Prime minister visits Edmonton, criticizes Alberta's response to opioid crisis


© Provided by The Canadian Press


EDMONTON — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau criticized the Alberta government Tuesday for not addressing the opioid epidemic in ways that have proven to be effective elsewhere.

“As a government, we've continued to push for safe consumption sites," Trudeau said at the old Mercer Warehouse, where he promoted his Liberal government's budget plan to relax tax laws for small businesses.

Alberta's United Conservative Party government has focused on a recovery-oriented strategy. Access to opioid dependency programs and drug-use sites has been limited.

"It's unfortunate to see Alberta going in the opposite direction, away from a science-based and harm reduction approach. We know that municipal leaders, like here in Edmonton, are serious about supporting people through this terrible tragedy."

A council committee on Monday voted to ask the city's administration to explore the issue of decriminalizing simple possession of illegal drugs and provide recommendations by early next year.

Alberta last year recorded its deadliest year for drug overdoses since it began collecting data in 2016. Government figures show 171 people died in November and 178 in December — the highest single-month numbers ever — for a total of 1,758 fatalities in 2021.

In a post on Twitter, the press secretary for Mike Ellis, Alberta'smental health and addictions associate minister, referred to another tweet about Trudeau's comments as "a joke."

"People can recover, it is shameful he can’t recognize that," said Eric Engler in the tweet

Earlier in the day, Trudeau shook hands with entrepreneurs at the warehouse, which is home to StartUp Edmonton, a workspace and incubator for small-business owners.

The business owners Trudeau spoke to included a man using machine learning to help construction companies fill job openings faster and another man hoping to create a crypto currency brokerage.

Trudeau explained Ottawa's aim to cut taxes for small businesses and highlighted a recently announced billion-dollar plan to create an independent federal innovation and investment agency.

"Canada has some of the best scientists, thinkers, entrepreneurs and innovators in the world," Trudeau said. "But in order to bring those great ideas to market and help their businesses grow, they need support for research, development and mostly commercialization."

The Liberal government's proposal would allow companies to take advantage of Canada’s low small-business tax rate for longer and until their taxable capital reached $50 million — an increase from a previous $15-million limit.

Calgary's lone Liberal member of Parliament, George Chahal, joined Trudeau alongside community business leaders.

Trudeau also met with members of the local Ukrainian and Afghan communities and visited a nature-based solutions lab to highlight investments in green technologies.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 12, 2022.

— With files from Daniela Germano in Edmonton and Alanna Smith in Calgary

___

This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship.

Fakiha Baig, The Canadian Press

Edmonton takes step toward decriminalizing simple possession of illegal drugs

Kim Smith - Monday

At a committee meeting Monday morning, Edmonton city councillors voted in favour of asking administration to explore the issue of decriminalizing simple possession of illegal drugs and provide recommendations by early 2023.


© Provided by Global NewsAt a committee meeting Monday morning, Edmonton city councillors voted in favour of asking administration to explore the issue of decriminalizing simple possession of illegal drugs and provide recommendations by early 2023.

Mayor Amarjeet Sohi put forward the motion and councillors Tim Cartmell, Michael Janz, Karen Tang and Jo-Anne Wright all voted in favour. The motion will still need to go before a city council meeting.

"Having a comprehensive plan, including decriminalizing of simple possession, is a tool that we want to explore," Sohi told reporters following the committee meeting.

"This is a long-term strategy because it involves a comprehensive application process. It would require a lot of advocacy work that we would have to undertake with local authorities here as well as with the federal government and coordinating our efforts with other municipalities. So it's going to take some time for us to figure it out."

Read more:

There are growing calls for drug decriminalization. Could it solve Canada’s opioid crisis?

As a crisis of opioid-related overdoses and deaths rages on in Canada, advocates have long been saying that decriminalization would help to reduce stigma associated with drug use and help save lives.

In Edmonton last year, a record-breaking 666 people died from drug poisoning, according to Sohi.

"People aren't scared to tell me about their cannabis use, imagine if people weren't scared to tell me, as a physician, about their drug use and wanted to have an open and honest conversation?" Dr. Ginetta Salvalaggio, with the Edmonton Zone Medical Staff Association's opioid poisoning committee, told city councillors.

"That would be a game-changer," she said.

Darren McGeown, owner of Arcadia Brewing Co., spoke in favour of Edmonton decriminalizing possession of illegal drugs. He said as a business owner, he needs to be voicing his support for harm-reduction strategies to help tackle the drug crisis.

