Pray for rain — and plant more trees

As I write this, Saskatchewan is under another air-quality alert as smoke from Alberta and B.C. drift over to cast a shadow on what would typically be a sunny June day.

The bully is a person in our neighbourhood

A new kid moves into your neighbourhood. A loudmouth, pretty darned full of himself; “I’m the best, the bigly-est, the smartest person ever,” but you’re used to all sorts, even windbags, so you don’t pay him much mind.

And then one day as you’re walking by, he punches you in the face.

Later, he’s all smiles, and says “Let’s let bygones be bygones, we could be the bestest of friends.” And things get better for a bit, though he’s still insufferable.

Not long after, as you’re walking by, he comes up and punches you in the face, saying that you were mean to him.

Politicians held accountable — what about bureaucrats?

The Sio Silica caretaker convention scandal report by Manitoba’s ethics commissioner should be required reading in every public service in Canada.

Ottawa, Manitoba decided jointly to send evacuees to Niagara Falls

The Manitoba government confirmed Friday the decision to send some of the 18,000 wildfire evacuees to southern Ontario was made jointly with the federal government.

“Manitoba, in partnership with Indigenous Services Canada, worked quickly to ensure evacuees secured shelter and lodging in Ontario, much like Manitoba housed over 1,000 evacuees from Wabaseemoong Independent Nations (in northwestern Ontario) in May,” a spokesperson said in an email.

The province said it requested assistance from Ottawa — via Public Safety Canada’s Government Operations Centre — that emphasized the need for federal help to ensure a successful emergency response, including evacuation logistics.

“Support measures remain in place for affected on-reserve and eligible First Nation communities, with resources available for both immediate and long-term recovery,” ISC said in an emailed statement.

Manitoba’s regional authorities spent over $35M last year in the ongoing effort to keep health-care workers safe

Last Christmas Eve, a man walked into Thompson General Hospital with a loaded rifle concealed in his clothing.

He moved through the emergency department and other areas — some full of patients — before taking an elevator to the second-floor chapel.

No one knows how long the 33-year-old man was in the facility. He was discovered by a patient who wanted to use the chapel for prayer.

The patient, hearing a commotion behind the locked doors, notified a nurse. Security was nowhere to be found.

Czech justice minister resigns over a donated bitcoin scandal

PRAGUE (AP) — Czech Republic Justice Minister Pavel Blažek resigned from his post over a bitcoin-related scandal on Friday.

Blažek was under fire from the opposition after his ministry accepted a donation of bitcoins and sold them for about 1 billion Czech koruna (more than $45 million) earlier this year.

Blažek said that he wasn't aware of any wrongdoing, but didn’t want the four-party coalition government led by Prime Minister Petr Fiala to be harmed by the scandal. Fiala said that he appreciated his resignation and believed that Blažek acted with goodwill.

Blažek was a close ally of Fiala in the government, and also in his conservative Civic Democratic Party. It's not clear who might replace him.

Colorado’s governor vetoes landmark ban on rent-setting algorithms

Democratic Gov. Jared Polis has vetoed a bill that would have made Colorado the first state to ban landlords from using rent-setting algorithms, which many advocates have blamed for driving up housing costs across the country.

RealPage is the target of a federal lawsuit filed last year that accuses the real estate software company of facilitating an illegal scheme to help landlords coordinate to hike rental prices. Eight other states, including Colorado, have joined the Department of Justice's lawsuit, though RealPage has vehemently denied any claims of collusion and has fought to have the lawsuit dismissed.

Critics say RealPage software combines confidential information from each real estate management company in ways that enable landlords to align prices and avoid competition that would otherwise push down rents. RealPage’s clients include huge landlords who collectively oversee millions of units across the U.S.

The Colorado bill, which recently passed the Democratic-led Legislature along party lines, would have prevented the use of such algorithms.

Quebec tables bill to eliminate interprovincial trade barriers on sale of goods

QUÉBEC - Quebec is moving to lower interprovincial trade barriers, as part of a push by provinces and the federal government to increase domestic trade in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs.

Minister for the Economy Christopher Skeete tabled a bill on Friday to remove all restrictions on the use and sale of products from other provinces and to facilitate labour mobility – with some exceptions.

Skeete told reporters in Quebec City that the bill sends a message the province is ready to drop barriers and stimulate trade between regions.

"If you look at what Quebec is doing today, we're leading the charge," he said. "We have one of the most ambitious bills in the federation right now. It's something we're very proud of and it's something that will have lasting change going forward."

Army Corps analysis finds Great Lakes pipeline tunnel would have sweeping environmental impacts

Building an underground tunnel for an aging Enbridge oil pipeline that stretches across a Great Lakes channel could destroy wetlands and harm bat habitats but would eliminate the chances of a boat anchor rupturing the line and causing a catastrophic spill, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Friday in a long-awaited draft analysis of the proposed project's environmental impacts.

The analysis moves the corps a step closer to approving the tunnel for Line 5 in the Straits of Mackinac. The tunnel was proposed in 2018 at a cost of $500 million but has been bogged down by legal challenges. The corps fast-tracked the project in April after President Donald Trump ordered federal agencies in January to identify energy projects for expedited emergency permitting.

