Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), their accounts showed on Friday. Besides NPR and CBC, the tag, labeled 'state-affiliated media' earlier, was also absent from the British Broadcasting Corp's (BBC) Twitter account. Earlier this month, NPR and CBC paused their activities on the social media platform, arguing that the tag did not accurately capture their governance structure. We're adjusting the label to be 'publicly funded', which I think is perhaps not too objectionable," Musk had said. Reporting by Jahnavi Nidumolu in Bengaluru; Editing by Dhanya Ann ThoppilOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Somebody stole gold and other valuables worth $15 million from Canada's busiest airport, police said
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Thieves made off from Toronto Pearson airport with gold and valuables worth $15 million, police said. The gold was part of an intra-bank trade involving TD Bank, per a memo seen by the Toronto Sun. Police are investigating a "very rare" heist in which gold and other valuables worth more than C$20 million (about $15 million) were stolen from Canada's busiest airport. This did not involve access to Toronto Pearson itself and did not pose a threat to passengers or GTAA staff." Air Canada, and TD Bank didn't immediately respond to requests for comment from Insider, made outside normal working hours.

☆ Twitter descends into chaos as news outlets and brands lose verification
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Several prominent Twitter users including LeBron James, William Shatner and Stephen King also refused to pay to keep their verification badges, prompting Musk to personally intervene. “My Twitter account says I’ve subscribed to Twitter Blue. My Twitter account says I’ve given a phone number. Twitter verification is no longer an indicator that an account represents who it claims to represent; instead, it reflects that a user – or, apparently, the owner of Twitter – paid for Twitter Blue, the company’s subscription service. Isaacson, who is verified on Twitter as a subscriber to Twitter Blue, tweeted a photo of Musk on Thursday from SpaceX’s Starship launch site.

☆ Factbox: Broadcasters go silent on Twitter after 'government-funded' label
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 18 (Reuters) - Public broadcasters ranging from U.S.-based National Public Radio to Canadian Broadcasting Corp have stopped posting on Twitter in recent days after the Elon Musk-owned social media platform labeled their accounts as "government-funded". ** Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)CBC said on Monday it would pause its use of Twitter after the platform labeled it as "69% government-funded media". The Twitter label on the CBC account previously showed "70% government-funded media", but was changed to the current one after the CBC asked Twitter to re-examine the designation. ** Public Broadcasting Service (PBS)PBS, which has around 2.2 million followers on Twitter, halted publishing on Twitter after it was labeled as "government-funded media", according to media reports. ** Hawaii Public RadioHawaii Public Radio, a member station of NPR, said it would stop sharing its content on Twitter after the micro-blogging site labeled NPR's Twitter handle as "government-funded media".

☆ Canada's CBC says Twitter 'not serious' after '69% government-funded media' label
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration//File PhotoApril 18 (Reuters) - Public broadcaster Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) on Tuesday pushed back against Twitter's move to label it "69% government funded media," saying it had complete editorial independence. The Elon Musk-owned social media platform had on Sunday stamped CBC with a label that said it was government-funded media, after placing similar notices for U.S. broadcasters NPR and PBS. "Canadian Broadcasting Corp said they're 'less than 70% government-funded', so we corrected the label," Musk said in a tweet on Monday. "The real issue is that Twitter's definition of government-funded media means open to editorial interference by government. Twitter defines its "government-funded media" label as "where the government provides some or all of the outlet's funding and may have varying degrees of government involvement over editorial content".

☆ Swedish Radio becomes first big European broadcaster to quit Twitter
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Swedish Radio said its decision had been made because Twitter had lost relevance for a Swedish audience, not blaming a new policy by Twitter under owner Elon Musk to label more public broadcasters as government funded. And therefore Sveriges Radio now chooses to deactivate or delete the last remaining accounts," Christian Gillinger, head of Social Media at Swedish Radio, said in a blog post. Gillinger said Swedish Radio had no problem with its designation: "Based on the current definition, it's a correct description of how Swedish Radio is financed." By far Sweden's biggest radio company with 7.4 million weekly listeners in 2021, Swedish Radio has been on Twitter since 2009. Individual reporters working for Swedish Radio were still free to use Twitter as they please.

