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Conservative MP Michael Chong was told yesterday by the head of Canada’s intelligence agency that he and his family were targeted by the Chinese government because he sponsored a parliamentary motion condemning Beijing’s treatment of its Uyghur minority.
The Globe and Mail first reported on this foreign interference Monday, citing a top-secret CSIS intelligence assessment prepared in July of 2021.
Chong questioned the government’s failure in notifying him about the threat earlier, saying it’s either “a breakdown in the machinery of government or a political failure.”
Conservative Member of Parliament Michael Chong rises during Question Period in the House of Commons, May 2, 2023.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
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King Charles has work to do to cultivate ties with Canada, Governor-General says
King Charles has a lot of work to do for Canadians to feel the same affection for him as they felt for his mother, Queen Elizabeth, Governor-General Mary Simon said in an interview with The Globe and Mail.
As she gets ready to attend Charles’s coronation on Saturday, Simon acknowledged polling that suggests Canadians’ connection to the monarchy is waning. A poll last month for the Angus Reid Institute found 52 per cent of Canadians do not want the country to continue as a constitutional monarchy for generations to come.
She added that there may come a day when Canada has a conversation about its future relationship with the monarchy, but now is not the right time.
World Press Freedom Day
It’s more dangerous than ever for foreign reporters to do their jobs in Putin’s Russia
When he first began reporting from Russia 20 years ago, The Globe and Mail’s Mark MacKinnon says foreign journalists were seen as a minor nuisance by the government, but now the Putin regime sees them as a threat to be confronted.
While independent Russian media have been under intense pressure for years, it’s only been in the 14 months since Vladimir Putin launched his war against Ukraine that Russia has become a truly dangerous place to be a foreign reporter.
Many quickly left at the beginning of the Ukraine war, but a few brave journalists stayed, intent on reporting on the massive shifts taking place inside Putin’s Russia.
- Editorial: On Press Freedom Day, imagine a world without journalism
- Opinion: With the rise of AI-generated propaganda, journalism is more important than ever
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Also on our radar
Boy shoots dead nine people in Serbia: A 14-year-old boy shot his teacher in a Belgrade classroom on Wednesday morning before opening fire on other students and security guards, killing eight pupils and a security guard, Serbia’s interior ministry said.
Police arrest man who admitted to selling sodium nitrite: Kenneth Law, who admitted to selling sodium nitrite, a potentially lethal product, over the internet, was arrested yesterday and will be charged for counselling suicide in the deaths of two Canadians, Peel Regional Police said.
Huge fires in Russia, Ukraine: Oil depots were ablaze in both Russia and Ukraine on Wednesday as both sides escalated a drone war targeting infrastructure ahead of Kyiv’s planned spring counteroffensive to try to end Moscow’s all-out invasion.
Quebec flooding triggers state of emergency: Communities across Quebec declared states of emergency as heavy rains swelled up rivers, washed out roads and cut off homes. Rescue teams also spent yesterday searching for two missing firefighters who were swept away in floodwaters.
Ottawa should study remote work productivity: The federal government should take a close look at how hybrid work is affecting productivity in the public sector, Parliamentary Budget Officer Yves Giroux said a day after Ottawa and the Public Service Alliance of Canada reached a labour deal.
- John Ibbitson: Agreement between Treasury Board and public service workers shows working from home is here to stay
- Opinion: Remote work isn’t going away, and we may have striking civil servants to thank
Toronto home sales jump: Home sales soared and prices climbed in Toronto for the third straight month as a housing supply shortage ramped up competition among buyers.
Morning markets
Traders await Fed: European stocks rose on Wednesday with hopes hinging on the Federal Reserve signalling later in the day that U.S. interest rate hikes might peak soon and the soft landing that central banks have been angling for is in sight. Around 5:30 a.m. ET, Britain’s FTSE 100 was up 0.25 per cent. Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 gained 0.64 per cent and 0.69 per cent, respectively. In Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng closed down 1.18 per cent. Markets in Japan were closed. New York futures were positive. The Canadian dollar was steady at 73.38 US cents.
What everyone’s talking about
Gary Mason: “In her chat with reporters on Monday, Ms. Smith said that every time she’s made a mistake she’s tried to learn from it. ‘People don’t expect their politicians to be perfect,’ she said. No. But they do expect them to be at least modestly competent. And during her seven-month audition as Premier, it’s hard to argue Danielle Smith has even been that.”
Rita Trichur: “It’s time for domestic banks to come clean on their capital positions. Their inclination to say as little as possible is needlessly creating reputational risk. Our banks have long claimed to be boring. But in this new era of digital bank runs, transparency is the key to maintaining the public’s trust.”
Today’s editorial cartoon
Editorial cartoon by David Parkins, May 3, 2023.Illustration by David Parkins
Living better
The most memorable Gordon Lightfoot songs
On the news of Gordon Lightfoot’s passing on Monday, music lovers at The Globe reflect on his legacy. Here are tributes to seven of the Canadian legend’s most memorable songs, according to Globe writers.
Moment in time: May 3, 1917
Lieutenant Robert Grierson Combe, VC, of the 27th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force during World War I.Library and Archives Canada
Saskatchewan soldier shows remarkable bravery in battle
He was the epitome of Canada’s citizen-soldier during the Great War. Born in Aberdeen, Scotland, in 1880, pharmacist Robert Combe immigrated to Saskatchewan in 1906 and worked first for a drugstore in Moosomin and then established his own business in Melville. Combe volunteered for the Canadian Expeditionary Force in 1915 and was assigned to train new recruits in England. But he craved action, even taking a demotion from major to lieutenant so that he could join the fighting in France. During the Battle of Fresnoy in early May, 1917, the 36-year-old Combe was part of a Canadian Corps operation to clear German forces from strong points to the east of Vimy Ridge. As Combe and his men approached the fortified village of Fresnoy, they came under heavy enemy bombardment and then shelling from their own artillery. Combe rallied a handful of survivors and led repeated charges against the enemy trenches, securing the company objective and taking 80 prisoners, before being mortally wounded by a sniper. In recognition of his “most conspicuous bravery and example” on this day in 1917, Combe was named Saskatchewan’s first recipient of the Victoria Cross. The Prince of Wales personally presented the medal to Combe’s widow, Jean, during a visit to Regina in 1919. Bill Waiser
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