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

CANADIAN HOME SALES HIT RECORD IN OCTOBER: The number of homes sold throughout the country last month hit a record for October, the Canadian Real Estate Association said Tuesday. There were 42,473 residential properties sold last month through the association’s Multiple Listing Service, up two per cent year-over-year. The actual national average price for a home sold in October was $481,994, up 5.9 per cent compared with a year ago. Excluding Greater Vancouver and Greater Toronto, the average price was $361,012.

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TRUMP HUDDLES WITH PENCE: Hidden from the public in his Manhattan high-rise, Donald Trump huddled Tuesday with Vice-President-elect Mike Pence as he tried to fill out key posts in his cabinet. But the transition team appeared to be straining under the challenge of setting up a new administration. Former Rep. Mike Rogers, a respected Republican voice on national security issues, announced he was quitting the transition effort. With Trump out of sight for several days, his allies engaged in an unusual round of public speculation about his potential appointments — including their own futures — as the president-elect and his aides weighed the nation’s top national security posts. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani seemed to be angling for secretary of state.

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ENVIRONMENT MINISTER SAYS CLIMATE MOVEMENT UNSTOPPABLE: Canada’s environment minister is saying the momentum behind a worldwide reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is irresistible despite the recent election of Donald Trump, who is a skeptic of man-made climate change. Speaking at the UN climate change conference in Morocco, Catherine McKenna tried to minimize the effects of the U.S. election result on the fight against global warming. She says the movement to reduce carbon emissions has reached a point of no return, particularly because global firms have recognized there’s money to be made.

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THICKER BORDER UNLIKELY, FORMER U.S. SECURITY CZAR SAYS: The Canada-U.S. border is unlikely to see any thickening under president-elect Donald Trump despite the Republican’s protectionist campaign rhetoric, former American security czar Tom Ridge said Tuesday. While Trump’s views on Mexican migrants and Syrian refugees appear to be sharply at odds with Canada’s approach, Ridge, appointed as first Homeland Security secretary in the aftermath of the 9-11 attacks on the United States, said Canada needs to take a deep breath and wait to see what actually emerges from a Trump administration.

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CANADIANS CAN SHOOT FIRST IN IRAQ: The Liberal government faced accusations of misleading the public on Tuesday after the country’s top soldier said Canadian troops have been allowed to fire first in Iraq. Government and military officials have previously said Canadian troops can and have fired in self-defence, including to defend their Kurdish partners and civilians. But chief of defence staff Gen. Jonathan Vance told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday that such defensive fire includes instances where his troops have taken the first shot against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

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PHILPOTT SUGGESTS DEMENTIA STRATEGY COULD BE COMING: Health Minister Jane Philpott, brought to tears by her own father’s experience with dementia, suggested Tuesday that the Liberal government plans to support a national strategy to tackle the widespread disease. She said dementia is a growing problem and a pressing issue for other health ministers across the country. By 2031, it is estimated 1.4 million Canadians will develop dementia. Philpott conceded more can be done to tackle the problem, noting the government is receptive to a private member’s bill on the issue which is before the Commons.

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CHIEF SAYS MANITOBA RESERVE NEEDS PM’S INTERVENTION: A Manitoba grand chief is asking Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to help a remote First Nation left in crisis after a fire destroyed the community’s only grocery store and band office. Sheila North Wilson, who represents northern First Nations, says in a letter to Trudeau that the Shamattawa First Nation is in a dire situation. She’s asking Trudeau to visit the community to see the underlying causes of its ongoing mental health and wellness crisis. Shamattawa residents were left without supplies or emergency services when the blaze erupted Sept. 22.

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CALGARY IMAM IN SOLITARY CONFINEMENT IN TURKEY: The wife of a Calgary imam says he is being held in solitary confinement in Turkey and worrying about his well-being has been torture. Davud Hanci, who has Canadian and Turkish citizenship, was arrested in July shortly after a failed coup attempt. Rumeysa Hanci says she has not been able to speak to her husband since he was allowed a phone call shortly after he was detained. Global Affairs spokesman Austin Jean said the government is working on the case.

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PARENTS SUE UNIVERSITY AFTER STUDENT’S DEATH: The parents of a young Chinese woman who died of alcohol poisoning after a night of drinking inside a Dalhousie University residence are suing the school for alleged negligence. In a statement of claim, parents Peter Shang and Weihong Bai of China say they are also suing four other students and Halifax-based McKesson Canada Corp., the company that operates the province’s medical help phone line. Nineteen-year-old Melody Shang died in November 2015. Her parents say Dalhousie was negligent because it failed to take steps to prevent drunkenness and adequately supervise its residents and guests.

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The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

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

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