In the news today: Inquiry to hear from foreign ministry officials

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed…

Inquiry to hear from foreign ministry officials

A federal inquiry into foreign interference plans to hear from senior Global Affairs Canada officials today.

A slate of department representatives will testify as the commission of inquiry looks at ways of detecting and countering foreign meddling.

Early next week the inquiry expects to hear from officials of the Privy Council Office, Canadian Heritage and Public Safety Canada.

The hearings, scheduled to continue through Oct. 16, are focusing on the practices of key agencies as well as the experiences of diaspora communities.

Beginning Oct. 21, the commission will hold a week of policy consultations, including roundtable discussions featuring experts, to help develop recommendations.

Here’s what else we’re watching…

Leaders in Regina as election campaign continues

The first week of the Saskatchewan election campaign is wrapping up, and the leaders of the two major parties are set to be in the capital today.

Saskatchewan Party Leader Scott Moe is scheduled to make an announcement this morning in northwest Regina.

NDP Leader Carla Beck is set to speak at a hotel in the southern part of the city.

On Thursday, hundreds of nurses stood on the steps of the provincial legislature to urge the next government to fix staffing problems in health care.

Election day is set for Oct. 28.

Trudeau to talk AI at Francophonie summit

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is set to take part in an armchair discussion on artificial intelligence in France today as the Francophonie summit kicks off.

Trudeau is scheduled to talk about AI in the morning, while leaders will hold a session on challenges for French-speaking citizens in the digital age in the afternoon.

As the host of this year’s meeting between French-speaking countries, French President Emmanuel Macron will be welcoming leaders to Villers-Cotterêts and later hosting an official dinner.

The ongoing and widening war in the Middle East, which is affecting Lebanon, a member state of the Organisation de la Francophonie, is also expected to be a topic of discussion for leaders.

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says she will have a conversation with Lebanon’s information minister during the summit and will be meeting with her French counterpart today to discuss how to bring peace and stability to the Middle East.

Waste flare gas will help power Sask. grid

As pressure grows on the oil and gas sector to reduce its emissions, one Calgary-based company is banking on the potential to convert waste gas from oil wells into valuable electricity for nearby communities.

The privately held Steel Reef Infrastructure Corp. — which owns and operates a network of crude oil and natural gas pipelines as well as processing and storage facilities in Saskatchewan and North Dakota — wants to become known as an industry leader in the relatively new space of flare gas recovery.

The company announced this week it has signed a series of power purchase agreements with Crown corporation SaskPower that will see it provide the utility with approximately 100 megawatts of electricity per year for Saskatchewan’s grid — enough to power 100,000 homes annually.

The electricity, expected to come onto the province’s grid by late 2027, will be produced at five of Steel Reef’s gas plants in Saskatchewan, using recovered gas that would otherwise be flared into the atmosphere at well sites.

Judge to instruct jury in Jacob Hoggard trial

The judge overseeing the sexual assault trial of Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard is expected to begin delivering his final instructions to a northeastern Ontario jury today.

Ontario Superior Court Justice Robin Tremblay will lay out the legal principles jurors must apply as they consider the evidence heard in the nearly two-week trial.

Lawyers for the Crown and the defence each made a final pitch to the jury Thursday.

Both sides agree that a sexual encounter took place in Hoggard’s hotel room after a concert and bonfire after-party in Kirkland Lake, Ont., roughly eight years ago, meaning the case has centred on consent.

The complainant, who was 19 at the time, says Hoggard raped, choked, hit and urinated on her, and called her names like “dirty little piggy.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 4, 2024

The Canadian Press