Grocery CEOs snub Ottawa profiteering inquiry, exacerbating tensions with politicians


Jake Edmiston
Wed, February 8, 2023

metro-0208-ph

The heads of Canada’s top supermarket chains have so far snubbed parliamentarians investigating allegations of profiteering in the grocery business, exacerbating tensions with politicians who appear keen to confront the country’s oligopolies over inflation.

Quebec grocery giant Metro Inc. sent chief financial officer François Thibault to a hearing held by the Commons agriculture committee on the evening of Feb 6.

That’s not who some members wanted to see. Alistair MacGregor, the NDP member of Parliament from Vancouver Island who helped launch the profiteering inquiry late last year, wanted to know why Thibault’s boss, chief executive Eric La Flèche, didn’t show up instead.

“Your sector is going through a very deep crisis of confidence with the Canadian people,” MacGregor told Thibault. “Given the state of Canadian anger with the high cost of food, why wouldn’t Mr. La Flèche take the opportunity as the face of his company to publicly come here and defend it? Why is he not here today?”

Thibault responded: “Well, I’m a leader of the company.”

MacGregor was equally offended at the previous hearing, in early December, when Loblaw Cos. Ltd. and Sobeys’ parent Empire Co. Ltd., opted to send lieutenants instead of the CEO. The Retail Council of Canada, a lobby group that represents the grocers, said the original invitations didn’t ask for CEOs. But after the December hearing, MacGregor asked the committee to reissue invitations to Loblaw, Empire and Metro, this time specifically requesting that the head of the company show up.

But at the Feb. 6 hearing, La Flèche wasn’t there.

A matter of trust

MacGregor rattled off the various scandals that dog Canada’s big grocers, including the ongoing Competition Bureau investigation into allegations of bread-price fixing, and the 2020 Hero Pay affair that pushed Ottawa to strengthen rules against wage-fixing. The government is also pressuring the industry to create a new watchdog to stop the large retail chains from bullying farmers and food processors. And the Competition Bureau has launched a study of whether heavy consolidation in the food industry — where five retailers control roughly 80 per cent of sales — has helped drive inflation.

“And then we, you know, have a parliamentary inquiry into this matter, and for the three biggest chains in Canada, not one single head of the company came to publicly defend their company,” MacGregor said. “We do have the power to act, and whether that’s strengthening our competition laws or giving more resources to the Competition Bureau, those are options that we have. But my question to you sir is, what is the sector going to do to regain that trust?”

“Well, I firmly believe that customers show their trust every day,” Thibault responded. “We do hundreds of thousands of transactions every day.”

“So that’s it? You just – you think you do have the trust at present?” MacGregor said.

“Yes,” Thibault said. “We fight every day to gain that trust and keep that trust.”

“With respect, that’s completely opposite to what we’re hearing,” MacGregor said, just as his allotted time elapsed.

‘Look at the margins’

Canada’s top three grocers deny it, but they haven’t been able to shake accusations of profiteering from the worst food inflation since the early 1980s. Economists at progressive think-tanks, including the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, have questioned how the chains have expanded margins and increased profits while grocery bills soared, up around 11 per cent year over year according to the latest consumer price index from Statistics Canada.

Metro, along with Loblaw, has urged its critics to consider their gross margins when trying to determine whether stores are marking up products more than necessary. Gross margin measures the portion of sales left over after subtracting the grocer’s cost on that product. So if a grocer hiked prices only enough to pass on cost increases from their suppliers, the company’s overall sales would increase but the margin would stay stable.

The grocers have said their gross margins on food sales are stable at best. Metro said in an earnings update last month that those margins are actually getting worse, as the company puts on more promotions to try to compete for cash-strapped customers.

“You have to look at the margins,” Thibault told the inquiry. “The food margin was lower and it was compensated by a larger margin in pharmacies.”

Metro owns the Quebec pharmacy chain Jean Coutu and Loblaw owns Shoppers Drug Mart. Both argue that as the pandemic waned, customers started buying more higher margin beauty products and over-the-counter cold medication, leading to an improvement in the overall gross margin. (Empire doesn’t own a national pharmacy brand and has said its improvements are coming from a three-year turnaround project that is aimed at finding $500 million in annual cost savings.)

Food price hikes coming in February as cost blackout ends, Metro CEO says

Why your grocery bills remain high even as inflation slows

‘I refuse to apologize for our success’: Behind Michael Medline’s fierce defence of profitable grocers

Accounting experts say the pharmacy explanation is plausible, but Metro and Loblaw’s public financial documents don’t break down the gross margin by category, so it’s impossible to confirm.