"I feel as a business owner, I have a duty to create a stronger community. A strong community outside creates a strong community inside Arcadia," McGeown told Global News.

"These drug poisonings are happening all over the city. This isn't just a downtown Edmonton situation. I think more businesses involved, the stronger voice we have."

Edmonton is the latest Canadian jurisdiction to explore the issue.

READ MORE: Jurisdictions pushing to decriminalize small amounts of drugs as overdose deaths soar

Under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, jurisdictions can ask the federal government for exemptions to allow people to have small amounts of substances such as cocaine, heroin and fentanyl.

Vancouver formally asked for that in May 2021.

British Columbia was the first province to make its own request, in November 2021. Toronto followed in January.

With files from The Canadian Press.

Parliament adopts Conservative motion to amend CP Rail tax exemption in Saskatchewan Act


Taz Dhaliwal -
Global News

Saskatchewan senators are responding to the adoption of an amendment to the Saskatchewan Act in Ottawa last Thursday.

Last week, the Senate of Canada completed the final step of a three-part process and adopted Conservative Motion No. 14, a resolution that authorizes an amendment to the Constitution of Canada.

The act previously exempted Canadian Pacific Railway from certain Saskatchewan taxes due to the capital investments its predecessor made in 1880 to complete the coast-to-coast railway.

One of the many subsidies provided to the CPR to build the railway was an exemption from provincial and municipal taxes on the CPR’s main line.

This tax exemption was supposed to last “forever.” When the Province of Saskatchewan was created in 1905, Ottawa included the tax exemption in the Saskatchewan Act, the constitutional document that created the province.

“This motion places the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) in the same position as other taxpayers and ends a century old tax exemption for the CPR imposed on Saskatchewan when the province was formed in 1905,” said Saskatchewan Senator Brent Cotter in a release.

“It is important to everyone in my home province. It is a rare situation for the Senate to consider a constitutional amendment,” he added.

The senator also said he is proud of the work senators and the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs did to better inform the decision-making process and “ultimately support the resolution, the people of Saskatchewan, and tax fairness in Canada.”

All five Saskatchewan senators and a vast majority of the Senate supported the amendment.

“To continue with a tax exemption in the 21st century, which was granted to the CPR in the 19th century, would be fundamentally unjust, unfair, unreasonable and an undeserved economic hardship on the residents of Saskatchewan,” said Saskatchewan Senator David Arnot.

Arnot said he is pleased this “inequity” has been corrected.

Read more:
Conservatives call on feds to repeal CP Rail tax exemption in Saskatchewan Act

According to the release, removing the provision from the Saskatchewan Act required consent from the Senate, the House of Commons and the legislature of Saskatchewan, in accordance with section 43 of the Constitution Act, 1982.

On Nov. 29 of last year, the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan unanimously adopted a resolution to repeal section 24 of the Saskatchewan Act.

Subsequently, parallel resolutions authorizing the proposed amendment of the Constitution of Canada were adopted by the House of Commons on Feb. 9, and the Senate of Canada on April 7.

CP Rail is currently suing the province for $341 million in relation to the clause, saying it wants a return of the taxes paid since 2002 and a declaration that future taxes are not payable.

The Saskatchewan government says the exemption ended in 1966 when CP’s president rescinded the deal in exchange for regulatory changes.

Section 24 of the Saskatchewan Act has now been repealed retroactively to Aug. 29, 1966.

– with files from Global News' David Giles and Ryan Kessler

CP to no longer be exempt from Saskatchewan taxes

Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) will no longer be exempt from multiple provincial taxes after the Senate recently passed a constitutional amendment.

© Provided by Leader PostA file photo of Canadian Pacific Railway train outside Regina.

Jeremy Simes - Yesterday 
Leader Post

The decision, which was made on April 7, may also weaken the rail company’s court case against the province, according to Saskatchewan Senator Brent Cotter.

“They (CP) can’t rely on it anymore. It has basically disappeared from the constitution,” Cotter said in an interview. “CP may have other arguments in the court case, but it can’t assert that it’s constitutionally protected from paying provincial taxes.”

The amendment repeals Section 24 of the of the Saskatchewan Act retroactively to August 29, 1966, which means CP no longer has provincial tax exemptions.

The decision comes after CP took the province to court in November, arguing it doesn’t have to pay $341 million in provincial taxes because of a contract that later became legislation.

