U.S. criticized for police brutality, racism at U.N. rights review

By Stephanie Nebehay

© Reuters/CAITLIN OCHS FILE PHOTO: Demonstrators protest in the aftermath of the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd

GENEVA (Reuters) - Major powers, including allies, criticised the United States for its human rights record on Monday during a U.N. review, citing the use of the death penalty, police violence against African Americans and the separation of migrant children from their families.

© Reuters/Lindsey Wasson FILE PHOTO: Protesters rally against the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in Seattle

Activists also said that the Human Rights Council's examination of the United States, the first since May 2015, amounted to an indictment of the Trump administration's policies and called for President-elect Joe Biden to usher in reforms.

Dozens of delegations took the floor at the half-day session to voice concerns and make recommendations.

"What we saw today was unsurprising condemnation by many countries around the world of the United States' human rights record," Jamil Dakwar, director of the human rights program at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), told a news briefing.

"We've heard country after country...calling and urging the United States to take serious measures to address structural racism and police violence," he said.

The Trump administration, which quit the Geneva forum in June 2018 accusing it of an anti-Israel bias, defended U.S. policies.

"Our presence in this process demonstrates our nation’s commitment to human rights," Robert Destro, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State, told the talks.

The case of George Floyd, an African American who died in May after a police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes, ignited massive protests across the United States and the world, putting the country's human rights record in the global spotlight once again.

Alexander Maugeri, U.S. deputy assistant attorney general, said that authorities in Minnesota had filed second-degree murder and manslaughter charges in Floyd's death.

"A number of member states raised concerns about discrimination and excessive force in policing. Where there is misconduct by police officers or law enforcement agencies, state and federal law provide remedies," Maugeri said.

China and Russia called on the United States to root out racism and police violence, while Cuba and Venezuela said it must provide equal access to health care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

France called on U.S. authorities to halt executions at the federal level, close Guantanamo Bay detention facility, and "guarantee women and girls access to their rights and sexual and reproductive health." Britain called for "ensuring access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services."

Joshua Cooper of the US Human Rights Network, a national network of campaigners, said that more than a dozen countries voiced concern at the U.S. position on family planning.

"The United States made clear that they don't see abortion as a human right," said Denice Labertew of the Women LEAD network.

(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Aurora Ellis)

Trump tweets that Defense Secretary Mark Esper has been 'terminated'
Rebecca Shabad and Carol E. Lee and Courtney Kube

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump announced Monday that he fired Mark Esper as his defense secretary and said Christopher Miller would serve as the acting secretary of the Department of Defense.

© Provided by NBC News 
Defense Secretary Esper has had 'resignation letter ready 

"I am pleased to announce that Christopher C. Miller, the highly respected Director of the National Counterterrorism Center (unanimously confirmed by the Senate), will be Acting Secretary of Defense, effective immediately," Trump tweeted, announcing his first personnel move since losing the presidential election.

He added, "Chris will do a GREAT job! Mark Esper has been terminated. I would like to thank him for his service."

Esper's ouster was Trump's first personnel move since losing the election. Esper has been working with Congress recently to strip Confederate names from military bases, which Trump opposes.

Trump's announcement comes after NBC News reported last week that Esper had prepared a letter of resignation. NBC News has previously reported that Esper has long been at odds with Trump. The two disagreed, for example, about the use of active-duty troops to respond to protests across the nation this summer.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, excoriated the president in a statement on Monday, calling Esper's firing an attempt "to sow chaos."

“The abrupt firing of Secretary Esper is disturbing evidence that President Trump is intent on using his final days in office to sow chaos in our American Democracy and around the world," she said. "Continuity and stability are always important during a presidential transition; they are absolutely imperative at this moment, as this historically erratic Administration prepares for its departure."

She added, "It is disturbing and dangerous that, at this precarious moment, our military will now be led by an official who has not been confirmed for this position by the Senate.”

Esper also distanced himself from Trump’s photo-op at St. John’s Episcopal Church after a crowd of protesters was violently dispersed from Lafayette Square during the protests over police brutality this summer.

Esper also said he would not support Trump invoking the Insurrection Act to quell civil unrest during the protests when Trump was threatening to do so.

