More Canadians want vaccine and Air Canada deal reached: In The News for April 13

In The News is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to kickstart your day. Here is what’s on the radar of our editors for the morning of April 13 …

What we are watching in Canada…

More Canadians than ever say they intend to get vaccinated against COVID-19, a new poll suggests while fear about vaccine safety is the main driver of hesitancy to get an injection.

All this comes as confidence in governments is plummeting in provinces being hit hardest by the third wave of the pandemic.

At least eight in 10 people surveyed last weekend by Leger and the Association for Canadian Studies said they absolutely intend to roll up their sleeve for a vaccine.

The number has been steadily rising for months as vaccines have been rolling out in Canada and around the world, starting at 63 per cent in mid-October, rising to 70 per cent in early February, and 73 per cent in early March.

Christian Bourque, the executive vice-president at Leger, said as more people get vaccinated safely, confidence continues to grow.

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Also this …

An independent review of the Toronto police force’s handling of missing-persons investigations is set to be released today.

The review, led by former judge Gloria Epstein, was ordered in the summer of 2018 after the arrest of serial killer Bruce McArthur but did not initially include his crimes in order to preserve his right to a fair trial.

Its scope was later expanded to include that case after McArthur pleaded guilty to eight counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of eight men with ties to Toronto’s gay village.

The case stirred significant concern in Toronto’s LGBTQ community regarding how police investigated missing-person reports.

Many voiced fears that investigations were affected by systemic bias and discrimination.

The independent review aimed to examine policies and procedures related to missing-persons cases, as well as how officers investigated the disappearances of residents who were later found to have been killed.

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What we are watching in the U.S. …

Police clashed with protesters for a second night in the Minneapolis suburb where a police officer fatally shot a Black man in a traffic stop over the weekend.

The police chief said the officer had apparently intended to fire a Taser, not a handgun, as the man struggled with fellow officers.

Brooklyn Center Police Chief Tim Gannon described the shooting death Sunday of 20-year-old Daunte Wright as “an accidental discharge.” The shooting sparked unrest in an area already on edge because of the trial of the first of four police officers charged in George Floyd’s death.

Hundreds of protesters faced off against police in Brooklyn Center after nightfall Monday, and hours after a dusk-to-dawn curfew was announced by the governor. When the protesters wouldn’t disperse, police began firing gas canisters and flash-bang grenades, sending clouds wafting over the crowd and chasing some protesters away. A long line of police in riot gear, rhythmically pushing their clubs in front of them, began slowly forcing back the remaining crowds.

Law enforcement agencies had stepped up their presence across the Minneapolis area after the Sunday night violence. The number of Minnesota National Guard troops was expected to more than double to over 1,000 by Monday night.

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What we are watching in the rest of the world …

The attack on Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility is casting a major shadow over the resumption of indirect talks between the U.S. and Iran over resurrection of the international accord limiting Iran’s nuclear program.

Neither Iran nor the U.S. say the incident will crater the negotiations. But the attack and the destruction of a significant amount of Iran’s uranium enrichment capability add uncertainty to the discussions set for Tuesday in Vienna.

The attack gives both sides reason to harden their positions, yet each has incentives to keep the talks on track.

Iran wants Washington to lift sanctions that have contributed to damaging its economy, including measures not related to its nuclear program. It insists that the sanctions be lifted before it returns to compliance with the 2015 nuclear agreement that then-President Donald Trump pulled the U.S. out of in 2018.

For the Biden administration, the talks are a high-stakes gamble that it can salvage what the Obama administration considered one of its prime foreign policy achievements and slow Iran’s programs, even as critics claim the accord had given Iran a pathway to a nuclear weapon instead of closing it off.

Iran has blamed Israel for the destruction at an important underground facility, and Israeli media has been filled with claims from unnamed officials claiming responsibility.

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On this day in 1988 …

The federal government put Air Canada up for sale. Legislation was introduced to sell 45 per cent of the carrier’s shares, with the remainder to go on sale in the future.

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In business …

After months of negotiations, Ottawa has reached a multibillion-dollar rescue deal with Air Canada that will give the government an equity stake in the pandemic-battered airline.

Under the agreement, Air Canada can access up to $5.9 billion from the public purse but must refund passengers whose flights were cancelled due to COVID-19, cap executive compensation at $1 million and restore service to regional airports.

The package, which will see the federal government pay $500 million for a six-per-cent stake in the country’s biggest airline, also requires the carrier to maintain employment at current levels or higher.

“Taxpayers aren’t footing the bill. This is a loan facility, and the government of Canada fully expects to be paid back,” Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said Monday night, referring to the $5.4-billion credit facility.

Some $1.4 billion of that is earmarked to help reimburse the thousands of customers who paid for tickets but remained in the lurch at the end of 2020.

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ICYMI …

The initial entry in Terry Fox’s journal from his first day running his Marathon of Hope still rings true in the ears of his brother more than four decades later.

“Today is the day it all begins,” said Fred Fox 41 years to the day after his younger brother took his first steps on what became an epic journey across Canada.

The younger Fox was 18 when he was first diagnosed with cancer.

He lost his leg to the disease but he didn’t let that defeat him.

“He saw many people, old and young, suffering from cancer,” said Fred. “It impacted him immensely and he wanted to do something about it. He came up with this crazy idea of running a marathon across Canada, doing 42 kilometres every day.”

“`Terry would say anything is possible if you try,” he added. “That’s what we challenge Canadians to do: try like Terry.”

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 13, 2021

The Canadian Press