In the news today: NDP and Bloc ask Rota to resign, Quebec daycare crash

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed on what you need to know today… Here’s what else we’re watching …

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

Here’s what else we’re watching …

NDP, Bloc say Speaker should resign after honouring man who fought for Nazis

Some opposition leaders are calling on House of Commons Speaker Anthony Rota step down from his position after he invited a man who fought for the Nazis into Parliament.

Yaroslav Hunka was invited by Rota, without knowledge to the rest of the House of Commons, to attend Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s address to Parliament last Friday.

The 98-year-old Hunka lives in Rota’s constituency and is a veteran of the First Ukrainian Division, which was also known as the S-S 14th Waffen Division, a voluntary unit that was under the command of the Nazis.

Accused in Quebec daycare crash returning to court

A Quebec man accused of killing two young children by driving a city bus into a Montreal-area daycare is scheduled to return to court today.

Pierre Ny St-Amand was arrested after a bus crashed into the front of a daycare in Laval, Que., on Feb. 8, killing two four-year-olds and injuring six other children.

The 51-year-old bus driver has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder as well as seven other charges, including attempted murder and aggravated assault.

Arguments to begin in Nygard sex-assault case

Arguments in the Toronto sexual-assault case against former Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard are expected to begin today.

The 82-year-old appeared in court in a wheelchair last week to plead not guilty to five counts of sexual assault and one count of forcible confinement.

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.

Manitoba Tories play defence on campaign trail

Manitoba’s election is one week away and the incumbent Progressive Conservatives are continuing to focus on trying to retain seats they already hold.

The Tories have scheduled news conferences today in the Rossmere and Waverley seats in Winnipeg, which are held, respectively, by Tories Andrew Micklefield and Jon Reyes.

The NDP, meanwhile, appears to be on the offensive again.

NDP Leader Wab Kinew has scheduled a news conference in the St. Boniface constituency with his party’s local candidate.

Developer to build rentals after feds slash GST

A Toronto-based real-estate company says it is planning to build 5,000 new rental units in urban centres across the country as a result of the federal government’s decision to eliminate GST charges on rental developments.

The CEO of Dream Unlimited, Michael Cooper, says high interest rates and construction costs had put many projects on pause.

But the federal government’s announcement that it would eliminate GST charges off rental developments — and the expectation that provinces would follow suit — has changed the calculation.

No new oil, coal projects needed: IEA

Even if no new government climate policies are introduced before 2030, global demand for fossil fuels will still peak before the end of the decade, a new report by the International Energy Agency states.

The report released Tuesday says the worldwide rollout of key technologies such as renewable power, electric vehicles and heat pumps is happening so quickly that demand for coal, oil and natural gas is set to peak within the next 10 years.

The IEA says this means that no new major oil and gas extraction projects are needed anywhere around the globe, nor any new coal mines, mine extensions or unabated coal plants.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 26, 2023.

The Canadian Press