“When we look at the financial statements, there seems to be something a little bit opaque,” Bloc Québécois MP Yves Perron asked Thibault during the hearing. “Don’t you think that your industry would benefit from being more transparent about these kinds of facts?”

Thibault said Metro publishes its financial results according to the “accounting norms and standards that are in place.”

Liberal MP Leah Taylor Roy pressed further, asking why Metro doesn’t publish the data — regardless of whether it’s required by accounting guidelines.

“We can look at this any way you want and talk about all the costs that are coming through. But facts don’t lie. And executive pay has gone up. Dividends have gone up. You said investments have gone up. But workers salaries haven’t gone up,” she said. “I continue to hear this emphasis on margins and accounting guidelines. But I’ve also heard from you that you want transparency and everything has to be open. I don’t think there’s any requirement that you only report margins the way you are.”

Time ran out before Thibault could response to the question.

In a statement later, Metro spokesperson Marie-Claude Bacon declined to provide a breakdown of the company’s gross margins in food versus pharmacy. “It is information that we do not disclose,” she said in an email.

Canada announces plans to protect vast marine zone with Great Bear Sea project



Leyland Cecco in Vancouver

THE GUARDIAN
Tue, 7 February 2023 

Photograph: John Zada/Alamy

Nearly a decade ago, Canadian political leaders, environmental activists and Indigenous nations came together to shelter a sprawling 6.4 million-hectare area of trees, sea wolves, salmon and grizzly bears – a project that was named, with some branding acumen, the Great Bear Rainforest.

The plan has since been hailed as a triumph for protecting swathes of old-growth cedar and spruce and drawing global attention to an area of pristine forest the size of Ireland.

This week, Indigenous nations in British Columbia are hoping to replicate that success by extending the model out to the ocean: a new network of protected marine zones called the Great Bear Sea.

Grizzly bears were one of the species protected by the formation of the Great BEar Rainforest project. Photograph: All Canada Photos/Alamy


But amid the fanfare and optimistic proclamations from senior Canadian and Indigenous leaders, the project’s branding is a reminder for some First Nations of the challenge of having their voices and values reflected in major conservation agreements.

At the Fifth International Marine Protected Areas Congress, being held in Vancouver this week, leaders from 15 First Nations, alongside delegates from British Columbia and the federal government, have announced plans to protect a swathe of marine coastline along the province’s northern coast, safeguarding a 10 million-hectare corridor of ocean stretching from the top of Vancouver Island to the Canada-Alaska border.

The plan, hailed as a breakthrough in recognising the delicate balance of preserving vulnerable ecosystems with the needs of coastal Indigenous communities, is also a necessary part in fulfilling Canada’s goal of protecting 30% of its lands and oceans by 2030.

“This is one of the richest and most productive ecosystems left in the world, and we should be very proud of that,” said Christine Smith-Martin, executive director of the Coastal First Nations. “Salmon, bears, wolves, and whales, kelp forests and ancient cedars; it is also a home to all of our people in our traditional territories. First Nations stewardship of these lands and seas dates back more than 14,000 years – we can take care of our territories.”

Provincial leaders view the deal as a departure from previous ways of seeing the environment. “We require a mindset shift in order to achieve a more sustainable planet,” said Nathan Cullen, British Columbia’s minister of water, land and resource stewardship. “The longstanding mindset of ‘scarcity’ is combative. It’s not collaborative. We need an ‘abundance mindset’– building back up what nature wants to do.

“That requires sharing of power and envisioning something that we can’t see in front of us right now. But the reality is that that’s hard.”

The agreement reflects not only hundreds of hours of meetings with residents of the 15 First Nations but two decades of effort from Indigenous communities to see the region protected from further harm.

A humpback whale breaching in Pacific coastal waters in the Great Bear Rainforest. Photograph: John Zada/Alamy

In recent years, populations of wild pacific salmon, the lifeblood of coastal First Nation communities, have collapsed. So too have eulachon, prized for their oil, alongside Dungeness crab and rockfish. The region has seen a spike in marine traffic as northern ports take on a greater share of wood pellet export, and there are plans for a surge in liquid natural gas shipments, presenting challenges in preserving an area that is becoming economically more important for Canada.

Marine biologists say the protected areas are vital in helping species recover and to improve their genetic diversity – a key way to help in adaptating to climate change. By establishing the network of protected areas, the hope is that the region will see cumulative benefits.