Even though CP had still paid taxes for a century, it argued it wants to recover what it calls unconstitutional taxes going back to 2002.

While it’s unclear what the Senate’s decision means for the court case, CP said in a statement on Tuesday it will carefully review the actions taken by the House of Commons and the Senate.

“CP has a fiduciary duty to its shareholders to protect the company’s rights,” the company stated. “CP fulfilled its commitments under the 1881 agreement. CP has a valid legal right to uphold the bargain that was struck, and is now asking the courts to ensure that the governments honour their commitments.”

Justice Minister Gordon Wyant told reporters he’s pleased the Senate passed the resolution.

He said he thinks CP’s case against the government will now be weaker.

“I think we stand on very, very good legal ground when it comes to the defence of the interests of the province against the CPR,” Wyant said. “I think this constitutional amendment underscores the fact that we’re an equal partner, certainly when it comes to the taxation of the CPR.”

CP stated it has been willing to discuss a “win-win” solution for the company and provinces affected by the agreement.

It added it continues to pay “significant amounts of tax” across Canada. This matter won’t affect how it does business, CP said.

Wyant said the province’s legal team has been in touch with lawyers representing CP.

He was unable to provide a date on when the matter is back in court, given both parties were waiting on this decision.

Cotter, a former dean of the College of Law at the University of Saskatchewan, explained the approval in the Senate means the changes take immediate effect. He said it’s not like other laws that require royal assent.

He said the vote in the Senate was not unanimous, though there wasn’t a count on how each senator voted.

The House of Commons and the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan voted unanimously in favour of proceeding with the amendment.

“In terms of tax fairness, I think it’s the right thing to do,” Cotter said.

He said he believes this is the first time a constitutional amendment has passed that’s applicable to a Western province.

Constitutional amendments can be a lengthy process as they require support from a provincial legislature, the House of Commons and the Senate.

“It’s genuinely a Saskatchewan success,” Cotter said. “There are people — and sometimes I’m included in that — who have reservations about the value of a Senate. But it felt like on this occasion, five Saskatchewan senators and the whole Senate got good work done on behalf of the people of Saskatchewan.”

jsimes@postmedia.com

Storm chaser captures moment lightning strikes car in Iowa

A storm chaser captured the moment a car was struck by lightning in Iowa and said the person in the car “was fine,” but the vehicle was “demobilized.”

Energy & Environment — Facing high gas prices, Biden relaxes regulation

Rachel Frazin -  The Hill

The Biden administration is allowing gasoline with a higher content of ethanol to be sold this summer, and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) has floated a “rebranded” Keystone XL pipeline.

This is Overnight Energy & Environment, your source for the latest news focused on energy, the environment and beyond. For The Hill, we’re Rachel Frazin and Zack Budryk. Someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here.
Biden allows summer gasoline with more ethanol

President Biden formally announced a waiver on Tuesday that will allow fuel with higher ethanol content to be sold during the summer months, an action he said would help lower soaring gas prices.

Current regulations prevent the fuel from being sold between June and September due to concerns about its effect on smog and other forms of air pollution.

Advocates have said the regulations in question were written for fuels that are 10 percent ethanol rather than the type known as E15, which is 15 percent ethanol.

Administration officials, announcing the decision Monday night, projected it would save the average family 10 cents a gallon, a figure Biden also cited in his remarks Tuesday afternoon.

“Homegrown biofuels have a role to play right now … as we work to get prices under control and reduce the costs for families,” the president said in Iowa on Tuesday, during a speech at POET Bioprocessing in Menlo, next to a giant pile of cornmeal.

It all comes back to Russia: In his remarks, Biden emphasized the role of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in the energy market, blaming Russian President Vladimir Putin for the recent surge in fuel prices.

“I’m doing everything within my power by executive orders to bring down the price and address the Putin price hike,” the president said.

“Your family budget, your ability to fill up your tank, none of it should hinge on whether a dictator declares war and commits genocide half a world away,” he said, also describing Putin’s actions as “genocide” for the first time.

Read more about the move here.

Manchin floats ‘rebranded’ Keystone XL

Swing vote Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) floated the idea of a “rebranded” or “rerouted” Keystone XL pipeline during a visit to Canada on Tuesday.

“The brand of the XL pipeline is probably gone,” Manchin told reporters when asked about the chances of a revival of the never-completed vessel. “Can it be rebranded, can it be rerouted, can it be these different things?”

