OTTAWA —
Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains says China is “applying pressure” on Canada to integrate Huawei technology into its 5G network, as it remains the only Five Eyes nation yet to make a decision about the scope of its involvement.
The other four members of the global intelligence alliance — Australia, the United States, New Zealand and most recently the United Kingdom — have all made some indication about whether they will outright ban China’s Huawei’s technology or apply it in a some capacity.
“Clearly they are applying pressure, and they recognize that they need to get ahead of this technology and this is, in a geopolitical context, a very important issue and there are many factors that we’re taking into consideration,” said Bains in an interview on CTV’s Question Period airing Sunday.
The Liberal government has maintained that security of Canadians is of upmost importance when deciding on who will provide 5G telecom infrastructure.
Bains said Canada won’t be “bullied or pressured” by other countries on this issue.
“We’re an independent, sovereign country, We will decide on our own terms when we want to move forward and proceed with this decision, and we will share that with Canadians. But make no mistake and when it comes to the safety and security of Canadians, that’s going to be the central deciding component of how we move forward on rolling out 5G,” he said.
Tensions between Canada and China grow more tense by the day, complicating an already fraught decision.
Late May, Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou lost a major court battle when a B.C. judged ruled her extradition case should proceed, meaning she wasn’t allowed to return to China.
On Friday, Chinese prosecutors formally laid spying charges against two Canadians — Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig — who have been detained in a Chinese jail for more than 550 days. The arrest of Spavor and Kovrig is widely seen as a retaliatory move by the Chinese following Meng’s arrest just days prior.
The two Michaels have had no access to lawyers or their families as of May, with the exception of a phone call the Chinese embassy said Kovrig was allowed to make to his sick father in mid-March. Consular visits have also been suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reflected on the situation of the Canadian detainees later on Friday, saying he was “disappointed” by the charges laid.
“I can assure you that we have developed a certain expertise in what has worked to get Canadians home in very difficult circumstances over the past year,” said the prime minister during his daily press briefing.
“In the case of the two Michaels, I can say that we are using a wide range of public and private measures to ensure that everything is being done to get these Michaels home.”
Bains echoed these remarks.
“We’ve been applying a lot of pressure and we’re going to continue to advocate for the immediate release,” he said. “Bottom line we will do whatever it takes to make sure we get those Canadians back home safely.”
KITCHENER, Ont. – Prosecutors are arguing a man who stabbed a professor and two students in a University of Waterloo gender studies class last year should face a lengthy sentence because of the attack’s lasting impact on campus safety and security.
Federal prosecutor Althea Francis says a sentence in the upper range is appropriate not only because Geovanny Villalba-Aleman wanted to send a message about his views but also because he sought to make those with different beliefs feel unsafe.
The Crown has said it is seeking a sentence of 16 years for Villalba-Aleman, who pleaded guilty to four charges in the June 2023 campus attack.
The sentencing hearing for Villalba-Aleman began Monday and is expected to continue all week.
Federal prosecutors argued Tuesday that Villalba-Aleman’s statement to police, and a manifesto that was found on his phone, show his actions were motivated by ideology and meant to intimidate a segment of the population.
Villalba-Aleman pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated assault, one count of assault with a weapon and one count of assault causing bodily harm.
A video of his statement to police was shown in court earlier in the sentencing hearing.
In the video, Villalba-Aleman told police he felt colleges and universities were imposing ideology and restricting academic freedom, and he wanted the attack to serve as a “wake-up call.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2024.
OTTAWA – The Bank of Canada cut its key policy interest rate by 50 basis points on Wednesday to bring it to 3.75 per cent. Here’s what people are saying about the decision:
“High inflation and interest rates have been a heavy burden for Canadians. With inflation now back to target and interest rates continuing to come down, families, businesses and communities should feel some relief.” — Tiff Macklem, Bank of Canada governor.
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“Activity in Canada’s housing market has been sluggish in many regions due to higher borrowing costs, but today’s more aggressive cut to lending rates could cause the tide to turn quickly. For those with variable rate mortgages – who will benefit from the rate drop immediately – or those with fast-approaching loan renewals, today’s announcement is welcome news indeed.” — Phil Soper, president and CEO of Royal LePage.
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“This won’t be the end of rate cuts. Even with the succession of policy cuts since June, rates are still way too high given the state of the economy. To bring rates into better balance, we have another 150 bps in cuts pencilled in through 2025. So while the pace of cuts going forward is now highly uncertain, the direction for rates is firmly downwards.” — James Orlando, director and senior economist at TD Bank.
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“The size of the December rate cut will depend on upcoming job and inflation data, but a 25 basis point cut remains our baseline.” — Tu Nguyen, economist with assurance, tax and consultancy firm RSM Canada.
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“Today’s outsized rate cut is mostly a response to the heavy-duty decline in headline inflation in the past few months. However, the underlying forecast and the Bank’s mild tone suggest that the future default moves will be 25 bp steps, unless growth and/or inflation surprise again to the downside.” — Douglas Porter, chief economist at Bank of Montreal.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2024.
