Four stories in the news for today, Oct. 16

Four stories in the news for Monday, Oct. 16

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FEDS TO CUT SMALL BIZ TAX RATE TO NINE PER CENT

Justin Trudeau will belatedly honour his campaign promise to cut the small business tax rate to nine per cent as his government scrambles to undo the damage from weeks of controversy over proposed tax reforms for private corporations. The prime minister is to announce the reduction today, along with changes to the tax reform proposals in a bid to re-establish the Liberals as the champions of middle-class Canadians. That title has been tarnished as doctors, lawyers, accountants, shop owners, farmers, premiers and even some Liberal backbenchers denounced the reforms.

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invasive species

Crews destroy invasive species from pristine island off Nanoose Bay

1h ago

whale rescue

Bigger boats, more nets, people arrive in Zeballos for new orca rescue attempt

4h ago

high profile development

Howard Johnson rezoning still supported amid 'significant concerns' from SFN

6h ago

ONTARIO COLLEGE FACULTY GO ON STRIKE

Faculty at 24 Ontario colleges have gone on strike, affecting more than 500,000 students. The Ontario Public Services Employees Union says the two sides failed to resolve their differences by Sunday’s midnight strike deadline.  The strike involves more than 12,000 professors, instructors, counsellors, and librarians. The union’s last proposal called for called for improvements in job security and for faculty to have a stronger voice in academic decision making. But the colleges said the demands would have added more than $250 million in annual costs.

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MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS ACROSS ALBERTA TODAY

Municipal elections are being held in Alberta today, with the race for the mayor’s chair in Calgary drawing the most attention. Naheed Nenshi is seeking his third term, but a victory is far from assured. Nenshi was the first Muslim mayor of a major North American city when he was first elected in 2010, and his popularity and affable style gave him a national profile. But polls indicate  the race this time between he and Calgary lawyer Bill Smith is too close to call.

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MONTREAL’S ‘SPOONMAN’ BUSKER RETIRING

After more than 20 years of clacking cutlery in front of Ogilvy’s department store, one of Montreal’s best-known buskers says he’s getting ready to hang up his spoons, at least part of the time. Cyrille “Spoonman” Esteve is 65 years old, and has been a fixture of the city’s downtown for years. But he says changes to municipal bylaws that require him to move his setup — which includes a sound system — every hour, have made it too difficult for him to continue.

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ALSO IN THE NEWS TODAY:

— Poverty and housing organizations hold a press conference to discuss the upcoming National Housing and Anti-Poverty Strategies.

— The Bank of Canada releases the autumn issue of the Business Outlook Survey and the Senior Loan Officer Survey.

— The National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls holds a community hearing in Winnipeg.

The Canadian Press