“Crown governments have had the power to implement laws and policies that could have slowed down or prevented us from getting here. [This is] the reckoning of that. If they were right, we wouldn’t be in this situation, this crisis,” said Gaagwiis, president of the Council of the Haida Nation.

Communities along the coast, whose inhabitants have relied on the marine environment for salmon, herring, seaweed and clams, also see their future ability to harvest from the ocean as a key metric of success. “It’s not just about ensuring that Indigenous title or jurisdiction is recognised in a proper way – we need to ensure that we have sustainable communities,” said Gaagwiis.

The timeline to get plans in place is “daunting”, said Gaagwiis, especially with the task of working with 15 Indigenous nations alongside two levels of government. “But we’re seeing a public commitment by the government to an international audience, so we’re optimistic that the conditions politically in Canada and internationally are aligned with Indigenous interests as well. It’s up to us all to figure out what it takes to get it done.”

Related: ‘A soul wound’: a First Nation built its culture around salmon. Now they have to fly it in frozen

The plan covers an area formally known as the northern shelf bioregion but it has been rebranded as the Great Bear Sea because it is linked to the neighbouring Great Bear Rainforest.

Dallas Smith, president of Nanwakolas Council, and a key negotiator for the rainforest plan, said the success of the model put Indigenous communities in a position to be able to hold governments accountable.

But the name itself, created by non-Indigenous activists in the 1990s to generate public interest and solidarity, has long been a point of contention among Indigenous peoples, who say it glosses over the fact that the sprawling forest is home to 26 First Nations and six distinct languages.

“I hate the term the Great Bear Rainforest,” said Smith. “But, that said, I respect it because, as a branding exercise, it was able to focus our goals in one collective thing.”

With the Great Bear Sea, Smith says that Indigenous communities have been able to “take back the narrative” that has historically been championed by outside groups, putting forward a set of requirements and conditions that reflect Indigenous knowledge and values.

A Kermode or spirit bear foraging in the intertidal zone, Great Bear Rainforest. 

Photograph: All Canada Photos/Alamy

“We waited too long for the government or industry, or even activists, to solve our problems for us. If governments want to wax poetic about ocean protection, climate change and reconciliation, you’re going to have to dance with us, instead of making us dance for you,” he said.

“With the Great Bear Sea, you’re going to dance to our tune now.”

UK

Exclusive: MPs' Staff Ballot For Strike Action Over 15% Pay Demand


Kevin Schofield
Tue, 7 February 2023 


MPs’ staff are to hold a strike ballot after rejecting a “woefully inadequate” 4.9% pay offer, HuffPost UK can reveal.

The parliamentary branch of the Unite union unanimously passed a motion demanding an increase for their members of the RPI rate of inflation plus 2%, which works out at around 15%.

Although the staff are employed by MPs, the budget and pay grades are set by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA).

The Unite motion says: “Years of below inflation pay increases and a fundamentally broken system of employment has led to widespread insecurity and a depression of staff wages.

“The 2023/24 increase, which is half the current rate of inflation and lower than the private sector increase, will only further exacerbate the problem.”

It adds: “This branch resolves to begin the process of balloting for strike action and reiterates our call for an RPI +2% pay rise.”

In a letter to IPSA chair Richard Lloyd, Unite official Max Freedman said: “The branch meeting was one of the largest we have ever had and the motion passed without dissent.

“We are happy to meet with you at any point to discuss how we can call off action.”

Leeann Clarkson, secretary of Unite’s parliamentary staff branch, said in a letter to union members: “MPs as the employer must be the focus of the ballot but they will not be the target of the campaign.

“It is regrettable that IPSA have not negotiated over the pay that staff need and deserve at a time of soaring cost of living that has led to this situation.”

The IPSA website says the body “may provide additional funds to MPs’ staffing budget to facilitate a percentage annual increase to the salaries of staff members”.

It goes on: “Such annual increases will be applied automatically, except where a member of staff has been opted out of this arrangement.

“The amount of this increase will be determined by IPSA and communicated to MPs and their staff ahead of the start of the financial year.”

A copy of the Unite motion was also sent to Commons speaker Lindsay Hoyle.

His spokesperson said they would not comment.

The possible strike would be the latest in a line of industrial action taken by public sector workers over the last few months, including nurses and railway workers.

Last month Tory MP Lee Anderson - who was appointed the party’s deputy chairman earlier today - was accused of using a member of staff as a “political football” after he tweeted about her financial situation.

UK
More than 100,000 civil servants to strike on budget day next month



Tue, 7 February 2023

More than 100,000 civil servants are to strike on budget day in an escalation of a dispute over pay, pensions and job security.

The Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union has announced a new strike date of 15 March, when Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is due to unveil his spring budget.

It follows a strike last week that saw hundreds of thousands of members in 123 government departments walk out across England, Scotland and Wales.

The union warned that next month's strike could include a further 33,000 members working for 10 more employers, including HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), whose ballot results are due on 28 February.

PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: "Rishi Sunak doesn't seem to understand that the more he ignores our members' demands for a pay rise to get them through the cost-of-living crisis, the more angry and more determined he makes them.

"PCS members are suffering a completely unacceptable decline in their pay. By April, one third of HMRC staff, for example, will be earning just the minimum wage. 40,000 civil servants have used a foodbank. It's an appalling way for the government to treat its own workforce."

Mr Serwotka said the prime minister "can end this dispute tomorrow if he puts more money on the table".

He warned: "If he refuses to do that, more action is inevitable."

The PCS union is calling for a 10% pay rise, protections to pensions and protections from job cuts.

The government has said the demands - which it says would cost £2.4 billion - are unaffordable.

The dispute is becoming increasingly bitter with Mr Serwotka calling talks last month to prevent the action a "complete farce" and warning future strikes "will be even bigger" if ministers do not act.

The strikes have impacted several key government departments and agencies including Border Force, National Highways, the Department for Work and Pensions and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).

The new members being balloted include those working for HMRC, the Welsh government, the Care Quality Commission and Companies House.

Civil servants are among the thousands of public sector workers striking over pay and conditions amid soaring inflation and a decline in living standards.

Read More:
Strikes: Who is taking industrial action in 2023 and when?

Nurses continued with their industrial action today after walking out on Monday alongside paramedics and call handlers in what was the largest strike in NHS history.

Environment Agency workers will walk out tomorrow, while teachers and university staff will continue with strikes next week.

Union leaders have implored the government to act to prevent further strike action, but ministers in England have indicated that they will not budge on one of the main points of contention - pay for 2022/23.

Why retailers send your like-new returns to rot in landfills

Emma Cosgrove
Wed, February 8, 2023 

According to an estimate by the returns tech platform Optoro, as many as 9.6 billion pounds of returns ended up in landfills in 2021 — equivalent to 10,500 fully loaded Boeing 747s.

Martin Bernetti/AFP via Getty Images

Americans returned $816 billion in products last year, according to the National Retail Federation.

Whether items are returned to the store or shipped, they can still end up in a landfill.

Reducing returns is consumers' best shot at avoiding making the problem worse, according to experts.

Shoppers are returning more goods than ever, and some of those products end up rotting in landfills — even when they're in like-new condition.

It's hard to know exactly how many returns are sent to landfills because many retailers aren't eager to share this data, said Glenn Richey, chair of the Department of Supply Chain Management at Auburn University's Harbert College of Business. Getting caught trashing or destroying goods can lead to brand-damaging headlines.

On the flip side, strategies to avoid tossing returns could be seen as a competitive advantage worth guarding.

According to an estimate by the returns tech platform Optoro, as many as 9.6 billion pounds of returns ended up in landfills in 2021 — equivalent to 10,500 fully loaded Boeing 747s. The 2021 figures marked the height of the e-commerce boom and a 65% increase in estimated returns headed for landfills from the previous year.

Why returns end up in the garbage

Americans returned $816 billion in products last year, a 7% jump from the year before — but that's after a massive 78% increase from 2020 to 2021, according to the NRF.

For retailers without strong moral or environmental values, returns are a pretty simple math problem.

"If it costs more to process an item and get it to sell in another channel than it does to throw it away, then they throw it away," Optoro CEO Tobin Moore told Insider. Not all retailers are environmentally focused, "so things end up being thrown away because of the cost," he said.

Processing a return involves shipping, labor to inspect the item, materials to repack it, and additional shipping to transport it to a store or warehouse to resell — or to another location to be sold on a secondary market where it may sell at a discount.

"Some products will require deep cleaning or other more involved processing steps, and the costs of these extra steps are not always justified," said Mike Galbreth, a professor at the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee.

With clothing returns, for example, processors may check for stains and smells. Often, the cost to remove these imperfections isn't worthwhile.

"And remember, when you sell things to a direct consumer online, if you resell it, there's also returns that happen again," Moore said.

The math doesn't always send goods straight to the trash. Some items, like electronics, keep their value for longer. Sometimes donations or recycling offer tax benefits. Returns processor Inmar Intelligence told Insider it sends less than 1% of goods to landfills after working for years on technology, process, and donation and recycling relationships.