He added that it’s not clear whether the Biden administration “is going to entertain that” but added that “they’d be foolish not to.”

What say you, WH? Asked for comment, a White House spokesperson said that the U.S. is engaging with various oil-producing countries to address the current supply imbalance, but also noted that the Keystone pipeline would not have added to current supply.

During his first day in office, President Biden killed a key border-crossing permit for the Keystone XL pipeline, which would have transported Canadian tar sands oil to the U.S.

Manchin’s latest comments also follow a Wall Street Journal report that said that the administration was looking for ways to import more Canadian oil after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine drove up fuel prices.

Republicans, meanwhile, have ramped up their criticisms of the Keystone decision in recent weeks amid the high prices, even though the pipeline was only about 8 percent completed upon its cancellation last year.

The company behind the pipeline, TC Energy, said in 2020 that the vessel would not have delivered oil until 2023.

What else did he have to say? Manchin, in his trip to Alberta, also touted an “all-of-the-above” energy strategy.

“My definition of all-of-the-above is every that we possibly can, so if you’re looking at wind and solar, geothermal, you’re looking at hydro, you’re looking at fusion in the future, you’re looking at everything that we possibly can do to reduce our carbon — nuclear.”

Read more here.

GREEN RECOVERY GETS MORE MONEY IN WEALTHY COUNTRIES

The gap is expanding for planned renewable energy spending on the COVID-19 recovery between wealthier and lower-income nations, with less wealthy countries constrained by the cost of commodities like fuel and food, according to a report released Tuesday by the International Energy Agency (IEA).

The report found that advanced-economy governments are on track to spend $370 billion on renewables by next year, which tracks with what the IEA says is necessary to reach net zero emissions by 2050. However, those governments dedicated more than 10 times the financial resources to the issue as emerging and developing economies, according to the IEA.

In emerging and developing nations, government spending on renewable energy is on track for about $52 billion by 2023, or less than 25 percent of the trajectory necessary for the zero-emissions goals. Many of these governments, the report notes, have been forced to focus their financial resources on counteracting rising food and fuel prices, meaning they will likely stay low in the months ahead.

“Countries where clean energy is at the heart of recovery plans are keeping alive the possibility of reaching net zero emissions by 2050, but challenging financial and economic conditions have undermined public resources in much of the rest of the world,” IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said in a statement. “International cooperation will be essential to change these clean energy investment trends, especially in emerging and developing economies where the need is greatest.”

The Russian invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent spikes in fuel prices have compelled governments to focus on reducing energy costs. Governmental affordability support for energy has increased to about $270 billion since the beginning of winter 2021 in the Northern Hemisphere.

However, the report states that these efforts have not included many of the strategies that could do the most good for reducing fossil fuel demand, such as public transport expansion and heat pump installation.

Read more here.

QUOTES OF NOTE

In a wide-ranging discussion hosted by the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) weighed in on climate change and a potential Democratic reconciliation package:

On climate: “We’re going to continue to make strides on climate but through technology, not through clamping down on production. We have to have a practical approach to moving in that direction, and their goals are completely unrealistic and unattainable,” McConnell said, when asked about the Biden administration’s energy policies.

On Build Back Better: “You guys remember the old movie ‘Fatal Attraction?’ Build Back Better reminds me of Glenn Close in ‘Fatal Attraction.’ Every time I think it’s gone, it kind of keeps bouncing back.”

WHAT WE’RE READING

Indigenous people are being killed to ‘protect’ a Congolese park (Grist)

 
The Clean-Power Megaproject Held Hostage by a Ranch and a Bird (Bloomberg)

 
What the 1970s teaches about today’s energy crisis (E&E News)

Toxic ‘forever chemicals’ aren’t defined as hazardous in Wisconsin — so the state can’t force cleanup, judge says (The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)

And finally, something offbeat and off-beat: Joy ride.

That’s it for today, thanks for reading. Check out The Hill’s Energy & Environment page for the latest news and coverage. We’ll see you tomorrow

Atlantic lobster prices reach all-time high: 'I view it as a very serious thing'

There may be no greater pleasure than fresh Atlantic lobster. For many, summer is incomplete if they do not get to enjoy a buttery lobster tail or a tangy lobster roll.

Jessica Mundie - 

 National Post 

In 2021, the value of Canadian lobster exports reached $3.2 billion which is more than $700 million higher than pre-pandemic.