VIDEO
McCaffrey: 'No logical sense' for Trump to fire Mark Esper
https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/newspolitics/trump-tweets-that-defense-secretary-mark-esper-has-been-terminated/ar-BB1aQAVM?ocid=msedgdhp


Further, Esper attempted to cut funding in the Pentagon budget for Stars and Stripes, a newspaper for U.S. military personnel that has been published since the Civil War, which Trump pushed back on.

Esper said in a statement, "I am particularly proud of these accomplishments in light of the challenges we faced along the way: a global pandemic; confrontations with Iran and its proxies throughout the Middle East; continued deployment of troops into conflict zones; domestic civil unrest; malign behavior globally by Russia and China; and a charged political atmosphere here at home. Through thick and thin, however, we have always put People and Country first."

Esper had served as defense secretary since July 2019, taking over from Jim Mattis, who resigned from the role in late 2018. Mattis had also been critical of Trump's approach as commander in chief.

Miller, meanwhile, has served as director of the National Counterterrorism Center since August. Before that, he served as the deputy assistant secretary of defense for special operations and combating terrorism. Miller served in the military from 1983 to 2014, according to the Defense Department.

Given that Trump named Miller as the acting secretary, it's unlikely the president will formally nominate Esper's replacement before he leaves office in January. Once President-elect Joe Biden takes office in January, he will have the power to nominate his own secretary of defense, whom the Senate would have to confirm.

Richard Pilger: DOJ's top election crimes prosecutor quits in protest after Barr tells federal attorneys to probe unsupported allegations of voting irregularities

The Justice Department's top election crimes prosecutor resigned Monday in protest after Attorney General William Barr told federal prosecutors that they should examine allegations of voting irregularities before states move to certify results in the coming weeks

.

© MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images 

US President Donald Trump (R) and US Attorney General William Barr step off Air Force One upon arrival at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland on September 1, 2020.

By Evan Perez, CNN Justice Correspondent 

Richard Pilger, director of the elections crimes branch in the Justice Department's Public Integrity Section, told colleagues in an email that the attorney general was issuing "an important new policy abrogating the forty-year-old Non-Interference Policy for ballot fraud investigations in the period prior to elections becoming certified and uncontested." Pilger also forwarded the memo to colleagues in his resignation letter.

Pilger's resignation email didn't make clear whether he plans to stay in the department in another capacity.

Barr's densely worded memo had told prosecutors they could take investigative steps such as interviewing witnesses during a period that they would normally need permission from the elections crimes section. It's not clear what practical effect the policy would have in an election in which President Donald Trump trails President-elect Joe Biden by tens of thousands of votes in several key states.

Barr didn't provide any indication that the Justice Department has come up with evidence to support Trump's claim of massive fraud in last week's election.

In his memo, Barr notes that while "most allegations of purported election misconduct are of such a scale that they would not impact the outcome of an election and, thus, investigation can appropriately be deferred, that is not always the case."

"Furthermore, any concerns that overt actions taken by the Department could inadvertently impact an election are greatly minimized, if they exist at all, once voting has concluded, even if election certification has not yet been completed," he wrote.

The attorney general has previously been supportive of Trump's unfounded claims about voter fraud, and this latest move comes during an incredibly tense time and could inflame an already fraught transition. President-elect Joe Biden is beginning his transition into office while Trump and his administration refuse to recognize the former vice president's victory, making baseless claims about voter fraud and illegal votes that threaten to undermine the bedrock of American government.

Barr's letter to criminal prosecutors broke a days-long silence that has been awkward as Trump and his campaign lawyers have held news conferences and filed lawsuits that have been devoid of any evidence of widespread fraud. Trump claims voting irregularities explain why he is behind in states he would need to win reelection and has refused to concede defeat to President-elect Joe Biden.

The memo came after weeks of internal discussions among Justice officials, during which senior officials told Barr changing the policy on fraud investigations would be a bad idea, according to a person briefed on the discussions. Barr issued the memo Monday to the surprise of senior officials, including Pilger, the person briefed on the matter said.

A Justice official said no one asked or directed Barr to issue his memo.

The purpose of the memo is unclear, since prosecutors already know their responsibilities to investigate vote fraud and other irregularities. But it could serve to provide the President some indication that Barr and the Justice Department are working to find the evidence that Trump and his campaign so far haven't produced.

