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Donald Trump suggested Sunday that his new administration could try to regain control of the Panama Canal that the United States “foolishly” ceded to its Central American ally, contending that shippers are charged “ridiculous” fees to pass through the vital transportation channel linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Panama’s conservative president José Raúl Mulino, who was elected in April on a pro-business platform, roundly rejected that notion as an affront to his country’s sovereignty.The Republican president-elect’s comment came during his first major rally since winning the White House on Nov. 5. He also used his comments to also bask in his return to power as a large audience of conservatives cheered along. It was a display of party unity at odds with a just-concluded budget figh...

Descrease article font size Increase article font size Unifor said on Sunday that its members at Canadian National Railway CNR.TO have ratified a new four-year collective agreement, averting a potential strike action. Unifor, which represents more than 3,000 members at the railroad’s Council 4000 and Local 100 committees, said the agreement includes improvements to wages and benefits as well as job protections for members working in CN terminals and headquarters across Canada.The railroad earlier this month had reached a new tentative four-year collective agreement with the union.“This agreement secures important gains that reflect the critical contributions of Unifor members to CN’s operations,” Unifor National President Lana Payne said in a ...

Pressure is mounting on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to step down, with a growing number of Liberal MPs joining calls for his resignation after a chaotic week for his party. More than 50 of the 75 Liberal MPs from Ontario held a one-hour meeting on Saturday to talk about their party’s leadership, Global News has learned.At the caucus meeting, few MPs spoke in favour of Trudeau’s continued leadership but many spoke about the desirability that he leaves, saying his brand has now become “toxic”.Details of the Ontario caucus meeting were first reported by The Toronto Star and CBC News and those details have largely been confirmed by Global News who also spoke to MPs who were present.Michael Coteau, the Ontario Liberal caucus chair, was charged with communicating the contents of the meeting to...

Steps to make Canadian sports safer were made in 2024, but to what end? A national commission began cross-country public consultations, an online registry of people sanctioned or under investigation for maltreatment in sport went live and a seismic shift in handling future complaints was announced.Canada was said to be a long way from the culture change identified as key to draining sport of toxic behaviour.“The progress is definitely slow and a bumpy ride,” said Erin Willson, an Olympic artistic swimmer and past president of AthletesCan, which provides a unified voice for national-team athletes.“The big question that I’ve wrestled with probably for the last seven or eight years is how do we change the culture of sport? It all comes down to the values of sport, what are we valuing and what...

A Liberal MP who has called on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to resign says the “vast majority” of caucus colleagues he’s spoken to feel the same way. Trudeau’s leadership has been on shaky ground for months, but it became more unstable Monday after his longtime ally Chrystia Freeland resigned from cabinet, throwing the government into chaos.A growing number of Liberal MPs have since publicly called on Trudeau to step aside and make way for a new Liberal leader ahead of a likely early election.One of those MPs is Anthony Housefather, who says there’s “a number of reasons” why he feels Trudeau’s time is up.“The top one is that Canadians have clearly lost confidence in him, and Canadians want him to go,” Housefather told Mercedes Stephenson in an interview that aired Sunday on The West Block...

In the wake of recent shootings at Jewish schools, the federal government is planning to hold a national forum to combat antisemitism in the country. The forum will be held in Ottawa in February of 2025 to “discuss the growing public safety threat of antisemitism,” the Department of Justice Canada announced on Friday.“Canada has seen a troubling rise in antisemitic incidents, threats, and hate crimes,” the department said.“The Government of Canada recognizes the urgent need for national leadership to ensure Jewish Canadians feel safe in their synagogues, schools, and communities.”The justice minister, attorney general, and the minister and associate minister of public safety will co-chair the forum next year.Federal, provincial, and municipal leadership, along with law enforcement and pros...