This year, however, with high demand from export markets and expensive harvesting costs lobster lovers may have to pay more as prices reached all-time highs going into production season.

Two weeks ago, at wharfs in Nova Scotia, the price of lobster was the highest it has ever been. Stewart Lamont, managing director of Tangier Lobster Company, a live Lobster exporter in Nova Scotia, said the shore price for lobster – the amount fishermen get from buyers – was $18 a pound. That’s more than double the regular pre-pandemic price.

It has since gone down due to a drop in exports and higher supply. Lamont said this week lobster was around $12 to $12.50 a pound.

While high prices mean more money for lobster exporters and fishermen, Lamont said he is scared that if lobster becomes too expensive people and businesses will simply stop buying it.

“Lobster is discretionary. We can have it if we’d like and we can afford it,” he said. “I think we should be very cautious that we don’t overprice our products for the long haul.”

It would also be unfortunate if Atlantic Canadians and the tourists that visit the Maritimes to indulge in lobster are unable to afford it, said Lamont.

“When people feel they can’t afford to buy their own provincial seafood, especially lobster, I view it as a very serious thing.”

The price of lobster has increased dramatically since the beginning of the pandemic.

Geoff Irvine, executive director of the Lobster Council of Canada explained that in the spring of 2020 lobster prices fell. The shore price reached record lows, with a catch reported to get between $3.50 to $4.50 per pound. This is compared to the regular pre-pandemic shore price of $6 to $8.

Lobster exports also fell during the pandemic. Canada’s lobster export value dropped 19 per cent from 2019 to 2020, from $2.59 billion to $2.09 billion. This was due to the drop in the quantity of lobster exported around the world as well as a drop in price per pound.

“However, as we got to the fall of 2020, our industry demonstrated that despite COVID, there was still demand for lobster,” said Lamont. “As people were locked down, one of the things they did was to buy more hard-shell lobster,” he said.


© Andrew Vaughan/The Canadian Press/FileFishing boats, loaded with traps, head from port in West Dover, Nova Scotia.

From October 2020 to February of this year, Lamont said that the demand for lobster was consistent and prices were higher than normal due to limited supply in the winter months and competition between companies.

The value of Canadian lobster exports has skyrocketed since the world began reopening. In 2021, exports reached $3.2 billion which is more than $700 million higher than pre-pandemic. Irvine said this increase was largely due to the renewed demand for processed lobster meat in the United States.

“We sold lobster tails and lobster meat in U.S. retail where we didn’t think we would ever sell such volumes at such prices,” said Irvine.

He said as restaurants reopened in the U.S. throughout the year the demand for retail lobster rose and has stayed high.

The Canadian lobster industry is driven by the sale of processed lobster, said Irvine. Around 55 per cent of lobster sold is in the form of lobster tails and cooked or frozen meat. The remaining 45 per cent is live, which is sold mainly to China.

Lobsters get stoned for science and a more humane way to boil them alive

How Ottawa failed both Indigenous and non-Indigenous fishers

One of the reasons lobster prices at the wharf in Nova Scotia have dropped in the past couple of weeks is because of the reemergence of COVID-19 in mainland China, said Lamont. With more cities in lockdown, there has been less of a demand for Maritime lobster.

Usually, Lamont said China will make up for 40 to 60 per cent of live lobster exports in Nova Scotia in a year.

Lamont said he sees the price of lobster trending down for now, but many factors determine price at a given time. With the start of lobster season in May comes more inventory, which will lower prices. But inflation and the high price of gas and bait may bring them up.

As fishing season comes to a close at the end of the summer, Lamont said prices may rise again.

Ontario Liberals Want To Make It Mandatory For Jobs To Post Their Salaries If Elected


The Ontario Liberals have a plan to give "equal pay and equal opportunity" to women in the province should they get elected, and with that, they might force companies to be upfront and transparent with how much people can make when they apply for a job.


© Provided by Narcity

On Tuesday, April 12, the Liberal Party released its plan aimed to benefit working women, which also includes implementing the Pay Transparency Act.

This would not only force companies to include salary ranges on job postings, but it would also require them to share the pay gaps by gender at the workplace as well as prohibit them from asking about how much money you've made at past jobs.

The Ontario Liberals also promise to lower the cost of childcare, offer $10 before- and after-school care and even "top up" the 18-month parental leave program so that EI benefits aren't cut down.