Barr told prosecutors in his Monday memo: "I authorize you to pursue substantial allegations of voting and vote tabulation irregularities prior to the certification of elections in your jurisdictions in certain cases, as I have already done in specific instances."

"While serious allegations of voter fraud should be handled with great care, specious, speculative, fanciful or far-fetched claims should not be a basis for initiating federal inquiries," Barr wrote.

Barr has been described by some Justice officials as obsessed with the idea of voter fraud in recent weeks. He has repeatedly inquired about efforts by prosecutors to look for signs of fraud, Justice officials say. He also asked about the possibility of sending federal officers to polling stations, though he was advised that federal law prohibited sending armed federal officers to guard the polls.

This story and its headline have been updated with additional developments on Monday.

OVERNIGHT ENERGY: White House removes leader of major climate report | Trump administration faces suit over removal of endangered species protections for gray wolves

Rebecca Beitsch THE HILL

NOV 8, 2020


IT'S MONDAY! Welcome to Overnight Energy, The Hill's roundup of the latest energy and environment news.

© Getty Images OVERNIGHT ENERGY: White House removes leader of major climate report | Trump administration faces suit over removal of endangered species protections for gray wolves

DISMISSED:

-Eyes on the clime... The White House has removed the top adviser responsible for leading the government's assessment of the status of climate change.

Michael Kuperberg, a climate scientist serving as executive director of the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP), has returned to his previous post at the Department of Energy.

Kuperberg's reassignment came late Friday night, according to The Washington Post, removing him as leadership of the Fifth National Climate Assessment transitions to a new hire.

The report involves drafting hundreds of top scientists to weigh in on climate change, often producing dire warnings about the limited time the U.S. has to act in order to avoid the most severe consequences.

Kuperberg was already slated to be replaced by Betsy Weatherhead, a longtime climate scientist recently hired at the U.S. Geological Survey. But the shakeup means he will no longer be able to continue to work on the report as expected.

According to The New York Times, some observers fear the administration may seek to place David Legates, a deputy administrator at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, into the top slot.

Legates, an academic with a history of questioning humans' influence on global warming, could influence USGCRP as it seeks to select the academics and other experts that will write the report's sections.

The Fifth National Climate Assessment has already had trouble getting off the ground.

Though due in 2022, the website for the report already anticipates delivery by the end of 2023.

The administration delayed in putting the call out for researchers to help with the report, beginning the process only after media reports.

According to the Post, Kuperberg was surprised by the reassignment.

"He was extremely dedicated," a White House official told The Post. "He did a very good job of figuring out how to walk that political line. He had no idea it was coming."

Read more on reported roadblocks here.

-I don't give a... Ousted Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Chair Neil Chatterjee spoke emotionally about his demotion by President Trump in an early Saturday Facebook post, alluding that he was proud to have taken recent stances that may have irked the White House.

Chatterjee was replaced by newest FERC Commissioner James Danly, who has proven to be a more conservative vote in his time on the commission since March.

Chatterjee had recently signaled support for carbon pricing in electricity markets, a move that would be damaging for coal. Chatterjee also told E&E News that a refusal to implement Trump's September order to suspend diversity trainings was a factor in the tumult.

"It's been a difficult few days. I have dedicated almost the entirety of my professional career to public service. I am a deeply flawed person. I know for certain I have not always made the right decision. But I can honestly say that I tried to get it right to the best of my limited abilities," Chatterjee wrote.

"My entire family has sacrificed a great deal so that I could have the opportunity to serve my country. I don't give a f@&! what people think of me. I will be judged by my grandchildren. And as of this moment I am confident that I will be able to look them in the eyes when they ask me where I stood on the most significant issues of this time and be proud. This is not the last you will hear from me. Not even close. Onward."

Read more on the shakeup at FERC here.

IN COURT:

-Wolf watch... The Trump administration is facing a lawsuit over its recent decision to remove endangered species protections for gray wolves.

On Friday, a coalition of conservation groups filed a notice of intent to sue over the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) decision, which was finalized late last month.

The FWS rule lifts more than 45 years of protections for the wolves, except for a small band of Mexican gray wolves present in Arizona and New Mexico.

The new notice argued that the basis for the decision was both legally flawed and not based on the best available science. It cited a peer review commissioned by the government that was critical of the delisting proposal.