Optoro claims its technology speeds up decisions to remove labor costs — diverting millions of pounds of waste from landfills. But it's still a common practice to trash returned goods, especially with certain types of products.

How consumers can avoid adding to landfills

Most retailers don't publicly advertise how they handle returns, unless they are particularly proud of their strategies. If consumers want to avoid contributing to landfills with their returns, there are a few things to keep in mind.

Consider the size and value of a product when purchasing. Some products are more prone to end up in the landfill because of their low value or high shipping costs. Big or heavy items like furniture, for example, are top contenders for landfills. Luxury brands, too, are more likely to trash returns to avoid products ending up in secondary markets and tarnishing the label's value. And fast fashion without much value to start with is less likely to be worth recirculating. Closely checking measurements and size charts can cut down on returns of these products.

Avoid "bracketing" and "wardrobing. "Bracketing," when shoppers buy multiple sizes of the same item and only keep one, and "wardrobing," where shoppers buy things to wear once and then return, are two habits Galbreth and Richey said consumers should break if they want to avoid sending their goods to landfills. Buying high-quality products that will last if kept, or hold up well in shipping and returns processing is another tip from Richey.

Make fast returns in original packaging. Some retailers offer months-long return windows. But returning things soon after delivery helps ensure the items are still current and will retain their value. "For those inevitable returns that do happen, return the item as quickly as possible to reduce the risk of obsolescence," Galbreth said. Returning things in their original packages and in pristine condition is also helpful.

Moore said there are some reasons for optimism, too. Retailers are investing more in returns technology, services, and other advanced strategies as returns volumes grow. Consolidation strategies used by Amazon and other major retailers cut down on shipping costs by pooling returns together at stores. And some solutions have sprung up to tackle tough categories. Floorfound is a startup specializing in returned furniture. Rebel Stork is vetting and sanitizing open-box baby gear.

"We do have other retail clients also who are getting really smart about what to do with the things that are damaged beyond repair," Moore said.

Exclusive-Peru mines on power despite protests, though halt risk looms

A view shows a makeshift dwelling near an area where hundreds of artisan miners have found a rich seam of copper, in Peru

By Alexander Villegas and Adam Jourdan

Wed, February 8, 2023 

ESPINAR, Peru (Reuters) - Peru's biggest copper mines have been able to maintain production despite road blockades, attacks and protests that have roiled the Andean nation for over two months and led to warnings of production halts, an analysis showed on Wednesday.

The analysis of power usage data by Reuters at some of the key mines in Peru, the world's no. 2 copper producer, indicates that activity at the deposits remains near normal levels, although a source close to one major mine said the risk of stoppages was rising.

The South American nation has been gripped by anti-government protests since the Dec. 7 ouster of leftist President Pedro Castillo. Highways have been blockaded throughout the copper-rich south, threatening production and transport of the metal, hitting some company shares, and boosting already high prices.

But the data suggests mining activity has been resilient, at least for now.

This includes massive deposit Las Bambas, owned by China's MMG Ltd, which previously said it would have to halt production from Feb. 1, and Glencore's Antapaccay, which stopped production in mid-January but has since resumed.

The power data from COES, which represents firms in Peru's energy sector, shows that nearly all major mines are drawing normal or near-normal levels of electricity. The data has traditionally been a reliable indicator of mining activity.

GRAPHIC: Peru Mines: Power use 

https://www.reuters.com/graphics/PERU-MINING/zjpqjwqokvx/chart.png

A source close to Las Bambas said the mine, which previously said it faced a production halt from Feb. 1 due to key provisions not reaching the mine, said it had been able to keep operating at a minimum level after getting "last minute supplies."

The mine, which normally supplies some 2% of global copper, has been hit by regular blockades for years, usually causing its power use to fall sharply during the periods of disruption. This has not yet happened this time around, despite the protests.

The person added, however, that the mine risked fully running out of supplies by Wednesday, which would force it to move into a "care and maintenance" mode with its machinery that would use half the normal level of power.

GRAPHIC: Las Bambas: Power and protest 

https://www.reuters.com/graphics/PERU-MINING/gdvzynngzpw/chart.png

The data shows some mines experienced temporary dips in power use in recent months, including Peru's largest mine Antamina, co-owned by Glencore and BHP, and Glencore's Antapaccay around the middle of January.

Antapaccay reopened on Jan. 31 after a temporary halt and has been operating again at full capacity.

Hudbay Mineral Inc's Constancia mine has seen power use start to decline recently. Others, like Freeport-McMoRan's Cerro Verde are at normal or elevated levels. A combined index of six key mines is near normal.