"The best way to build lasting prosperity is to ensure that all Ontarians have the same opportunity, and are treated equally in the workforce," Ontario Liberal Leader Steven Del Duca said in the announcement.

"I refuse to accept that my daughters will grow up in a province that doesn't protect their future or ensure equal pay. If Ontario Liberals are elected, they won't have to."

On top of its plan for working women, Del Duca also detailed the party's goals to boost women's health and safety. Among these promises include free period products at schools and in other public places, and expanding the province's fertility program to cover one cycle of egg freezing.

The party also promises to "create an Ontario Women's Health Strategy," provide more support for gender-based violence prevention at universities and colleges and "create more supportive homes for women fleeing domestic abuse."

This is the newest string of promises Del Duca and the Ontario Liberals are putting out leading into the provincial election, with a four-day workweek pilot and a higher minimum wage among the other policies in their platform.

Election day in Ontario is coming up on June 2.

This article’s cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.

Letters: Government dismisses clean energy potential in Saskatchewan

Phil Tank, Saskatoon StarPhoenix - 

© Provided by Star PhoenixCrown Investments (CIC) Minister and Minister Responsible for SaskPower Don Morgan, Minister of Energy in Ontario, Todd Smith and Minister of Energy, Alberta, Sonya Savage speak at a news conference to launch the Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Strategic Plan on Monday, March 28, 2022 in Regina. KAYLE NEIS / Regina Leader-Post

Renewables support a fantasy in Sask.

Recently, the Saskatchewan government announced that it plans to generate 60 per cent of the province’s power from solar, wind and geothermal by 2034. To this end, the Moe government has agreed to provide generous incentives to individuals and companies wishing to sell renewable power to the grid.

Also, the Moe government has decided to support the federal plan to build a cross-country energy grid. When transmission lines to Manitoba are completed in 2034, Saskatchewan will purchase enough green hydroelectric power that coal and natural gas will no longer be needed.

These initiatives will not only position Saskatchewan as a leader in the transition from fossil fuels, but will create thousands of good-paying jobs.

But, of course, the above is a fantasy. The current Saskatchewan government does not appear to be interested in renewable energy.

Instead of investing in cost-effective renewables and green energy from Manitoba, this government has decided to spend some $20 billion on four yet-to-be-developed and untried small nuclear reactors.

Meanwhile, in the U.K. the government is moving swiftly to invest in renewables and to use storage batteries to guarantee a base load when needed. Germany has been encouraging the development of renewables for several decades.

Saskatchewan, along with Alberta, has the greatest potential in Canada to generate renewable power and certainly very much greater than the U.K. or Germany. In Alberta, private companies are moving ahead to capture this potential because it makes economic sense.

Here, SaskPower, tied to the Moe government’s agenda, appears unwilling to take renewables seriously.

Paul Wilkinson

Saskatoon

SCHMOE

Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe doubles down after carbon comments criticized

Connor O’Donovan - Yesterday 
© Adrian Raaber / Global News

At the legislature Monday, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe defended comments made last week regarding data showing Saskatchewan has the highest per capita carbon emissions in Canada.

"I'll stand with the 'I don't care' right now when it comes to the metric of per capita emissions," Moe told reporters following question period.

"Could I have chosen something a little less controversial? Potentially. But I think this is a time for our province to be bold."

Moe made the comments, which were first reported by the Prince Albert Daily Herald, while fielding questions at a Prince Albert Chamber of Commerce event Friday.

In response to an audience question about Saskatchewan's work on the environment and climate change, Moe said "I don't care" in reference to occasions where people remind him that data shows Saskatchewan has the highest per capita emissions in Canada.

Moe implied in his response that those emissions levels are directly tied to demand for Saskatchewan products, and that he thinks of the province as a world leader in delivering sustainable exports.


After criticism of the comments built online over the weekend, Saskatchewan NDP Environment, Energy and Resources Critic Erika Ritchie brought them up in question period Monday, calling them "irresponsible" and suggesting the government needs to do more to lower emissions and address climate change.



"We need serious leadership, and an all-government and economy-wide response to this problem and those remarks are not the kinds of things that give assurance to investors," she later told reporters in the rotunda.

"We are facing a global crisis. All governments need to be taking this seriously and putting all their efforts towards reducing emissions."

But later Monday, Moe again defended his dismissal of per capita measurements by pointing out that most of the products produced in Saskatchewan are exported beyond its borders.