A final environmental assessment is expected by autumn, with a permitting decision to follow later this year. The agency initially planned to issue a permitting decision in early 2026.

With that permit in hand, Enbridge would only need permission from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy before it could begin constructing the tunnel. That's far from a given, though.

Hudson’s Bay heads into last days of sale with lots of shoppers, little merchandise

TORONTO - Hudson’s Bay headed into its last weekend of liquidation sales with its Toronto flagship teeming with shoppers looking for one last treasure from the department store.

Even before the Yonge Street location opened Friday, shoppers waited in front of its doors, exchanging hopes for what they’d find inside and strategizing how to beat the competition.

When they made it in, they found large swaths of the store had been emptied out, but plenty of deals still remained.

There were $10 Levi's jeans for men, $5 corsets for women and $15 pajama sets.

Chief says infrastructure drive could trigger another Idle No More protest movement

OTTAWA - A First Nations chief is warning that Canada is "staring down the barrel" of another wave of protests like the Idle No More movement if governments pursue "national interest" projects without their input and consent.

Anishinabek Nation Regional Chief Scott McLeod has joined Indigenous leaders from across the country who say they're alarmed by government efforts to accelerate infrastructure development.

The federal government is developing a "national interest" bill to fast-track nation-building projects with a streamlined regulatory approval process as a substitute for reviews under the Impact Assessment Act.

A handful of First Nations leaders told The Canadian Press Friday they were sent a letter Monday outlining the federal government's plans.

S&P/TSX composite slides on Friday but caps off month near record highs

Canada’s main stock index on Friday continued to trim the gains that pushed it to a record closing high two days earlier, as investors retreated to defensive stocks while energy and information technology took a hit.

“It’s been another roller-coaster day in markets, capping off generally strong equity index returns for the month,” said Kathrin Forrest, equity investment director at Capital Group.

The S&P/TSX composite index inched down 35.51 points to 26,175.05.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 54.34 points to 42,270.07. The S&P 500 index slipped 0.48 points to 5,911.69, while the Nasdaq dipped 62.11 points to 19,113.77 — but both logged their biggest monthly percentage gains since November 2023.

Canada Post asks jobs minister to force union to vote on ‘final offers’

OTTAWA - Canada Post says it has asked Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu to force a union membership vote on the proposals the Crown corporation put forward earlier this week.

Canada Post presented its "final offers" to the union representing 55,000 workers on Wednesday, with concessions including an end to compulsory overtime and a signing bonus of up to $1,000.

But it stuck to a proposal for a 14 per cent cumulative wage hike over four years and part-time staff on weekend shifts – a major sticking point in the talks.

Canada Post said in a statement Friday that the parties are at an impasse and it believes the best hope of reaching a new collective agreement is a vote administered by the Canada Industrial Relations Board.

CFL, nine member clubs donate over $4.5 million to grassroots football programs

TORONTO - The CFL and its nine member clubs invested over $4.5 million into amateur football last year.

The league announced Friday that it and the nine franchises combined to donate $4,518,900 to grassroots football initiatives, projects and programs throughout Canada in 2024.

"The community involvement of the CFL, its clubs and players is something that sets us apart from other leagues," said CFL commissioner Stewart Johnston. "To be able, among all of the clubs in the league, to donate over $4.5 million is encouraging participation and exposure to the game and ultimately having kids fall in love with the sport.

"That's wonderful for a number of reasons, one of which is the game of football teaches such great skills that can be applied to life."

US inflation gauge cools with little sign of tariff impact, so far

WASHINGTON (AP) — A key U.S. inflation gauge slowed last month as President Donald Trump’s tariffs have yet to noticeably push up prices. Spending by Americans slowed despite rising incomes, potentially an early reaction to higher prices on some imported goods.

Friday’s report from the Commerce Department showed that consumer prices rose just 2.1% in April compared with a year earlier, down from 2.3% in March and the lowest since September. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core prices rose 2.5% from a year earlier, below the March figure of 2.7%, and the lowest in more than four years. Economists track core prices because they typically provide a better read on where inflation is headed.

The figures show inflation is still declining from its post-pandemic spike, which reached the highest level in four decades in July 2022. Economists and some business executives have warned that prices will likely head higher as Trump’s widespread tariffs take effect, though the timing and impact of those duties are now in doubt after they were struck down late Wednesday in court.

On a monthly basis, overall prices and core prices both increased just 0.1% from March to April. The cost of big-ticket manufactured goods rose a hefty 0.5%, though that increase was offset by a 0.1 decline in other goods, such as groceries. The cost of services rose just 0.1% from March to April.

RioCan REIT asks court to put joint venture with Hudson’s Bay into receivership: docs

TORONTO - RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust is pushing to put a joint venture it owns with Hudson's Bay into receivership.

A motion filed late Thursday from the real estate firm asks the Ontario Superior Court to appoint FTI Consulting Canada Inc. receiver of the companies that span the venture.

“The proposed receivership proceedings will provide the appropriate forum to protect the interests of the stakeholders of the joint-venture entities and maximize value,” RioCan’s chief financial officer Dennis Blasutti said in an affidavit filed alongside the motion.

