In the news today: Speaker resignation effective today, potential gravesites in Yukon

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 27/09/2023 (1081 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed on what you need to know today…

Speaker’s resignation to take effect

The resignation of House of Commons Speaker Anthony Rota is set to take effect this evening.

Rota resigned on Tuesday amid international controversy after he invited a man who fought for the Nazis to attend a speech by the Ukrainian president last Friday.

He said he profoundly regrets calling attention to 98-year-old Yaroslav Hunka, a veteran of a Ukrainian voluntary unit that was under the command of the Nazis in the Second World War.

15 “potential” gravesites found near former Yukon residential school

The former Chooutla Residential School in Carcross, Yukon Territory, is now the site of 15 “potential” gravesites at or near the school.

Researchers say a ground-penetrating radar scan of the grounds has detected anomalies that are consistent with former student accounts.

They’ve also used archival documents to identify 33 students who either died at the school or shortly after being injured there.

Here’s what else we’re watching …

Tories maintain summer lead in September poll

The Conservatives have maintained their summer lead in the polls, according to fresh numbers from Leger.

Leger has released the findings of an online survey conducted over the weekend with more than 1,600 Canadian respondents.

Among decided voters, Tory Leader Pierre Poilievre’s party has the support of 39 per cent of respondents, which is 12 points ahead of the federal Liberals.

Nygard sexual-assault trial to hear more evidence

Jurors at the Toronto sexual-assault trial of former Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard are set to hear more evidence today.

Nygard, the founder of a now-defunct international women’s clothing company, has been accused of using his position in the fashion industry to lure women and girls.

The 82-year-old has pleaded not guilty to five counts of sexual assault and one count of forcible confinement in alleged incidents ranging from the ’80s to mid-2000s.

Alberta government to provide E. coli update

The Alberta government is to provide an update today on the investigation into an E. coli outbreak that affected multiple Calgary daycares.

Premier Danielle Smith, Health Minister Adriana LaGrange, Children and Family Services Minister Searle Turton and chief medical officer of health, Dr. Mark Joffe, are scheduled to hold a news conference this morning in Calgary.

It comes the same week as the province posted a link to an online application form for a one-time payment of $2,000 for each child affected by the outbreak.

Coast Guard works to ‘refine’ wrecked boat list

Vancouver developer Howard Meakin has owned the famed Expo 86-era floating McDonald’s restaurant known as the McBarge for three decades, and despite its outward appearance, he says the ship is in tip-top shape.

To his surprise, he says he found out the vessel was listed on Canada’s national inventory of wrecked, abandoned, or hazardous vessels from a newspaper article, but it has since been removed from the list.

The national inventory on wrecks was launched late last year and has nearly fifteen hundred entries or reported vessels in Canada’s waters, although about two thirds of them are in British Columbia.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 27, 2023.