The Canadian government is doubling the pollution price rebate rural top-up rate, and implementing a three-year pause to the federal carbon price on deliveries of heating oil in all jurisdictions where the federal fuel charge is in effect, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Thursday.
The Climate Action Incentive Payment rural top-up rate will be increasing from 10 to 20 per cent of the baseline amount, starting in April 2024. It’s a move Trudeau said is to recognize the higher energy costs rural residents are facing.
“If you live in a rural community, you don’t have the same options that people who live in cities do. We get that. So, this is more money in your pocket to recognize those realities, even as we continue to fight climate change,” Trudeau said.
The temporary pause on the fuel charge on heating oil for homes and small businesses will begin in 14 days, and will apply in all jurisdictions where the federal fuel charge is in effect. The Liberals estimate that this break— slated to be in effect until March 31, 2027—will save an average household that uses heating oil $250 at the current rate.
However, the prime minister acknowledged that with this break, the revenues the government collects will “go down slightly,” and as a result the rebate cheques “will be slightly lower.”
In addition, part of what the Prime Minister’s Office is billing as a “new energy affordability package,” the federal government is also rolling out plans to make it easier for Canadians to switch to an electric heat pump to heat their homes, starting first in Atlantic Canada.
This pilot project will see an upfront payment of $250 for low-to-medium-income households that heat their homes with oil. It also includes plans to enhance a program that provides Canadian households funding to help make the transition from heating oil to more efficient and environmentally-friendly electric heat pumps.
Trudeau said the Liberals are increasing the maximum amount of funding towards the purchase and installation of a heat pump from $10,000 to $15,000. They will be doing this by adding up to $5,000 in “grant funding to match provincial and territorial contributions,” which, according to a PMO release, would mean most households will be able to get their pump for free.
“To be blunt, the price signal on heating oil is not resulting in enough people being able to switch to electric heat pumps, despite people wanting to move to these cleaner home heating options,” Trudeau said. “As a government that is focused on evidence and data and outcomes, and that is listening to Canadians, we heard you.”
PM BACKED BY ATLANTIC MPS
The prime minister made the major announcement backed by his Atlantic caucus, among which there has been divisions over the Liberal carbon pricing plan, given the proportion of Atlantic Canadians who live outside urban areas.
Amid the current cost-of-living crunch, the Liberals have been facing pressure— specifically from Atlantic and rural MPs, as well as regional and opposition politicians—to ease off on its carbon pricing policies.
Introducing the prime minister, Atlantic caucus chair and Kings-Hants, N.S. MP Kody Blois—whose riding Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is holding an “Axe the Tax” rally Thursday night—called it a meaningful announcement for his constituents.
“Today’s adjustments and programming are welcomed as a better way to ensure that our programs are meeting the needs of all Canadians,” Blois said, thanking his Atlantic colleagues for their “steadfast” advocacy.
“But it is important to remember why we have instituted a national price on pollution across the country. It is one of the most effective ways to be able to fight climate change and reduce emissions.”
In an interview with CTV News Atlantic’s Todd Battis on Thursday, Poilievre was asked what brought him to Blois’ riding.
“Local residents are furious at their Liberal MP because he’s voted to quadruple the carbon tax… it’s incredible. Quadruple the carbon tax when people can’t afford to eat,” Poilievre said.
Quickly firing off a response to the prime minister’s climb-down, Poilievre accused Trudeau of flip-flopping on his climate plans.
“After plummeting in the polls, a flailing, desperate Trudeau is now flipping and flopping on the carbon tax as I am holding a gigantic axe the tax rally in a Liberal-held Atlantic riding,” Poilievre posted.
‘POLITICALLY ON THE ROPES’
Asked Thursday if this move is in response to Poilievre’s focus on the carbon tax, the prime minister said no. He was also adamant that the federal government will be achieving its environmental targets “even better” now.
“This is an important moment where we’re adjusting policies so that they have the right outcome,” the prime minister said.
Reacting to the news, NDP MPs called the move “long-overdue,” but are pushing for reprieve for families across the country struggling to make ends meet.
“For months, the NDP has been urging the Liberals to drop the GST on home heating fuel to give hardworking Canadians a break on their bills,” said NDP environment critic Laurel Collins and NDP natural resources critic Charlie Angus in a joint statement.
“At the same time, the climate crisis has taken a turn … People expect the government to take action to tackle this crisis.”
CTV News’ official pollster Nik Nanos said Trudeau’s break on the carbon tax is “indicative of a government that’s politically on the ropes.”