"Given that gray wolves in the lower 48 states occupy a fraction of their historical and currently available habitat, the Fish and Wildlife Service determining they are successfully recovered does not pass the straight-face test," said John Mellgren, an attorney with the Western Environmental Law Center, in a statement on Monday.

"While the Trump administration may believe it can disregard science to promote political decisions, the law does not support such a stance," Mellgren added.

FWS has argued the wolf has fully recovered.

Read more on the suit here.

-Sucking up a lot of energy... Separate coalitions of 13 states and six environmental groups filed two lawsuits against the Trump administration Wednesday after it failed to update energy efficiency standards for 25 types of appliances.

The standards cover appliances ranging from dishwashers to refrigerators to air conditioners that, without federal guidelines for efficiency improvements, may cost consumers an extra $580 billion in energy costs and release 2 billion metric tons of carbon emissions by 2050.

"It's astonishing that the Trump administration is failing to carry out this common-sense law that saves people money and reduces air pollution," Howard Crystal, legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity's Energy Justice Program, said in a release.

"The climate crisis demands we do everything possible to reduce carbon emissions to ensure a livable planet, and we can't afford to let the Department of Energy abdicate its responsibility."

The suits target the Department of Energy, which is required to update appliance standards every six years.

The move follows other actions taken by the department to roll back efficiency standards for lightbulbs and another rule to exempt quick wash dishwashers from energy efficiency standards--even though most dishwashers already meet them.

Read more on the suit here.

OUTSIDE THE BELTWAY:

World's largest coal producer warns of bankruptcy risk, The Financial Times reports

Scientists relieved as Joe Biden wins tight U.S. presidential election, Scientific American reports

Interior secretary was involved in Vigneto whistleblower case, document shows, The Associated Press reports

ICYMI: Stories from Monday and the weekend...

Former FERC Chair Chatterjee on demotion by Trump: 'I don't give a f@&!'

Tropical Storm Eta makes landfall in the Florida Keys, expected to strengthen

Trump administration sued for failing to update efficiency standards for 25 appliances

Trump administration faces suit over removal of endangered species protections for gray wolves

White House removes leader of major climate report

Whales and other marine mammals susceptible to COVID-19 through wastewater: study

HALIFAX — A new study says COVID-19 could be spread to whales and other marine mammal through improperly treated sewage and wastewater.

VICTORIA BC FLUSHES IT'S RAW SEWAGE INTO THE OCEAN

© Provided by The Canadian Press

Researchers at Dalhousie University in Halifax say while there have been no documented cases to date, both dolphins and beluga whales have been infected with related coronaviruses in the past.

In the study, published in the journal Science of the Total Environment, scientists describes how they used genomic mapping to determine which marine mammals would be vulnerable to the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

When the team looked at amino acids to which the virus binds, they found striking similarities between those in humans and in several marine mammals, including dolphins, beluga whales, seals and sea otters.

Graham Dellaire, director of research in the university's pathology department, said the team found at least 15 marine mammal species were susceptible to infection because they each carry a protein required for the virus to infect cells.

The study predicts that the majority of whale, dolphin and porpoise species — 18 out of 21 — have the same or higher susceptibility to the virus as humans, while eight out of nine seal species are also predicted to be highly susceptible.

“Many of these species are threatened or critically endangered," Dellaire said in a statement. "In the past, these animals have been infected by related coronaviruses that have caused both mild disease as well as life-threatening liver and lung damage."

Studies have shown the virus is excreted in feces and can survive in water for up to 25 days, raising the possibility that wastewater could spread the disease — as has happened in Spain, Italy and France, where the virus was detected in untreated sewage.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2020.

Bayer makes 'substantial progress' in Roundup cancer lawsuits, mediator says

By Jonathan Stempel 

© Reuters/MIKE BLAKE FILE PHOTO: Monsanto Co's Roundup shown for sale in California

(Reuters) - A court-appointed mediator on Monday said Bayer AG has made "substantial progress" toward resolving tens of thousands of remaining claims that its Roundup weedkiller causes cancer.

The mediator Kenneth Feinberg spoke at a Zoom hearing in San Francisco federal court, where a judge still oversees nearly 2,000 unresolved cases over glyphosate-based Roundup, which Bayer acquired with its purchase of Monsanto. Other cases are in state courts.