He said Saskatchewan products are produced with less-damaging methods than are used in other jurisdictions, though he did not provide proof Monday to back up that statement.

"We have some of the highest-quality products in the world but they're competitively priced, And they're the most sustainable products that you can access in the world," he said.

Saskatchewan has outlined emissions targets in its Prairie Resilience climate change strategy, which was put into effect in 2018 to help the province "cope with, adapt to, and recover from stress and change."

SaskPower has since pledged to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 50 per cent over 2005 levels by 2030, and has announced intentions for net-zero GHG emissions by 2050.

Premier Moe defends 'I don't care' comments on per capita carbon emissions in Sask.

Premier Scott Moe is standing by comments he recently made dealing with criticism the Saskatchewan government has been facing over its environmental record.

© Michael Bell/The Canadian Press

Premier Scott Moe is defending recent comments he made about Saskatchewan's environmental performance in Prince Albert.

David Shield - CBC -Yesterday 

On Monday, the opposition New Democratic Party raised concerns about a speech Moe made at a Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce event in Prince Albert.

In the speech, Moe said he wasn't bothered by criticism that Saskatchewan has the highest per capita carbon emissions in the country.

"A lot of folks will come to me and say, 'Hey, you guys have the highest carbon emissions per capita.'I don't care,'" said Moe during the speech.

"We have the highest exports per capita in Canada as well. We make the cleanest products and then we send it to over 150 countries around the world."

Speaking to reporters after Question Period, Moe clarified that he was speaking about the province being judged by per capita emissions, and that the province should instead be judged by the emissions used to create its products.

"When you look at Saskatchewan's products, we have the cleanest products in the world," said Moe.

"We have the lowest carbon content potash in the world. So, you should buy Saskatchewan potash when you're looking to buy some, maybe not that product from Russia or Belarus," said Moe.

Saskatchewan has long been criticized by environmental groups for its performance.

According to the 2021 National Inventory Report published by Environment and Climate Change Canada, the province's greenhouse gas emissions currently leads the country in emissions per capita.

The study found Saskatchewan's emissions decreased by one megatonne from 2018 to 2019 and remained at relatively stable levels from 2014 to 2019.

Opposition Environment Critic Erika Ritchie said Moe's comments are evidence the premier does not take climate change seriously.

"The kind of response we heard from the premier indicates a very flippant response to a serious crisis here," she told reporters.

"We need serious leadership and action taken by our government. We need an all-government response and an economy-wide response to this problem."

However, Moe countered and said that using per capita measures to compare Saskatchewan to other provinces is wrongheaded.

"I would put forward that anyone that is talking about per capita emissions really doesn't care about climate change in any way," he said.

"What they are trying to do is score cheap political points. We have the cleanest products in the world per tonne of potash, per tonne of agri-food products, per per unit of uranium that is produced here."

Saskatchewan has long been at odds with the federal government's climate change plan. Last year, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled 6-3 that the federal government's carbon pricing program was constitutional, despite a court challenge led by the provincial government.

In 2017, the Government of Saskatchewan released its own 'made-in-Saskatchewan' climate change strategy called Prairie Resilience, with more than 40 commitments to address climate change.

However, the plan does not set provincial goals to reduce emissions by 2030. The federal government has set a target to cut emissions by 40 to 45 per cent below 2005 levels by that time.

Fact check: Purported Barack Obama tweet about Russia and Donald Trump's birth certificate is satire

Ana Faguy, USA TODAY 

The claim: Barack Obama tweeted, "Has anyone checked to make sure Donald Trump doesn't have a Russian birth certificate?"

Long before he was a presidential candidate, Donald Trump gained headlines as a leading voice in the "birther" movement, amplifying the false claim that then-President Barack Obama was not born in the U.S.

A recent social media post purports to flip that accusation on its head.

A March 20 Facebook post presents what appears to be a screenshot of a March 16 tweet from former President Barack Obama.

Posts on Facebook can be seen ( here ) ( here ).

"I think most Americans would agree that I'm a level-headed individual, not a man who's prone to indulging in conspiracy theories," reads the purported Obama tweet. "I've certainly had a fair number directed at me. But has anyone checked to make sure Donald Trump doesn't have a Russian birth certificate?"

The post accrued more than 500 shares in less than three weeks, and comments showed many social media users believed it was authentic.

