Canada

Joachim Streit has never stepped foot in Canada. But that hasn’t stopped the German politician from launching a tenacious, one-man campaign that he readily describes as “aspirational”: to have the North American country join the EU.

“We have to strengthen the European Union,” said Streit, who last year was elected as a member of the European parliament. “And I think Canada – as its prime minister says – is the most European country outside of Europe.”

While he admitted that the possibility of Canada as a full member of the EU “may be aspirational for now”, he wondered if it was an idea whose time had come.

“Canada would be a strong member,” he said. “If Canada would be a member of the EU, it would rank 4th in terms of GDP. It’s part of Nato. And 58% of (working-age) Canadians have college degrees.”

Smoke from wildfires burning in central Canada was visible in the skies over the UK this weekend.

MONTREAL — Unifor says DHL Express Canada locked out workers just after midnight today as the two sides failed to reach a contract deal, injecting more labour turmoil into the country's parcel delivery market.

The union, which represents 2,100 truck drivers, couriers and warehouse workers across seven provinces, says they went on strike in response at 11 a.m. ET.

Unifor says the German-owned carrier is proposing to change the driver pay system and planning to use replacement workers before legislation banning them comes into effect on June 20.

cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/39848586

Quebec’s government announced an award of $10 million Canadian dollars ($7.3 million) to Canadian rocket startup Reaction Dynamics and software developer Maya HTT.

The funding will enable Reaction Dynamic to continue working with Canadian software and engineering services firm Maya HTT to qualify the hybrid propulsion system and establish a testing facility.

Reaction Dynamics, founded in 2017, is developing the Aurora rocket to send satellites with a mass of 200 kilograms or less to low-Earth orbit. The first suborbital launch is expected in late 2025, followed by orbital flights in 2027 or 2028.

Quebec made this investment with commercial, civil and defense applications in mind. Legault alluded to the geopolitical instability that is prompting nations to seek sovereign space systems.

Canada can into space?

While inflation has eased since 2022 and is now trending around two per cent annually, the actual cost of essentials hasn’t gone down. The overall price of the typical basket of goods and services for the average Canadian household rose by a hefty 17.4 per cent between 2019 and 2024. The increase was even higher for food (23.3 per cent), shelter (24.0 per cent) and transportation (21.6 per cent)—notably for gasoline (55.6 per cent).

Has mainstream media's coverage of affordability issues or price-gouging (e.g., grocery stores) slowed or stopped?

Tropicana orange and other fruit juice used to come in 2L containers, about $3 or so. I was at a Loblaws-owned discount grocery store yesterday, and saw the container had shrunk even more, to 1.65L, from 1.75L at the time of my previous purchase. They were also selling it for $7.49 😳

My reactions were 1) what outrageous unchecked corporate greed, 2) mainstream media doesn't cover this any more, and 3) companies seem so confident nowadays that they can do whatever they please

Author: Robert Diab | Professor, Faculty of Law, Thompson Rivers University

Bill 5, also called the Protecting Ontario by Unleashing Our Economy Act, empowers the government (among other things) to create special economic zones, where cabinet can exempt companies or projects from having to comply with any provincial law, provincial regulation or municipal bylaw.

Ford pitches Bill 5 as a way of shoring up Ontario's economy in the face of Donald Trump's tariffs by speeding up major infrastructure and resource projects.

Ford's officials insist the government won't exempt any company in a special economic zone from Ontario's minimum wage rules or other labour laws.

But the wide-open way the legislation is written would allow cabinet to hand out exemptions from any law, whether labour, environmental or operational.