"We're not there yet but we are certainly making substantial progress," said Feinberg, who oversaw compensation programs for victims of the Sept. 11 attacks and 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. "It's just a question of when and how quickly they'll get resolved."

U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria had previously paused the federal litigation and given Bayer until Nov. 2 to settle.

Bayer has said 1,861 of the 3,787 plaintiffs in that litigation had not settled. Chhabria did not extend the stay, meaning some cases could move toward trials.

"I'm not interested in having such an elongated schedule for the adjudication of these cases," he said.

Bayer has said Roundup is safe for human use. It said it has resolved about 88,500 of an estimated 125,000 filed and unfiled claims, and is "fully committed" to settling the litigation.

The German company inherited liability for the lawsuits when it bought Monsanto for $63 billion in June 2018, becoming the world's largest supplier of seeds and pesticides. Its shares have since fallen 54%.

In June, Bayer projected it would pay up to $10.9 billion to resolve Roundup litigation, mostly for existing claims and $1.25 billion for future claims.

Last week, it increased the projected cost of future claims to $2 billion, and took a 9.25 billion euro ($10.9 billion) writedown in its crop science business.

Bayer lost three Roundup trials in 2018 and 2019. In October, the California Supreme Court declined to hear its appeal from a $20.5 million award to school groundskeeper Dewayne Johnson for his non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

The case is In re Roundup Products Liability Litigation, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 16-md-02741.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Bill Berkrot and Stephen Coates)

SOS*

'I just want to see the evidence': Scientists want more data to confirm Pfizer vaccine is 90 per cent effective

The vaccine news sent hopes soaring, but scientists caution critical information is missing and warned of the perils of science by press release

Author of the article: Sharon Kirkey
Publishing date:Nov 10, 2020 •

People walk past the Pfizer Headquarters building in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., November 9, 2020. PHOTO BY CARLO ALLEGRI/REUTERS

Some 420 words into Pfizer Inc.’s press release announcing that a first peek at early data suggests its COVID-19 vaccine is more than 90 per cent effective, signalling a “great day for science and humanity,” came this cautionary note: “As the study continues, the final vaccine efficacy percentage may vary.”

The press statement, which sent hopes and global stock markets surging, was based on 94 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in a trial that has enrolled nearly 44,000 people, nearly 39,000 of whom have received both doses of the experimental vaccine known as BNT162b2.

Few other details were released. The early data have not been peer-reviewed or published. The vaccine seems safe, with no serious concerns observed, however safety information is still being accumulated. And while a 90 per cent efficacy, if it holds, would be “unbelievable,” scientists say, this was the first interim analysis, and not the final word.
 
With confirmed cases rising, nerves fraying and more than one million related deaths globally, the stakes are “beyond imagination,” Albert Bourla, chairman and chief executive officer of Pfizer told The Washington Post. The vast majority of Canadians remain susceptible to COVID-19 and, after seven months of this, there is so much anticipation for a vaccine that any good news is understandably celebrated.

“We see the light at the end of the tunnel,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday at a briefing with reporters.

But experts caution that it’s too early to call this a vaccine win. It’s not known whether the vaccine prevented serious infections, or mainly mild ones, and it’s too early to know how long any immunity might last.

“It’s well known in clinical trials that sometimes when you have really, really positive effects in the interim analysis, those positive effects get smaller as you complete the trial,” said McGill University professor of biomedical ethics Jonathan Kimmelman. The phenomenon is known as regression toward the mean.

He and others don’t want to understate the significance of Pfizer’s update. A vaccine that provides more than 90 per cent protection against COVID-19 “would be absolutely amazing and would definitely go a huge way to leading us out of the pandemic,” said Toronto infectious diseases specialist Dr. Andrew Morris.

“I just want to see the evidence.”

Canada has bought the rights to 20 million doses of Pfizer’s vaccine. Ottawa, hedging its bets, has also signed pre-order agreements with Quebec-based Medicago, Moderna and other companies for up to 358 million doses of different vaccine candidates. A federal advisory committee has recommended those over 70 be first in line for vaccines, followed by healthcare professionals and then essential workers.

