Nova Scotia’s justice minister says the RCMP owes the public an explanation for a high-speed chase that played out in Halifax during heavy traffic and an armed raid at an apartment that happened just as students were being dismissed from a nearby high school.
A federal RCMP investigation became very public Wednesday as unmarked police cars cut across traffic-filled roads and sidewalks before crashing into the car they were chasing near Joseph Howe Drive, a busy arterial road in the city. At the same time, armed RCMP officers raided an apartment building near a high school in Bedford.
The Mounties have provided few details, other than to say it was all part of an operation targeting organized crime and drugs and that arrests have been made.
Justice Minister Mark Furey, who was a member of the RCMP for 32 years, wasn’t impressed.
A car crashed into a power pole on Elliott Street in Halifax on Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2020, after a police chase with RCMP members. (CBC)
“I’m concerned, so certainly the public concern is warranted and it, quite frankly, deserves an explanation, and these are discussions that I will advance with RCMP senior managers,” he said in an interview with CBC News.
While Furey didn’t know what led up to the pictures and videos that have circulated widely online from the chase, he recalled the force’s policy not permitting chases in unmarked vehicles and for chases to be abandoned if there is a risk to public safety.
“There are clear policies when it comes to high-speed pursuits and pursuits that don’t have that element of high speed,” said Furey. “And there’s a supervisory role when public safety could be put at risk or compromised; the senior officer has a responsibility to cease that pursuit.”
The province has “a gangs and guns problem,” said Furey. His government has spent a lot of money in recent years trying to provide police the tools they need to address that problem and he supports their efforts.
But Furey also said it is “critically important as they do that work that they recognize the broader element of public safety, in that we would not want to be doing anything that’s going to put public safety at risk, whether it’s students in school communities or pedestrians in the Joseph Howe circumstances.”
Police arrest a man on Elliott Street in Halifax on Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2020, after a car chase ended on the west-end street. (Craig Paisley/CBC)
Furey said the events of Wednesday have him reaching out to law enforcement leaders across the province with the RCMP and municipal forces to remind them of how important strong community communication is. While police can’t always share all of their information with the public, Furey said the community is owed as much transparency as possible.
“There are circumstances where we see strong communications and there’s strong outcomes,” he said. “When there’s poor communications, there are poor outcomes, there’s a lack of transparency and accountability.”
RCMP transparency in Nova Scotia has been criticized this year, largely because of how public communication related to the investigation of last spring’s mass shooting was handled. A situation like Wednesday doesn’t help, either, said Furey.
“My experience has been that when you engage the public, you get constructive outcomes, you build relationships,” he said. “That’s a challenge that we’re facing right now; that’s a challenge that the law enforcement community is facing not only here in Nova Scotia, but across the country and continent.”
Officers raided an apartment building near Charles P. Allen High School just as the school was letting out for the day. (Submitted by Angela Guptill)
Although there have been concerted efforts to engage Black and First Nations communities in an effort to improve communications, Furey said there is a need for broader efforts to ensure the public has confidence and trust in law enforcement.
“I see every day police officers in our communities engaging youth — they’re in our schools, they’re problem solving with youth and families and schools and educators. There’s lots of good work happening,” he said.
“But it’s these types of incidents and social media — public awareness through social media — that raise the level of concern of residents and we have to address that. We need our uniformed officers to understand the optics that it presents and the concerns that Nova Scotians have.”
Although it’s not driven by any recent events or criticism, Furey said he’s initiated talks within his department about provincial policing service models. The Police Act allows for the creation of a provincial force.
Provincial policing review initiated
Furey said the issue at hand is labour issues within the RCMP, the fact membership has become the largest police labour group in the country, and rising contract costs that are becoming increasingly difficult for municipalities to afford.
Policing is the largest line item for most, if not all, municipalities in the province, said Furey, and many are concerned about the sustainability of it. His department has periodically done policing reviews at the request of municipalities looking at alternatives to the RCMP because of the growing costs of the contract.
“With the labour circumstances within the RCMP, it’s only prudent that the minister responsible for policing in the province would look to this as an area that requires attention and work, because the discussion will continue with municipalities,” he said.
Furey said there is no timeline for the review. There is an existing contract between the provincial government and RCMP that runs until 2032.
TORONTO – Canada Goose Holdings Inc. says it has signed a deal that will result in the creation of its first eyewear collection.