“Right now the Conservatives have a massive advantage. They’re in majority territory. The Liberals are poised to lose seats. If an election were held today, they could lose upwards of 13 seats in Atlantic Canada, which is usually bedrock support. So, this is about the Liberals trying to salvage the political situation,” Nanos said.
He said Canadians shouldn’t be surprised if they see further chipping away at the policy as the next campaign nears, in an effort to shore up more support, something climate change advocates are worried about.
“This is about dollars and cents, it’s not necessarily about climate change,” Nanos said. “It’s about paying the bills right now.”
Montreal Alouettes wide receiver Tyson Philpot has announced he will be out for the rest of the CFL season.
The Delta, B.C., native posted the news on his Instagram page Thursday.
“To Be Continued. Shoutout my team, the fans of the CFL and the whole city of Montreal! I can’t wait to be back healthy and write this next chapter in 2025,” the statement read.
Philpot, 24, injured his foot in a 33-23 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Aug. 10 and was placed on the six-game injured list the next week.
The six-foot-one, 195-pound receiver had 58 receptions, 779 yards and five touchdowns in nine games for the league-leading Alouettes in his third season.
Philpot scored the game-winning touchdown in Montreal’s Grey Cup win last season to punctuate a six-reception, 63-yard performance.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa sustained a concussion for the third time in his NFL career, leaving his team’s game Thursday night against Buffalo after running into defensive back Damar Hamlin and hitting the back of his head against the turf.
Tagovailoa remained down for about two minutes before getting to his feet and walking to the sideline after the play in the third quarter. He made his way to the tunnel not long afterward, looking into the stands before smiling and departing toward the locker room.
The Dolphins needed almost no time before announcing it was a concussion. The team said he had two during the 2022 season, and Tagovailoa was diagnosed with another concussion when he was a college player at Alabama.
Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said Tagovailoa would get “proper procedural evaluation” and “appropriate care” on Friday.
“The furthest thing from my mind is, ‘What is the timeline?’ We just need to evaluate and just worry about my teammate, like the rest of the guys are,” McDaniel said. “We’ll get more information tomorrow and take it day by day from here.”
Some players saw Tagovailoa in the locker room after the game and said they were encouraged. Tagovailoa spoke with some players and then went home after the game, McDaniel said.
“I have a lot of love for Tua, built a great relationship with him,” said quarterback Skylar Thompson, who replaced Tagovailoa after the injury. “You care about the person more than the player and everybody in the organization would say the same thing. Just really praying for Tua and hopefully everything will come out all right.”
Tagovailoa signed a four-year, $212 million extension before this season — a deal that makes him one of the highest-paid players in the NFL — and was the NFL’s leading passer in Week 1 this season. Tagovailoa left with the Dolphins trailing 31-10, and that was the final score.
“If you know Tua outside of football, you can’t help but feel for him,” Bills quarterback Josh Allen said on Amazon following the game. “He’s a great football player but he’s an even greater human being. He’s one of the best humans on the planet. I’ve got a lot of love for him and I’m just praying for him and his family, hoping everything’s OK. But it’s tough, man. This game of football that we play, it’s got its highs and it’s got its lows — and this is one of the lows.”
Tagovailoa’s college years and first three NFL seasons were marred by injury, though he positioned himself for a big pay bump with an injury-free and productive 2023 as he led the Dolphins into the playoffs. He threw for 29 touchdowns and a league-best 4,624 yards last year.
When, or if, he can come back this season is anyone’s guess. Tagovailoa said in April 2023 that the concussions he had in the 2022 season left him contemplating his playing future. “I think I considered it for a time,” he said then, when asked if he considered stepping away from the game to protect himself.
McDaniel said it’s not his place to say if Tagovailoa should return to football. “He’ll be evaluated and we’ll have conversations and progress as appropriate,” McDaniel said.
Tagovailoa was hurt Thursday on a fourth-down keeper with about 4:30 left in the third. He went straight ahead into Hamlin and did not slide, leading with his right shoulder instead.
Hamlin was the player who suffered a cardiac arrest after making a tackle during a Monday night game in January 2023 at Cincinnati, causing the NFL to suspend a pivotal game that quickly lost significance in the aftermath of a scary scene that unfolded in front of a national television audience.
Tagovailoa wound up on his back, both his hands in the air and Bills players immediately pointed at him as if to suggest there was an injury. Dolphins center Aaron Brewer quickly did the same, waving to the sideline.