Monday’s statement by Pfizer and German partner BioNTech was based on an early analysis of its Phase 3 trial, the final stage of human testing. Volunteers are given either the experimental vaccine, which is administered in two doses, 21 days apart, or a placebo. Volunteers and researchers are “blinded,” meaning neither knows who gets what.

After 94 infections were confirmed among volunteers, an external, independent data and safety monitoring board found that “the case split between vaccinated individuals and those who received the placebo indicates a vaccine efficacy rate above 90 per cent, at 7 days after the second dose,” the companies said.

“Today is a great day for science and humanity,” Bourla said in a statement.

The reported 90 per cent efficacy rate, which surprised many experts, is above the 50 per cent minimum target the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has said it would require to grant emergency use authorization for any COVID-19 vaccine.

The trial will continue until there are 164 confirmed cases of COVID-19, and a median two months of safety data following the second and final dose — the amount of safety data the FDA wants. Volunteers in the trial will be monitored for “long-term protection and safety” for an additional two years.

The companies expect to seek U.S. emergency use authorization later this month and say they can produce up to 50 million vaccine doses globally in 2020, and up to 1.3 billion doses in 2021.

The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine targets the spike protein that adorns the surface of the virus that causes COVID-19, raising hopes for other vaccines that use the same approach.

Still, the supply chain will be a challenge: an mRNA-based vaccine like Pfizer’s has to be shipped and stored at temperatures as low as minus 80 degrees Celsius, “as cold as the South Pole in the depths of winter,” as David Gelles of The New York Times noted.

Vaccines are also meant to do two things: protect the person who has been vaccinated from getting sick with disease, and protect the next person from being infected.

Still unknown: “Does (the Pfizer vaccine) attenuate the disease? Does it reduce spread to other people,” Morris, a professor of medicine at the University of Toronto said. “Those are equally important things.”

Also missing from Pfizer’s press release was any mention of whether the experimental vaccine prevents hospitalizations or deaths.

“You’d really need to see the full array of safety information to have a critical appraisal of the vaccine,” Kimmelman said.

A Royal Society of Canada policy briefing released last week on the furious pace of COVID-19 science and how it’s being communicated to the public cautions that many in Canada “already have concerns about any vaccine and hesitancy is on the rise.”

“If there is a reversal of fortunes for this vaccine, people in the public begin to have more doubts about what companies or various sponsors are reporting…. You really want to be confident that you have worked out all the kinks, that you have reliable findings before you go public,” Kimmelman said.

“Presumably, Pfizer is making this information public because they think it ought to inform some people’s decisions. Why not wait until you have carefully vetted the data, that you’ve completed the trial, before you issue these results?”

National Post

*SAVE OUR SHARKS

Federal government looks to impose limits on dividends, executive pay from airlines who receive bailout

Sources also said the government would demand companies open up their books to see 'how bad things really are' and ensure the aid package is only 'exactly what they need'

Author of the article: Christopher Nardi

Publishing date:Nov 09, 2020 •

Government sources say any future Canadian airline bailout will include many limitations on what the money can or cannot be spent on. PHOTO BY DARRYL DYCK/THE CANADIAN PRESS/FILE

OTTAWA – The federal government wants to impose strict conditions on airline companies that may receive a COVID-19 bailout, such as limiting executive bonuses and dividend payments and agreeing to annual climate-related financial disclosures.

Sunday, Transport Minister Marc Garneau announced in a statement that the federal government was developing an aid package for the airline industry to help it stay afloat after being devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

As part of his announcement, Garneau promised Canadians that airlines would have to commit to reimbursing clients who have cancelled flights because of the pandemic.

He also said no aid would come if airlines wouldn’t promise to maintain important regional connections throughout the country, as well as continuing to purchase key goods and services from the Canadian aerospace industry.

“Before we spend one penny of taxpayer money on airlines, we will ensure Canadians get their refunds,” Garneau’s statement read. “We will ensure Canadians and regional communities retain air connections to the rest of Canada, and that Canadian air carriers maintain their status as key customers of Canada’s aerospace industry.”

But government sources say any future airline bailout will also include many limitations on what the money can or cannot be spent on. It will also include certain financial disclosure obligations during and after the negotiations.

