More GTA businesses open up and the Hockey Hall of Fame; In The News for June 24

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 June 24 …

What we are watching in Canada … 

TORONTO — Ontario’s two most heavily populated regions will see more businesses open their doors today as Toronto and Peel move into the next stage of the province’s COVID-19 recovery plan.

The two regions officially enter Stage 2 of the pandemic reopening framework, joining nearly all the rest of the province that began ramping up activities over the past two weeks.

Windsor-Essex remains the only region not cleared to move to the next phase, due to stubbornly high COVID-19 case numbers on farms in the region.

Businesses given the green light to resume operations in Toronto and Peel today include hair stylists, pools and tour guide services.

Restaurants are also allowed to reopen their patios for dine-in service, though no one is yet allowed to be served indoors.

In all cases, the Ontario government says proper physical distancing measures must be maintained to prevent a spike in COVID-19 cases.

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Also this …

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be among some 600 prominent politicians, business leaders and journalists featured at one of the world’s largest tech conferences.

The two-day Collision conference begins today and Trudeau is to take part in a question and answer session with a Financial Times editor on Thursday.

The conference — billed as Collision from Home this year — is taking place virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the Collision website, more than 32,000 people from 140 countries are expected to join the conference.

Trudeau’s session, which was recorded in advance, focuses on Canada’s response to the pandemic, with particular emphasis on the role of science and innovation in fighting the deadly novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 and attempts to find treatments and an eventual vaccine.

Among the other featured speakers are Microsoft president Brad Smith, World Health Organization director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Netflix chief production officer Greg Peters and Canadian author Margaret Atwood.

Trudeau is taking a break today from his daily pandemic briefing outside Rideau Cottage to quietly celebrate St. Jean Baptiste Day, Quebec’s Fete nationale.

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ICYMI (In case you missed it) …

Sale of T-shirts on Walmart Canada’s website with the words “All Lives Matter” printed across the front has drawn furor from social media users.

The company is also selling T-shirts with “Blue Lives Matter” and “Irish Lives Matter” printed across them.

In a statement, Walmart Canada says it stands against any form of racism or discrimination and promotes listening, seeking to understand and embracing individual differences.

It says a third-party marketplace has a number of items with variations on the phrase “lives matter,” and it will review those items to ensure compliance with Walmart’s terms and conditions.

But several social media users called out the company, with one Twitter user identified as Farzana Khan asking Walmart to remove the T-shirts, calling them “disgusting.”

Another user, Beth MacDonnell, also called for their removal asking “who approved this?” 

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What we are watching in the U.S. …

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Several hundred people gathered in Marion Square, in the historic South Carolina city of Charleston, today to watch the removal of a statue of former vice-president and slavery advocate John C. Calhoun.

Just before 1 a.m. local time, workers using cranes began to bring the statue down from its 30-metre monument in downtown Marion Square.

In the wake of protests and unrest, city council members voted Tuesday to remove the statue and place it permanently at “an appropriate site where it will be protected and preserved.”

The city council voted 13-0 Tuesday evening on a resolution to remove the statue.

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What we are watching elsewhere in the world …

BEIJING — China appears to have tamed a new outbreak of the coronavirus in Beijing, once again demonstrating its ability to quickly mobilize vast resources by testing nearly 2.5 million people in 11 days.

But elsewhere in the world, cases were surging. India reported a record daily increase of nearly 16,000 new cases. Mexico also set a record with more than 6,200 new cases.

In the U.S., increases over the past few days have jumped to near the level of the outbreak’s previous peak in April. Several states set single-day records, including Arizona, California, Mississippi, Nevada and Texas.

Worldwide, more than 9.2 million people have contracted the virus, including more than 477,000 who have died.

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Today in 1880 … 

“O Canada,” with music by Calixa Lavallee and French lyrics by Judge A.B. Routhier, was performed for the first time at the Skaters’ Pavilion in Quebec City.

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In sports …

TORONTO — Former Calgary Flames star Jarome Iginla headlines the list of first-time eligible players for selection to the Hockey Hall of Fame today.

The class of 2020 will be unveiled this afternoon after the selection committee meets.

Iginla had 1,300 points in 1,554 career NHL games and helped Canada win gold at the Olympics in 2002 in Salt Lake City and 2010 in Vancouver.

At the latter Winter Games, Iginla made the pass to Sidney Crosby for the golden goal in overtime against the United States.

Other players eligible for the first time include Marian Hossa and Shane Doan.

Fans of the Senators will be anxious to see if longtime Ottawa captain Daniel Alfredsson gets the nod in his fourth year on the ballot.

Former Canadian women’s team forward Jennifer Botterill and goalie Kim St-Pierre also are eligible this year.

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In entertainment …

New seasons of “Transplant” and “Jann” are among the shows bound for CTV as Bell Media navigates COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns and vows to increase representation and diversity in its content.

The company announced its upcoming lineup on Tuesday, including a second season of the hit homegrown medical drama “Transplant,” starring Hamza Haq as a Syrian doctor building a new life in Canada. An air date hasn’t been announced.

And the Canadian comedy “Jann,” from singer-songwriter-actress Jann Arden, will premiere a second season this fall and has been renewed for a third.

New shows on the CTV docket include “Filthy Rich,” starring Kim Cattrall as the wife of a wealthy patriarch, played by Gerald McRaney, whose sudden death reveals his secret life.

There’s also Chuck Lorre’s new comedy “B Positive,” starring Thomas Middleditch and Annaleigh Ashford as an unlikely duo who bond during his search for a kidney donor.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 24, 2020.

The Canadian Press