Freeport-McMoRan spokesperson Linda Hayes said: "We are continuing to operate, but have limited our mill throughput by about 10% to deal with intermittent supply disruptions."

The other firms did not immediately respond to requests for comment about activity at their mines in Peru.

The mining activity is key to keeping global copper supply flowing. Brokerage Jefferies said in a Jan. 31 note that some 30% of Peruvian copper supply was at risk from the unrest, a "potential positive for the copper price."

The protests - which have led to the deaths of 48 people and are the worst violence Peru has seen in over 20 years - could of course soon start to have a greater effect on mining operations. Demonstrators are becoming more determined as lawmakers struggle to agree on calling snap elections, a key protest demand.

This week, Peru's Buenaventura suspended operations at a key silver mine after protesters invaded the site.

At a blockade on the "mining corridor" highway, protester Wilber Toco Aragua Salcedo told Reuters that people felt like the mines took all the wealth and left little for locals.

"The south is quite rich, but the mining concessions that we have harm the people," he said, adding he had heard mines were stocking up on supplies. "The people do not get tired, the people won't go away, we will not take a step back."

GRAPHIC: Peru: mines and power 

https://www.reuters.com/graphics/PERU-MINING/byvrlkoxave/chart.png

(Reporting by Alex Villegas in Espinar and Adam Jourdan in Buenos Aires; Additional reporting by Ernest Scheyder, Melanie Burton, Valentine Hilaire and Fabian Cambero; Editing by Rosalba O'Brien and Bernadette Baum)

Three ways out from Peru political crisis, say experts

Jean Luis ARCE
Tue, 7 February 2023 


Peru has been rocked by two months of social upheaval with near-daily anti-government protests often spilling into violence in which at least 48 people have died.

Demonstrators angered by the arrest of former president Pedro Castillo are demanding the resignation of President Dina Boluarte, immediate elections, the dissolution of parliament and a new constitution.

But Boluarte refuses to step down and last week Congress shelved all attempts to bring forward elections slated for 2026, despite having tentatively voted in principle in December to hold them in 2024.

It has left the country mired in a political crisis that shows no sign of abating with protesters determined to maintain their pressure with rallies and road blocks.

Here, analysts discuss three ways the South American country could resolve the crisis.

- Resignation -

"The only (way out) is President Boluarte's resignation," said Paula Tavara, political scientist and professor at the Catholic University in Lima.

Power would then transfer to the head of Congress whose role would be to call fresh elections, although there is no constitutional time limit for that.

Boluarte was Castillo's vice president and took power after he was impeached and arrested on December 7, charged with rebellion for having attempted to dissolve parliament and rule by decree.

Although she is from the same left-wing party as Castillo, his supporters accuse her of treachery and are adamant she must quit.

Boluarte has dismissed such demands as "political blackmail."

She claims she has no intention of holding onto power and pushed for elections to be brought forward.

But Tavara says it is clear Congress has no intention of doing so since it voted down several bills proposing such anticipated polls, and will not now debate the subject again until August.

One such bill in December was approved, setting April 2024 as the new date, but Congress never ratified it in a necessary second vote.

Congress has thus left "the solutions in the hands of the Executive," said Tavara.

But Boluarte's resignation remains "highly improbable."

Tavara believes that Boluarte is afraid of losing her presidential immunity and having to "take responsibility for the consequences" of the protester death toll in the courts.

Rights organizations have accused the security forces of excessive use of force against demonstrators.

It is also against Boluarte's interests and those of the right-wing allies supporting her in parliament for her to resign, said political scientist Patricia Paniagua of the University of Granada.

"You can see this clear alignment of a strategy" between the two.

- Removal -

If Boluarte does not resign, she could be removed by Congress, as the constitution allows.

Parliament has a history of removing presidents with Alberto Fujimori (2000), Martin Vizcarra (2020) and Castillo (2022) all forced out in recent years, while Pedro Pablo Kuczynski (2018) jumped before he was pushed.

Rumors persist that left-wing parties will try to remove Boluarte, but this could be difficult to achieve with a two-thirds majority needed to do so.

"I cannot see it happening as it would also accelerate the end of this Congress" by bringing forward general elections, said Alonso Cardenas, a professor of political science at the Antonio Ruiz de Montoya university.

"Given the political immaturity" of those in government and in parliament, it is unlikely they would sacrifice their own ambitions for the good of the country, added Cardenas.

In any case, "they don't have the votes" to remove Boluarte, says Paniagua, who nonetheless believes the issue "will be discussed."