But the tweet is not real, Obama never made the comment on social media.

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the claim for comment.
The post originates from a satire site

The screenshot of Obama's supposed tweet was posted by the satire page Stop The Donald. According to their website, Stop The Donald uses "humor as a political weapon against Strongmen and Dictators."

The altered tweet is poking fun at Trump’s previous questioning of Obama’s birth certificate, which Trump began in 2011. Trump continued to question Obama's citizenship during the 2016 election.

The tweet also alludes to Trump's Russian connections and favorable comments toward Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The screenshot lists the tweet as being sent on March 16, but there is no evidence of any such tweet on Obama's account.

Fact check: Fictional Tucker Carlson quote about Ukraine spreads on social media

On March 16 Obama tweeted twice. The first was a three-part thread on the Ukrainian refugee crisis, and the other was a tweet about March Madness.

Our rating: Satire

Based on our research, we rate SATIRE the claim that Obama tweeted, "Has anyone checked to make sure Donald Trump doesn't have a Russian birth certificate?" There is no evidence that this tweet exists, and the screenshot originates from a satire site.

Our fact-check sources:

Stop The Donald, accessed April 8, Mission
Los Angeles Times, Sept. 16, 2016, What Donald Trump has said through the years about where President Obama was born
CNN, Nov. 29, 2017, Report: Trump continues to question Obama’s birth certificate
Politico, March/April 2017, All of Trump’s Russia Ties, in 7 Charts
NPR, Feb. 22, Trump praises Putin as 'savvy' amid new escalations on Russia-Ukraine border
PolitiFact, April 5, No, Obama didn’t tweet that Trump might have Russian birth certificate
Reuters, April 5, Fact Check-Fabricated Obama tweet about Trump and birth certificate was created as satire
USA TODAY, Oct. 13, 2021, Fact check: Image claiming to show Barack Obama's birth certificate is fake

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Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook.

WAR IS RAPE

Bolsonaro faces stiff questioning over Brazilian army’s Viagra purchase

Tom Phillips in Rio de Janeiro - 8h ago
The Guardian


Opponents of the Brazilian president, Jair Bolsonaro, are demanding answers after the revelation that the country’s armed forces had splashed out on tens of thousands of impotence pills.

“We must understand why the Bolsonaro administration is spending public money on buying such large quantities of Viagra,” the lawmaker Elias Vaz declared after Brazilian media reported the seemingly unorthodox acquisitions on Monday.

The navy and air force – which between them had reportedly bought more than 30,000 pills – offered an innocent explanation: the drug was supposedly being used to treat pulmonary hypertension.

However, many were unconvinced. A report in the O Globo newspaper suggested the dosages that had been bought were generally used to treat penises, not blood pressure.

“How do you feel knowing that we’re even paying for Viagra for the armed forces?” the Brazilian singer Zélia Duncan asked her hundreds of thousands of Twitter followers. “I feel impotent,” one replied.

Rio congressman Marcelo Freixo said he would ask the public prosecutor to investigate the erectile “outrage”. “The Bolsonaro administration dallied over buying Covid vaccines but approved the overpriced purchase of 35,000 Viagra pills for the armed forces,” Freixo complained on Twitter.

The president of the Worker’s party (PT), Gleisi Hoffman, slammed the “criminal spending spree” and accused Bolsonaro of destroying the military’s credibility.

Ciro Gomes, a centre-left politician who hopes to challenge Bolsonaro in October’s presidential election, said that while the armed forces deserved respect, their acquisition departments seemed bent on demoralizing the military.

“Unless they’re able to prove they’re developing some kind of secret weapon – capable of revolutionizing the international arms industry – it’ll be tough to justify the purchase of 35,000 units of a erectile dysfunction drug,” Gomes opined.

He added: “It’s no coincidence that these absurdities are taking place during the government of a president … who acts systematically to dishonor the troop.”

Bolsonaro, 67, is a former army captain and paratrooper who has packed his cabinet with military men and repeatedly hinted that he would be prepared to lead a military “intervention” against Brazil’s democratic institutions. Last year Bolsonaro ordered what critics called a “banana republic-style” military parade outside his presidential palace in an apparent attempt to project strength and intimidate foes.

Political observers called the military’s “Viagra binge” an embarrassment to a populist president who frequently boasts about his supposed virility, referring to himself as “imbrochável”. The word roughly translates into English as “unfloppable” or “flaccid-proof”.