☆ Canada Public Broadcaster Joins NPR in Quitting Twitter Over Label Uproar
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Paul Vieira | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Illustration: Preston JesseeOTTAWA—Canada’s main public broadcaster said Monday that it was pausing activity on Twitter, becoming the latest media outlet to refrain from posting because of the social-media platform’s policy on labeling accounts. Canadian Broadcasting Corp. said the decision comes a day after Twitter labeled its @CBC account as “government-funded media.” Twitter defines such outlets as those that rely mostly on government funding to carry out operations “and may have varying degrees of government involvement over editorial content.”

☆ Federal government to restore Hockey Canada funding
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Steve Keating | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRAMPTON, Ontario, April 16 (Reuters) - The Canada government will restore funding to Hockey Canada after the body met three conditions to make the sport safer, said Minister of Sport Pascale St-Onge on Sunday, ahead of the women's ice hockey world championship gold medal game between the United States and Canada. Hockey Canada had its funding frozen last year when the national governing body came under scrutiny over its handling of sexual assault allegations. "Today marks an important milestone for Hockey Canada in our journey to earn and maintain the trust of Canadians," said Hugh Fraser, chair of the Hockey Canada Board of Directors. Hockey Canada must also review and implement the recommendations from the independent governance review led by Thomas Cromwell. CBC reported that Hockey Canada received $7.7 million from Sport Canada in the 2022 fiscal year.

☆ 'Show us your Regina': Canadian city pulls tourism campaign after facing backlash for sexualizing its name
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Jordan Hart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Canadian city Regina attempted to rebrand is tourism agency to "Experience Regina" in March. Slogans for the campaign included "Show us your Regina" and "The city that rhymes with fun." After debuting a rebrand from Tourism Regina to Experience Regina last month, the city's tourism organization pulled its new campaign amid public backlash to slogans some found offensive, Canadian news outlet CBC reported. "Show us your Regina" was featured on the Experience Regina website, but has since been removed, the Toronto Star reported. The announcement came after about a dozen protesters gathered inside Regina City Hall to call for Tourism Regina CEO Tim Reid and Mayor Sandra Masters to resign, Fox News reported.

☆ A gold miner found a mysterious grapefruit-sized fur ball. It turned out to be a 'perfectly preserved' 30,000-year-old squirrel.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Chris Panella | Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

But X-ray scans have revealed this grapefruit-sized lump is actually a 30,000-year-old mummified ground squirrel from the Ice Age. A ground squirrel for the agesAn illustration of the mummified ground squirrel curled up in its burrow during hibernation. "I study bones all the time and they're exciting, they're really neat. Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket via Getty Images"Some people get really, really excited when they find that giant woolly mammoth leg or, you know, the big tusks or the big skulls. But for me, the Arctic ground squirrel fossils, the nests, and now this mummified squirrel, are really the coolest things that we do have.

☆ Exclusive: Canada budget sees contracts for differences for large clean-tech projects -source
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Steve Scherer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

So-called contracts for differences set a price on tradable carbon credits, which heavy emitters can get if they reduce pollution. They are also concerned that costly projects could be a waste of money if carbon pricing is scrapped in future. Contracts for differences could be used by companies investing in carbon capture or hydrogen projects, the source said. Under Canada's carbon pricing rules, large industrial polluters pay per tonne of carbon emitted above a certain sector-specific threshold. It will benefit 11 million households, the source told CBC, who called the measure a "grocery rebate".

☆ The mystery of MH370 remains 9 years later — here are all the theories, dead ends, and unanswered questions from the most bizarre airline disaster of the century
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

The theories so farA new Netflix documentary about the plane, "MH370: The Plane That Disappeared," was released in March 2023. The show's director called the plane's disappearance "the greatest aviation mystery of all time." But the July 2018 report had offered evidence against the idea that it was a deliberate act by the crew. But Australia's former prime minister, Tony Abbott, said in 2020 that the plane's disappearance was "almost certainly murder-suicide by the pilot." But the 2018 report said there was no technology on the plane that would allow control to be taken from the pilots remotely.

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