In the news today: Carney announces bid, bird flu keeping backyard chickens cooped up

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

Carney to launch leadership campaign today

Mark Carney is set to unveil his Liberal leadership campaign this afternoon in Edmonton, ending nearly a decade of speculation about his political ambitions.

Former finance minister Chrystia Freeland and government House leader Karina Gould are also expected to enter the race in the coming days.

The cut-off date to declare a bid for the leadership is Jan. 23, and candidates have to pay a $350,000 entrance fee.

Liberals will elect their new leader and bring the Trudeau era to a close on March 9.

How Vancouver backyard chicken fans deal with H5N1

Lumpy Eye the chicken has made plenty of friends in her East Vancouver neighbourhood over the years, said owner Duncan Martin, with passersby regularly greeting her in the yard outside their home.

But now the seven-year-old Bovan Brown hen is being kept in isolation in her coop, to prevent her coming into contact with wild birds — and H5N1 avian influenza.

“We consider ourselves at probably the smallest end of the spectrum of keeping chickens, with one at this point, but we tend to keep her in her run, so she’s fully protected,” said Martin.

Martin is among Vancouver’s urban poultry enthusiasts who are taking care to keep their flocks safe and healthy as deadly avian flu sweeps through dozens of commercial flocks across B.C., resulting in more than 8.5 million birds being culled.

Health Canada sees no human risk to FDA-banned dye

Health Canada says a synthetic dye newly banned from the U.S. food supply does not pose a health risk to the general population in Canada.

The federal agency said it won’t echo a ban by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration unless new information comes to light about the additive known as Red 3.

Health Canada said it reviewed a safety evaluation conducted by a joint committee for the United Nations and World Health Organization in 2018.

The joint UN/WHO committee looked at studies that involved humans and animals, and found no safety concerns for the dye as a food additive.

Drake lawsuit includes new details about shooting

A defamation lawsuit filed by Drake against Universal Music Group over Kendrick Lamar’s diss track “Not Like Us” includes new details about a high-profile shooting that seriously injured a security guard outside the Canadian rapper’s Toronto home last year.

The lawsuit filed Wednesday in a New York court, which does not name Lamar himself, also includes new information related to an alleged trespassing incident that followed the May 7, 2024, shooting.

The statement of claim says a group of armed assailants drove up to Drake’s home in the affluent Bridle Path neighbourhood in the middle of the night and someone shouted an expletive before at least one person opened fire.

The document alleges one bullet hit the front door and another hit a security guard who is also Drake’s friend, leaving the rapper and his friends scrambling to keep the man alive in the nearly half an hour they waited for an ambulance.

McDavid passes Kurri for second all-time in points in Oilers franchise history

Connor McDavid continues setting records and moving up scoring lists.

McDavid had two goals and an assist in the Edmonton Oilers’ 5-3 win against the Minnesota Wild on Wednesday night, passing Jari Kurri for second all-time in points in Edmonton history. McDavid, the three-time Hart trophy winner for league MVP and five-time scoring champion, now has 1,044 points in his 10-year career and trails only Wayne Gretzky on the franchise list.

Kurri had 1,043 points in his 10 years with the Oilers, playing on a line with Gretzky for much of it. Gretzky, the NHL’s all-time leading scorer, had 1,669 points in nine seasons in Edmonton.

McDavid didn’t talk to reporters after the game. He was involved in a collision with Minnesota forward Marcus Johansson in the second period in which McDavid’s elbow hit Johansson in the face. There was no penalty called but it drew the ire of the Wild.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 16, 2025

The Canadian Press