More specifically, they say the government will pull a page out of the conditions laid out in the Large Employer Emergency Financing Facility (LEEFF), which is a heavily criticized short-term interest bearing loan program aimed at large Canadian employers.
MORE ON THIS TOPIC

Bains suggests Ottawa may draw on scorned federal loan program for airline bailout
Opposition parties demand passenger refunds as condition of any airline bailouts
Pilots push Trudeau for $7-billion bailout as restrictions choke travel

To be eligible for a LEEFF loan, companies must accept a list of conditions such as limiting dividends and executive pay and bonuses all the while committing to minimizing loss of employment, sustaining domestic business activities and providing annual climate-related financial disclosures.

“The same conditions that you find in the LEEFF will be included in any and all deals that will be negotiated,” one government source explained. They were granted anonymity so as to discuss details of upcoming negotiations freely.

Sources also explained that the government would demand aerospace companies open up their books to see “how bad things really are” and to ensure that the aid package is only “exactly what they need.”

“We want aid to be the smallest amount possible,” one source summarized.

“We are still feeling the scars from the bonuses paid out to former Bombardier CEO Alain Bellemare. The government very much remembers that decision, and we don’t want that happening again,” they continued.

That is referring to a series of extremely controversial decisions by the Montreal-based company to hike executive pay and bonuses over recent years all the while it laid of thousands of workers and received millions of dollars in public funds to support its struggling aerospace division.

For example, Bombardier awarded US$32.6 million to senior executives in 2016 — a 50 per cent increased compared with 2015 — at the same time it was receiving a $372.5-million loan from Ottawa to keep its CSeries and Global 7000 programs afloat.

Earlier this year, the company came under fire again for offering Bellemare a $17.5 million compensation package after he announced he was stepping down in March.

“We are still feeling the scars from the bonuses paid out to former Bombardier CEO Alain Bellemare. … We don’t want that happening again.” PHOTO BY PETER J. THOMPSON/NATIONAL POST/FILE

On Monday morning, Industry Minister Navdeep Bains opened the door to simply using the LEEFF program to aid airlines, airports and other crucial parts of the industry.

“We’ll look at different options (such as) the LEEFF program in terms of liquidity support,” Bains said, noting the industry was being “devastated” by the pandemic.

To date, only two firms have received LEEFF loans since the program came into effect in May. Critics have complained that it imposes too many operating restrictions and the interest rates are well above the average from private lenders.

Regardless of the shape it would take, an airline bailout would be the first targeted commercial aid promised by the Liberals since the beginning of the pandemic in March.

And the help can’t come soon enough, according to the airline industry.

Monday, Air Canada reported a loss if $685 million for the third quarter of the year, in addition to a net cash burn of $9 million per day.

The airline also admitted to considering closing 95 additional routes (on top of the 30 domestic routes already suspended indefinitely earlier this year) until Garneau’s announcement Sunday that an aid package was coming.

“(Monday’s) results reflect COVID-19’s unprecedented impact on our industry globally and on Air Canada in what has historically been our most productive and profitable quarter,” CEO Calin Rovinescu wrote in a statement.

Mike McNaney, president and CEO of the National Airlines Council of Canada with represents Air Canada, WestJet, Air Transat and Jazz Aviation, said he was “encouraged” by Garneau’s announcement.

“Airlines are struggling to remain viable because of the economic chaos created by COVID-19. All measures have been taken to reduce costs, and revenue has fallen beyond the means of even the most extreme cost cutting measures to address. The industry will not recover without strong federal leadership,” he said in a statement Sunday.

#STOPFURFARMING
Mink farm Covid-19 variant impacts Premier League stars joining international teams
By Matias Grez, CNN 

A new variant of Covid-19 found in Danish mink farms is disrupting the plans of international football teams for their upcoming fixtures, with UK-based footballers, including eight Premier League stars, notably affected.

 Ima Minks are seen at a farm in Gjol, northern Denmark on October 9, 2020. - Around 100.000 mink are to be put down at various farms in Denmark due to contamination with the Covid-19 coronavirus. (Photo by Henning Bagger / Ritzau Scanpix / AFP) / Denmark OUT 

On Saturday, the United Kingdom banned travelers from Denmark due to the outbreak. UK citizens and visa holders will be able to return but will have to quarantine with all members of their household for 14 days.