- Waiting for storm to pass -

The refusal of Congress to advance elections could lead to the protest movement growing and expanding, particularly in the capital.

"Unfortunately that week of no (election) decision being taken brings us closer to that scenario," said Tavara.

But at the same time, Paniagua believes the government is banking on protesters becoming weary and giving up, allowing the president and Congress to see out their mandates until 2026.

"The response in the street is energetic, it's firm .... but can this last over the medium to long term?" said Paniagua.

Paniagua says Boluarte's silence after Congress shelved her attempts to bring forward elections suggest both branches of power are prepared to continue "turning their backs on what is happening in the street."

Tavara believes the government could survive through "a very serious act of contrition," such as replacing the cabinet, punishing those responsible for protester deaths and opening up dialogue with protesters.

jla/pb/ll/bc/ec

Peru reports hundreds of sea lion deaths due to bird flu

Tue, 7 February 2023 


Peru said Tuesday that 585 sea lions and 55,000 wild birds have died of the H5N1 bird flu virus in recent weeks, the latest report on the disease's impacts.

Following the discovery of 55,000 dead birds in eight protected coastal areas, rangers found the bird flu that killed them had also claimed 585 sea lions in seven protected marine areas, the Sernanp natural areas protection agency said.

The dead birds included pelicans, various types of gulls, and penguins, the Sernanp said in a statement.

Laboratory tests also confirmed the presence of H5N1 in the dead sea lions, prompting the authorities to announce a "biological vigilance protocol."

For its part, Peru's National Forest and Wildlife Service (SERFOR) urged people and their pets to avoid contact with sea lions and sea birds on the beach.

In December, Peruvian authorities culled 37,000 birds on a chicken farm over bird flu, following previous outbreaks that affected wildlife.

Killing infected birds is part of the usual protocol to control avian influenza outbreaks.

In November, the country declared a 180-day health alert after finding three cases of highly contagious H5N1 in pelicans.

According to the SENASA agricultural health agency, the disease is transmitted by migratory birds from North America.

Since late 2021 Europe has been gripped by its worst-ever outbreak of bird flu, while North and South America are also experiencing severe outbreaks.

It is rare that bird flu jumps over into mammals -- and rarer still that humans catch the potentially deadly virus.

But the virus has recently been found in foxes and otters in Britain, a cat in France, and grizzly bears in Montana. All the mammals were suspected to have eaten infected birds.

et/jla/mlr/mlm

Swiss give 2,500-year-old stone sculpture back to Peru

Wed, 8 February 2023 


The Swiss on Wednesday handed a large stone-carved head back to Peru, where it was sculpted around 2,500 years ago by one of the country's earliest civilisations, the culture office said.

The monolithic sculpture, which weighs almost 200 kilogrammes (440 pounds), was brought into Switzerland by truck in 2016 from Germany at the request of a German art dealer.

Switzerland's Federal Office of Culture (FOC) said in a statement that the sculpture had not been properly declared as a cultural property. It was later confiscated as there was "substantiated suspicion" it had been illegally taken from Peru.


FOC head Carine Bachmann presented the decorative stone sculpture to Peruvian ambassador Luis Alberto Castro Joo at the Basel-Weil am Rhein customs office, where the piece was discovered seven years ago.

After it was discovered, FOC specialists reviewed the piece and determined that the "2,500-year-old stone head from the pre-Hispanic Chavin culture (circa 1200 to 550 BC) originates in what is now Peru," Wednesday's statement said.

"That makes it a significant piece of cultural property that should have been declared as such when it was imported."

Peru is heavily affected by the plundering and destruction of archaeological sites.

And pre-Columbian pieces like the stone head returned Wednesday are among Peru's most endangered categories of cultural property, the FOC said.

Switzerland and Peru are both signatories of a 1970 UNESCO convention banning the illegal import and export of cultural property.

The two countries also signed a bilateral deal in 2016 to strengthen their cooperation on the issue.

"This restitution underlines the shared commitment of Switzerland and Peru to combating the illegal transfer of cultural property," the FOC said.

How much Canadians have fallen behind amid high inflation and who's hurting the most

Wed, February 8, 2023 



OTTAWA — Inflation has eroded purchasing power for many Canadians, but the experience with rapidly rising prices has been far from uniform.

While the inflation rate shows how quickly prices are rising, other factors like income and consumption patterns can make it harder or easier for people to cope.

Here's a look at how high inflation is right now, who's feeling the pinch, and when Canadians can expect inflation to come down.

How high is inflation?

