A global IT outage disrupted flights and health care in Canada, while Toronto was flooded after torrential downpour. Here are some of the top stories this week.
CrowdStrike outage
CrowdStrike outage: Canadian flights, health care disrupted after faulty update
Dozens of Canadian flights and several hospitals across the country were disrupted on Friday amid a global technology outage that grounded planes and impacted banks as well as other businesses across the world.
Cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike said on Friday that the problem occurred after a faulty update to computers running Microsoft Windows and the issue was being resolved.
Some health networks in Canada turned to social media to update patients on the outage.
Business
Bank of Canada rate-cut odds rise after June inflation release
Fresh inflation figures showing that price pressures rebounded lower last month are boosting odds among economists and market watchers that the Bank of Canada will deliver another interest rate cut next week.
Statistics Canada’s consumer price index (CPI) reported an annual inflation rate of 2.7 per cent in June. That follows a surprise uptick to 2.9 per cent in May.
Increased child benefits go out Friday. Here’s what parents can expect
Canadian parents were set to receive a top-up in child benefits on Friday amid growing cost-of-living concerns.
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July payments of the Canada child benefit (CCB) are recalculated annually based on a family’s net income and adjusted for inflation.
The tax-free monthly payments go to eligible families who have children under the age of 18 years residing in Canada.
Using heating oil? What to know about Canada’s plan to phase in heat pumps
The federal government on Tuesday unveiled its plan to phase out heating oil over the next few years and require buildings to have heat pumps installed.
The plan is part of the federal government’s Canada Green Buildings Strategy (CGBS), which aims to make Canada’s buildings net-zero. Oil heating systems will be phased out by 2028, the government said.
Politics and policy
Who is Mark Carney, and why is Justin Trudeau courting him?
The name on the lips of politicos, reporters and Liberal insiders in Ottawa over the past few weeks does not hold a position in government and has never even run for a seat in Parliament: Mark Carney.
But Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed to reporters last week that he’s been speaking to Carney “for years” about joining federal politics.
“I think he would be an outstanding addition at a time when Canadians need good people to step up in politics,” Trudeau said last week.
Toronto flooding a ‘significant event,’ need to step up climate change fight: Trudeau
Massive flooding that hit the Greater Toronto Area on Tuesday was a “significant event,” underscoring the need to step up Canada’s fight against climate change, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.
The storm, which knocked out power for tens of thousands of people, flooded a major highway and a key transit hub in Toronto amid rainfall warnings for much of southern Ontario.
Health
Plant-based milk recall: 2 dead in ‘unusual’ Listeria outbreak
Two people have died in Canada due to Listeria infections linked to plant-based milks. Experts are calling it an “unusual” outbreak and are urging caution to prevent further illnesses.
In an update on Wednesday, the Public Health Agency of Canada said a dozen cases have been confirmed, including two deaths and nine hospitalizations.
Rabies in Canada: A look at the disease risk amidst new U.S. dog regulation
While Health Minister Mark Holland pushes to exempt Canada from stricter United States dog regulations at the border due to our low rabies risk, experts warn the disease can still pose a serious domestic threat. If left untreated, rabies is 100 per cent fatal.
Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Holland described Canada as a “rabies-free country.” However, Dr. Isaac Bogoch, an infectious diseases specialist, explained that rabies cases still occur in Canada and the disease is extremely difficult to eradicate.
U.S. politics
‘Unfit for office’: 10 times JD Vance criticized Trump before landing VP nod
Donald Trump has a new running mate in the race to become America’s next president: a man who has previously criticized his leadership, calling him “unfit for office” and even describing him as “reprehensible.”
On Monday, Trump announced on his social media platform, Truth Social, that Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance is his pick for vice-president.
Before becoming a Trump ally, Vance sharply criticized the former president in a series of interviews, op-eds and now-deleted tweets.
But Vance started changing his tune, and in an interview with CNN in 2021, said he regrets his criticism of Trump.
Guns, prisons and Truth Social: Stocks on the rise after Trump shooting
While many across the United States and the world, including President Joe Biden, are urging Americans to lower the political temperature in the country in the wake of a failed assassination attempt on former president Donald Trump, some stocks on Wall Street looked upbeat this week.
Crypto stocks, prison operators and other shares that could benefit from a Trump presidency jumped on Monday, as an assassination attempt on the Republican candidate boosted his odds of an election victory in November.
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