The deal announced on Thursday by the Toronto-based luxury apparel company comes in the form of an exclusive, long-term global licensing agreement with Marchon Eyewear Inc.
The terms and value of the agreement were not disclosed, but Marchon produces eyewear for brands including Lacoste, Nike, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Longchamp and Zeiss.
Marchon plans to roll out both sunglasses and optical wear under the Canada Goose name next spring, starting in North America.
Canada Goose says the eyewear will be sold through optical retailers, department stores, Canada Goose shops and its website.
Canada Goose CEO Dani Reiss told The Canadian Press in August that he envisioned his company eventually expanding into eyewear and luggage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Almost seven years since news broke of an alleged conspiracy to fix the price of packaged bread across Canada, the saga isn’t over: the Competition Bureau continues to investigate the companies that may have been involved, and two class-action lawsuits continue to work their way through the courts.
Here’s a timeline of key events in the bread price-fixing case.
Oct. 31, 2017: The Competition Bureau says it’s investigating allegations of bread price-fixing and that it was granted search warrants in the case. Several grocers confirm they are co-operating in the probe.
Dec. 19, 2017: Loblaw and George Weston say they participated in an “industry-wide price-fixing arrangement” to raise the price of packaged bread. The companies say they have been co-operating in the Competition Bureau’s investigation since March 2015, when they self-reported to the bureau upon discovering anti-competitive behaviour, and are receiving immunity from prosecution. They announce they are offering $25 gift cards to customers amid the ongoing investigation into alleged bread price-fixing.
Jan. 31, 2018: In court documents, the Competition Bureau says at least $1.50 was added to the price of a loaf of bread between about 2001 and 2016.
Dec. 20, 2019: A class-action lawsuit in a Quebec court against multiple grocers and food companies is certified against a number of companies allegedly involved in bread price-fixing, including Loblaw, George Weston, Metro, Sobeys, Walmart Canada, Canada Bread and Giant Tiger (which have all denied involvement, except for Loblaw and George Weston, which later settled with the plaintiffs).
Dec. 31, 2021: A class-action lawsuit in an Ontario court covering all Canadian residents except those in Quebec who bought packaged bread from a company named in the suit is certified against roughly the same group of companies.
June 21, 2023: Bakery giant Canada Bread Co. is fined $50 million after pleading guilty to four counts of price-fixing under the Competition Act as part of the Competition Bureau’s ongoing investigation.
Oct. 25 2023: Canada Bread files a statement of defence in the Ontario class action denying participating in the alleged conspiracy and saying any anti-competitive behaviour it participated in was at the direction and to the benefit of its then-majority owner Maple Leaf Foods, which is not a defendant in the case (neither is its current owner Grupo Bimbo). Maple Leaf calls Canada Bread’s accusations “baseless.”
Dec. 20, 2023: Metro files new documents in the Ontario class action accusing Loblaw and its parent company George Weston of conspiring to implicate it in the alleged scheme, denying involvement. Sobeys has made a similar claim. The two companies deny the allegations.
July 25, 2024: Loblaw and George Weston say they agreed to pay a combined $500 million to settle both the Ontario and Quebec class-action lawsuits. Loblaw’s share of the settlement includes a $96-million credit for the gift cards it gave out years earlier.
Sept. 12, 2024: Canada Bread files new documents in Ontario court as part of the class action, claiming Maple Leaf used it as a “shield” to avoid liability in the alleged scheme. Maple Leaf was a majority shareholder of Canada Bread until 2014, and the company claims it’s liable for any price-fixing activity. Maple Leaf refutes the claims.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:L, TSX:MFI, TSX:MRU, TSX:EMP.A, TSX:WN)
TORONTO – TD Bank Group, which is mired in a money laundering scandal in the U.S., says chief executive Bharat Masrani will retire next year.
Masrani, who will retire officially on April 10, 2025, says the bank’s, “anti-money laundering challenges,” took place on his watch and he takes full responsibility.
The bank named Raymond Chun, TD’s group head, Canadian personal banking, as his successor.
As part of a transition plan, Chun will become chief operating officer on Nov. 1 before taking over the top job when Masrani steps down at the bank’s annual meeting next year.
TD also announced that Riaz Ahmed, group head, wholesale banking and president and CEO of TD Securities, will retire at the end of January 2025.
TD has taken billions in charges related to ongoing U.S. investigations into the failure of its anti-money laundering program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