Tagovailoa appeared to be making a fist with his right hand as he lay on the ground. It was movement consistent with something that is referred to as the “fencing response,” which can be common after a traumatic brain injury.
Tagovailoa eventually got to his feet. McDaniel grabbed the side of his quarterback’s head and gave him a kiss on the cheek as Tagovailoa departed. Thompson came into the game to take Tagovailoa’s spot.
“I love Tua on and off the football field,” Bills edge Von Miller said. “I’m a huge fan of him. I can empathize and sympathize with him because I’ve been there. I wish him the best.”
Tagovailoa’s history with concussions — and how he has since worked to avoid them — is a huge part of the story of his career, and now comes to the forefront once again.
He had at least two concussions during the 2022 season. He was hurt in a Week 3 game against Buffalo and cleared concussion protocol, though he appeared disoriented on that play but returned to the game.
The NFL later changed its concussion protocol to mandate that if a player shows possible concussion symptoms — including a lack of balance or stability — he must sit out the rest of the game.
Less than a week later, in a Thursday night game at Cincinnati, Tagovailoa was concussed on a scary hit that briefly knocked him unconscious and led to him being taken off the field on a stretcher.
His second known concussion of that season came in a December game against Green Bay, and he didn’t play for the rest of the 2022 season. After that, Tagovailoa began studying ways where he may be able to fall more safely and protect himself against further injury — including studying jiu-jitsu.
“I’m not worried about anything that’s out of my hands,” McDaniel said. “I’m just worried about the human being.”
NEW YORK (AP) — When her husband turns on the television to hear news about the upcoming presidential election, that’s often a signal for Lori Johnson Malveaux to leave the room.
It can get to be too much. Often, she’ll go to a TV in another room to watch a movie on the Hallmark Channel or BET. She craves something comforting and entertaining. And in that, she has company.
While about half of Americans say they are following political news “extremely” or “very” closely, about 6 in 10 say they need to limit how much information they consume about the government and politics to avoid feeling overloaded or fatigued, according to a new survey from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and USAFacts.
Make no mistake: Malveaux plans to vote. She always does. “I just get to the point where I don’t want to hear the rhetoric,” she said.
The 54-year-old Democrat said she’s most bothered when she hears people on the news telling her that something she saw with her own eyes — like the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol — didn’t really happen.
“I feel like I’m being gaslit. That’s the way to put it,” she said.
Sometimes it feels like ‘a bombardment’
Caleb Pack, 23, a Republican from Ardmore, Oklahoma, who works in IT, tries to keep informed through the news feeds on his phone, which is stocked with a variety of sources, including CNN, Fox News, The Wall Street Journal and The Associated Press.
Yet sometimes, Pack says, it seems like a bombardment.
“It’s good to know what’s going on, but both sides are pulling a little bit extreme,” he said. “It just feels like it’s a conversation piece everywhere, and it’s hard to escape it.”
Media fatigue isn’t a new phenomenon. A Pew Research Center survey conducted in late 2019 found roughly two in three Americans felt worn out by the amount of news there is, about the same as in a poll taken in early 2018. During the 2016 presidential campaign, about 6 in 10 people felt overloaded by campaign news.
But it can be particularly acute with news related to politics. The AP-NORC/USAFacts poll found that half of Americans feel a need to limit their consumption of information related to crime or overseas conflicts, while only about 4 in 10 are limiting news about the economy and jobs.
It’s easy to understand, with television outlets like CNN, Fox News Channel and MSNBC full of political talk and a wide array of political news online, sometimes complicated by disinformation.
“There’s a glut of information,” said Richard Coffin, director of research and advocacy for USAFacts, “and people are having a hard time figuring out what is true or not.”
Women are more likely to feel they need to limit media
In the AP-NORC poll, about 6 in 10 men said they follow news about elections and politics at least “very” closely, compared to about half of women. For all types of news, not just politics, women are more likely than men to report the need to limit their media consumption, the survey found.
White adults are also more likely than Black or Hispanic adults to say they need to limit media consumption on politics, the poll found.
Kaleb Aravzo, 19, a Democrat, gets a baseline of news by listening to National Public Radio in the morning at home in Logan, Utah. Too much politics, particularly when he’s on social media sites like TikTok and Instagram, can trigger anxiety and depression.
“If it pops up on my page when I’m on social media,” he said, “I’ll just scroll past it.”
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Sanders reported from Washington. David Bauder writes about media for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder.
The AP poll of 1,019 adults was conducted July 29-August 8, 2024, using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 4.0 percentage points.