After reaching 8.1 per cent in the summer, Canada's annual inflation rate has slowed noticeably in recent months. In December, the annual inflation rate was 6.3 per cent.

Although that's still much higher than the Bank of Canada's two per cent target, recent monthly trends suggest inflation is heading closer to the target.

But even as inflation slows, food prices in particular have been a pain point for many Canadians. In December, grocery prices were 11 per cent higher than they were a year ago.

Have wages kept up with the cost of living?

Wages are rising buthave not kept up with the rate of inflation. In December, average hourly wages were up 5.1 per cent compared with a year ago.

Brendan Bernard, a senior economist with hiring website Indeed, says Canadians on average have seen their real wages (amount earned after factoring in inflation) fall by about one per cent during that time period.

But some have seen their wages go up more than others, making it easier for those who have received a raise to cope with the rising cost of living.

University of Calgary economics professor Trevor Tombe said workers who got a new job or leveraged a job offer with their employer likely saw their pay go up more than others.

Workers can't always negotiate their pay to reflect the rise in the cost of living. Unionized workers, for example, negotiate contracts on fixed schedules.

"It will take potentially quite a bit of time for the current spike in inflation to be compensated for with increased wages for individuals," Tombe said.

Who's been hit hardest by inflation?

Though most Canadians have probably experienced sticker shock at the grocery store or elsewhere, not everyone is equally strained.

"Inflation is not just a single, homogeneous experience that everyone is going through," said Tombe.

Depending on what people buy, the amount they need to maintain their consumption levels and lifestyle could be higher or lower than the headline inflation rate.

Tombe said families with children have been particularly affected by inflation because a larger share of their budgets go toward food and fuel, two categories that have seen sharp increases in prices. According to his calculations based on October 2022, a family with children spent on average about $65 more per month than one without children.

"Price increases will strain households at lower income levels more because they save less than higher-income households," he said.

With less of a savings buffer, lower-income Canadians have a harder time covering the costs of rising bills. Meanwhile, higher income earners can absorb additional costs by reducing their savings.

Statistics Canada data shows net average household savings have declined across all income brackets. But the trend is more alarming for households in the bottom 40 per cent because they tend to spend more than they earn in income.

During the third quarter of 2022, for example, households in the bottom 20 per cent of income earners spent about $7,400 more than they earned. In the third quarter of 2021, that figure was $6,550.

Meanwhile, the top 20 per cent put away on average about $14,200 in the third quarter of 2022, down from $16,900.

How much have Canadians fallen behind?

With prices rising at the fastest pace in decades and the federal Liberals on the hot seat for cost-of-living issues, inflation has featured prominently in the House of Commons.

Federal Conservatives have been particularly focused on affordability concerns and have been calling on the government to rein in spending.

"Canadians are worse off than ever," said Conservative MP and finance critic Jasraj Singh Hallan on Jan. 31.

Recent polling suggests the Conservatives are indeed tapping into many Canadians' feelings about the state of the economy.

But the current bout of inflation hasn't pushed Canadians back as far as some may think.

Tombe says purchasing power has fallen to 2019 levels, which means a dollar today can purchase the same amount of goods and services a dollar could purchase in 2019.

"It's certainly false that Canadians have never been worse off," Tombe said.

"Inflation has dialed the clock back only just a few years in terms of average purchasing power of people's wages."

How do Canadians say they're faring?

A new poll suggests most Canadians feel their financial situation is about the same as it was a year ago.

According to a Leger poll, commissioned by the Association for Canadians Studies, 34 per cent of Canadian households say their financial situation has worsened over the last year.

Meanwhile, 58 per cent of those who responded say their financial situation has remained relatively unchanged and nine per cent say it's improved.

The percentage of Canadians who say they're worse off, however, is higher among low-income earners.

According to the survey, 42 per cent of those earning less than $40,000 say their household's overall financial situation is worse.

The online survey was completed by 1,554 Canadians between Jan. 23 and 25 and cannot be assigned a margin of error because online polls are not considered truly random samples.

When is inflation going to come down?

Barring unexpected global events, most economists anticipate inflation to continue slowing this year.

The Bank of Canada is forecasting the annual inflation rate will reach three per cent by mid-year and will come back down to two per cent in 2024.

Tombe said inflation still appears to be high because the rate is calculated on an annual basis.

The recent deceleration in prices, which has been driven by lower energy prices and easing supply chains, is expected to be reflected in the annual inflation rate in the months to come.

"And so, the worst may already be behind us," Tombe said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 8, 2023.

Nojoud Al Mallees, The Canadian Press