"The decision to act quickly follows the release of further information from health authorities in Denmark reporting widespread outbreaks of coronavirus (COVID-19) in mink farms, with a variant strain of the virus spreading to some local communities," said the UK government in a statement.

The new travel guidance has created complications for several international football fixtures, with the Danish national team's matches notably affected.

Denmark is set to play at home to Sweden and Iceland in the coming days. Iceland is then due to travel from Denmark to England to play Gareth Southgate's side in the final Nations League group stage match on November 18.

Since June, around the time the Premier League agreed to return to play, elite athletes have been exempt from Covid-19 travel restrictions imposed by the UK government. However, there will be no exemptions provided to sports stars arriving in the country from Denmark.

READ: As coronavirus cases surge, hundreds of footballers jet off thousands of miles round the world

The Danish Premier League stars affected include Leicester City's Kasper Schmeichel, Chelsea defender Andreas Christensen, Everton's Jonas Lossl, Southampton's Jannik Vestergaard and Tottenham midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, while the impacted Swedish internationals are Manchester United defender Victor Lindelof, Everton's Robin Olsen and Newcastle's Emil Krafth.

One Scottish Premier League player -- Rangers defender Filip Helander -- and Watford midfielder Ken Sema, who plays in the Championship, are also affected.

However, the Swedish quintet will be available for selection for the other two matches, against Croatia and France, according to Sweden's national team manager Stefan Pettersson.

BOSSES VIEW

Company says union rejected deal to pay employees more to work exclusively at its long-term care homes during pandemic

Tyler Dawson POSTMEDIA

Company says union rejected deal to pay employees more to work exclusively at its long-term care homes during pandemic

A network of long-term care homes in Canada says that it offered its employees more money in exchange for working exclusively at its homes at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the union representing staff rejected the offer and filed unfair labour practice complaints against them in three provinces (AFTER THE FACT)

© Provided by National Post Long-term care homes in Canada were especially hit hard by COVID-19 in the early days of the pandemic.

The lawyer for the company, All Seniors Care, and its management company, Nutra 2000, said employees were offered $2 per hour extra if they worked exclusively in their care homes, and $4 per hour extra if they lived in them.

The offer, made in late March, was to entice staff away from working at multiple different care homes in order to lower the risk of spreading the virus, which is especially deadly for older people.

“They care about their patients, they care about their brand, they care about protecting people, they care about everyone, including their staff,” said Howard Levitt, the lawyer for the care homes.

Multiple deadly outbreaks devastated care homes during the first wave of the pandemic and in response the federal Liberals have pushed for national standards of care for the elderly.

At the start of the pandemic, the company made the offer to its 2,000 employees, who work in 35 homes in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario, said Levitt, who is also a Financial Post columnist. The employees at All Seniors Care are represented by the Labourers International Union of North America.

The company says the union was tardy in replying to its offer, so it went ahead with implementing the plan. It says 85 per cent of its employees agreed to the exclusivity arrangement and were paid the bonus between March 28 and April 24. Those that did not sign the agreement continued as before, without being paid the bonus, Levitt said, since they were bound by a collective agreement.

“Faced with a choice between a collective agreement and the relations with the union and the life and death of their residents, they thought it wasn’t much of a choice,” said Levitt. “We’re not going to play Russian roulette with our residents’ lives, that’s our defence, and public safety supersedes the collective agreement.”

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Levitt said the union argued all employees should get a raise, which Levitt said defeated the purpose of the offer to incentivize employees to work at just one home before the provinces brought in their own rules during the first wave of the pandemic.

As of April 22, Ontario limited long-term care workers to just one home. Saskatchewan issued a similar order on April 17, and Alberta did so on April 10. The orders remain in effect in all three provinces.

“The whole intent was to save lives and to keep everyone safe,” said Sandy Lauder, the vice-president of human resources at Nutra 2000.

The union representing long-term care workers for the company filed unfair labour practice complaints against the company in Ontario and Alberta on April 3 and in Saskatchewan on April 8.

The Post reached out by phone and email to the union, but they did not respond by press time. However, the union told the Toronto Sun that all staff are significantly underpaid and “all employees” should be treated equally since the pay raise was actually about the company’s ability to attract employees.

“This was never, ever, ever about the health and safety of residents,” Charlene Nero, director of the legal department for LiUNA, local 3000, told the Sun.