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The federal government says it’s freezing more than US$2.2 billion in grants and US$60 million in contracts to Harvard University, after the institution said it would defy the Trump administration’s demands to limit activism on campus. The hold on Harvard’s funding marks the seventh time President Donald Trump’s administration has taken the step at one of the nation’s most elite colleges, in an attempt to force compliance with Trump’s political agenda. Six of the seven schools are in the Ivy League.In a letter to Harvard Friday, Trump’s administration had called for broad government and leadership reforms at the university, as well as changes to its admissions policies. It also demanded the university audit views of diversity on campus, and stop recognizing some student clubs.The federal g...

Descrease article font size Increase article font size Overall inflation eased for Canadians in March, but the end of the GST/HST holiday and U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war continues to stress consumers in Canada. Statistics Canada said Tuesday that the annual pace of inflation cooled to 2.3 per cent in March, compared to 2.6 per cent the month before.The numbers defied analysts expectations, who expected inflation to remain unchanged from February. Experts believe that Canada managed to keep the rate of inflation below two per cent until December because of the GST/HST holiday, which lasted from Dec. 9 to Feb. 15. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up fo...

As the federal party leaders prepare to face off in debates in Montreal this week, experts say they’re likely working on positive body language and polishing their French skills.Dan Arnold, chief strategy officer at Pollara and former pollster for the Trudeau Liberals, said the leaders probably have been taking part in “mock debates” in rented-out studios with their teams before the big show.Those debates are probably recorded, to allow the campaign teams to analyze what worked and what didn’t in terms of communication and body language.Arnold said Trudeau did “at least half a dozen if not more” mock leadership debates before the 2015 campaign actually started. Given his chaotic year, he said, Liberal Leader Mark Carney may not have had as much time to prepare as other candidates. ...

The federal party leaders are set to hit the debate stage this week, each preparing to pitch their plan for the country just days ahead of when many Canadians will cast their votes in advanced polls. Liberal Leader Mark Carney; Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre; NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh; Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet, and Green Party co-leader Jonathan Pedneault will face off in the French-language debate on April 16, with the English debate taking place on April 17.Each leader qualified for the debates based on meeting two of three criteria set by the federal debates commission, either by holding a seat in the House of Commons when the election was called, having a national polling average of at least four per cent by March 31, or have candidates endorsed in at least 90 ...

Descrease article font size Increase article font size Premier Wab Kinew says Manitoba is set to partner with other provinces and territories to help power infrastructure projects. The provincial government issued a directive to Manitoba Hydro Monday to redirect some of its expiring electricity export contracts with the United States to provide power to homegrown projects here in Canada, as trade tensions continue between both countries.Contracts worth 500 megawatts of power will be redirected by the Crown corporation to initiatives including development of the Kivalliq Hydro-Fibre Link, a 50-megawatt project aimed at providing power and telecommunications infrastructure to northern communities in Nuvavut.“Manitoba is a province of builders an...