Receivers are empowered by courts to take control of a company’s assets, oversee their liquidation and repay creditors.

Floods kill at least 111 as northern Nigeria battles climate change, dry spells and heavy rainfall

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Torrents of predawn rain unleashed flooding that killed at least 111 people in a market town where northern Nigerian farmers sell their wares to traders from the south, officials said Friday, predicting the death toll would grow.

The Nigerian Hydrological Services Agency did not immediately say how much rain fell after midnight Thursday in the town of Mokwa in the state of Niger more than 180 miles (300 kilometers) west of Abuja, the capital of Africa's most populous nation.

Communities in northern Nigeria have been experiencing prolonged dry spells worsened by climate change and excessive rainfall that leads to severe flooding during the brief wet season.

In videos and photos on social media, floodwaters covered neighborhoods and homes were submerged, with their roofs barely visible above the brown colored waters. Waist-deep in water, residents tried to salvage what they could, or rescue others.

New Zealand hails ‘breakthrough’ in trade talks with India, but no timeline for deal

NEW DELHI (AP) — New Zealand’s deputy prime minister said on Friday that talks over a free trade agreement between his country and India were ongoing, but he didn't provide a timeline for when the two nations could eventually sign a deal.

Winston Peters, who is on a two-day visit to India, said that the negotiations were “going with real meaning now," calling them “a breakthrough in our economic relationship.”

India and New Zealand began negotiations in March for a trade pact, and had aimed to sign a deal in 60 days. The deal will significantly bolster economic ties between the two countries, but it has faced delays because of differences over tariffs on dairy products.

Bilateral trade between India and New Zealand stood at $1.7 billion in the 2023-24 financial year.

Bank of Canada expected to hold key rate after surprise Q1 GDP jump

OTTAWA - The Canadian economy got a boost to start the year as businesses rushed to get ahead of tariffs, and some economists believe that lift will be enough to keep the Bank of Canada on the sidelines at its interest rate decision next week.

Real gross domestic product rose 2.2 per cent annualized in the first quarter of 2025, Statistics Canada reported Friday, up a tick from 2.1 per cent in the fourth quarter.

The first quarter figures topped StatCan’s flash estimate for annualized growth of 1.5 per cent and beat calls for 1.7 per cent from a Reuters poll of economists.

"We did get a better number, overall," said CIBC chief economist Avery Shenfeld.

Residents, advocates say trust issues, strict rules, red tape keep encampments up

Tents, tarps, and makeshift shelters line the beaten path along the Assiniboine River near Balmoral Street in West Broadway — a community hidden in plain sight.

Generating goodwill at the parking meter

Recent reports from the City of Winnipeg about plans to remove all the downtown parking meters left our household upset.

Judge wrestles with far-reaching remedy proposals in US antitrust case against Google

WASHINGTON (AP) — The fate and fortunes of one of the world’s most powerful tech companies now sit in the hands of a U.S. judge wrestling with whether to impose far-reaching changes upon Google in the wake of its dominant search engine being declared an illegal monopoly.

U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta heard closing arguments Friday from Justice Department lawyers who argued that a radical shake-up is needed to promote a free and fair market. Their proposed remedies include a ban on Google paying to lock its search engine in as the default on smart devices and an order requiring the company to sell its Chrome browser.

Google’s legal team argued that only minor concessions are needed and urged Mehta not to unduly punish the company with a harsh ruling that could squelch future innovations. Google also argued that upheaval triggered by advances in artificial intelligence already is reshaping the search landscape, as conversational search options are rolling out from AI startups that are hoping to use the Department of Justice’s four-and-half-year-old case to gain the upper hand in the next technological frontier.

It was an argument that Mehta appeared to give serious consideration as he marveled at the speed at which the AI industry was growing. He also indicated he was still undecided on how much AI’s potential to shake up the search market should be incorporated in his forthcoming ruling. “This is what I’ve been struggling with,” Mehta said.

Trump says US Steel will keep HQ in Pittsburgh in a sign he’ll approve bid by Japan-based Nippon

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Friday that U.S. Steel will keep its headquarters in Pittsburgh as part of what he called a “planned partnership” that seemed to signal that he’ll approve a bid by Japan-based Nippon Steel to make a big investment in the iconic American steelmaker, if not buy it outright.

Still, Trump's statement left it vague as to whether he is approving Nippon Steel's bid after he vowed repeatedly to block the deal to prevent U.S. Steel from being foreign-owned.

More recently, Trump suggested that Nippon Steel would invest in U.S. Steel, not buy it, and one union official suggested Friday that the federal government will have a role in the company's management going forward. But investors seemed to take Trump's statement as a sign that he's approving some sort of merger, sharply pushing up U.S. Steel's shares, and the companies issued approving statements.

Nippon Steel said the partnership is a “game changer — for U.S. Steel and all of its stakeholders, including the American steel industry, and the broader American manufacturing base.” U.S. Steel said it “will remain American, and we will grow bigger and stronger through a partnership with Nippon Steel that brings massive investment, new technologies and thousands of jobs over the next four years."