Pearson gold heist suspect arrested after flying into Toronto from India

Another suspect is in custody in connection with the gold heist at Toronto Pearson International Airport last year while a former Air Canada employee involved in the scheme remains outstanding, police say.

Police said Archit Grover, a 36-year-old man from Brampton, was arrested on May 6. He was taken into custody after flying into Toronto from India and arrested for theft over $5000 and conspiracy to commit an indictable offence.

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Canada gains a net 90,400 jobs in April, jobless rate holds at 6.1%

Canada's economy gained a net 90,400 jobs in April, both in full-time and part-time work, and the jobless rate held at 6.1%, Statistics Canada data showed on Friday.

Employment in the goods producing sector fell by a net 10,400 jobs, largely in construction. The services sector was up by a net 100,700 positions, mostly in professional, scientific and technical services, as well as accommodation and food services.

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🏦 Bank of Canada says households can cope with higher rates

The Bank of Canada says households can weather higher borrowing costs, but flagged rising asset valuations and financial stress among renters as risks to the outlook.

Canadians are “proactively” adjusting to higher interest rates, and the financial system “remains resilient,” the central bank said in its annual review of the system published Thursday. And while payments have risen for about half of the country’s mortgages, households have higher wages and savings, officials said, and they’re adjusting their spending patterns.

Overall, the evidence suggest that households have the flexibility to continue servicing their debt at higher rates.

Senior Deputy Governor Carolyn Rogers said at a news conference.

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Trudeau, Singh have led their parties to 50-year-low poll numbers

A new data analysis from the Angus Reid Institute has combed through 50 years of political polls and uncovered some historical trends and oddities. Most recently, it found that the popularity of Canadian federal party leaders is at a five-decade-year low. And that’s not one of them — it’s all of them.

Going back to 1974, there has never been a time when the leaders of the three main federal parties have polled as low as this year.

#Trudeau #Poilievre #Singh
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🏠 April asking rent prices up 9.3% across Canada

The average asking rent for a home in Canada in April was up 9.3 per cent compared with a year ago, while a slight month-over-month increase was also recorded for the first time since January, a new report says.

Based on the report, the average asking rent for a one-bedroom unit in Canada was $1,915 in April, up 11.6 per cent from a year ago, while the average asking price for a two-bedroom unit was $2,295, up 11 per cent from April 2023.

#housing
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Decrease number of temporary residents by making them permanent, federal immigration minister suggests

One way Canada plans to shrink the number of temporary residents is to offer them the opportunity to remain permanently, Immigration Minister Marc Miller said Friday, but that doesn’t mean everyone who wants to stay will be able to.

#immigration
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💸 Canada fines Binance $4.38 mln for money laundering violations

Canada's anti-money laundering agency on Thursday said it had imposed a nearly C$6 million ($4.38 million) fine on cryptocurrency exchange Binance for violating the money laundering and terrorist financing laws.

The Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) said Binance had failed to register as a foreign money services business with the intelligence body despite several deadlines.

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💸 Trudeau government spends $8 million searching for bodies at Kamloops residential school after viral ‘mass graves’ story, finds nothing

Canada has spent about $8 million to try to discover the "heartbreaking truth" about mass graves, or unmarked graves at the Indian Residential School in Kamloops, British Columbia, only to find that there were no bodies recovered at all.

Department of Crown-Indigenous Relations Carolane Gratton said that the substantial funding was used for fieldwork, records searches, and securing the grounds of the school, Western Standard reports, but no remains have yet been uncovered.

#BritishColumbia
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4th man arrested and charged in killing of B.C. Sikh leader

A fourth Indian national living in Canada has been charged in last year's killing of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar outside of a temple in British Columbia.

The province's Integrated Homicide Investigation Team said in a release Saturday that 22-year-old Amandeep Singh was already in the custody of Peel Regional Police in Ontario for unrelated firearms charges.

#BritishColumbia #Ontario
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B.C. man detained in child-luring case after being arrested four times in a month

A B.C. man facing child-luring charges, arrested four times in less than a month, has now been ordered to remain in custody.

Is there a standard for how many times you have to commit a crime to actually get arrested?

#BritishColumbia
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Wildfire evacuation notice issued for Fort McMurray

An evacuation alert has been issued for Fort McMurray, Alberta, as an out-of-control fire rages southwest of the major oil town.

The Alberta government said the wildfire danger is "extreme" in the Fort McMurray Forest Area and out of control at 1,000 hectares (2,471 acres) in size.

#Alberta #wildfires
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Trudeau backs away from tax threat on apartment owners

The government of Justin Trudeau pulled back on a threat to hit some real estate investment trusts in Canada with a new tax regime after opposition from the industry.

The finance department posted a statement, saying that “no changes to the tax treatment of REITs are being considered at this time.” That removes a risk that’s hung over Canadian apartment REITs in particular for more than two years.

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Some indicators of financial stress have risen. At the same time, the valuations of some financial assets appear to have become stretched. This could increase the risk of a sharp correction that could generate system-wide stress. The recent rise in the use of leverage in non-bank financial institutions could amplify the effects of such a correction.

Tiff Macklem.

Is this a sophisticated way of saying we're completely f*ucked?

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🚙 Steal a car, lose your driver's licence under new Ontario proposal

Repeat car thieves may face lengthy license bans under proposed changes to Ontario’s Highway Traffic Act.

The Ford government wants to attach a 10-year driver’s licence suspension to a first conviction of auto theft that involved violence, use of weapon, force, or where the theft was motivated by financial gain.

Yes, 'cause the fear of driving without a license is the only chance to stop law-abiding car thieves from stealing cars.

#Ontario
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💸Ottawa budgets about $224 per day to feed and house some foreigners who claim asylum after illegally entering the country.

The average accommodation cost is “$140 per night per room,” and the average cost for meals is “$84 per day per claimant” — for a total of $224 per claimant, per day.

In essence, migrants get a free vacation in Canada.

#immigration
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💉BC Supreme Court rules in favour of PHO’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate for health-care workers

Health-care workers who pushed back against being forced to get vaccinated against COVID-19 or face losing their jobs have lost in the BC Supreme Court.

#BritishColumbia
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Former Liberal ministers urge Trudeau to drop plans to house migrants in federal prisons

Two former Liberal cabinet ministers are urging the Trudeau government to cancel its plans to start using federal prisons to hold immigration detainees, citing a recent inquest recommendation to end the practice of detaining migrants in jails.

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