In the news today: Top three federal party leaders in Western Canada

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

Party leaders in Western Canada today

The top three federal party leaders are in Western Canada today.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is scheduled to hold a news conference in Edmonton at 8:30 a.m. before he makes his way to Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., for a rally in the evening.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh plans to make an announcement at 9:30 a.m. in Vancouver before joining striking workers on a picket line and meeting with Stewart Philip, grand chief of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs, in Burnaby, B.C., in the evening.

Liberal Leader Mark Carney is expected to make an announcement in Delta, B.C., this morning and will visit a business in New Westminster, B.C., before heading east for a suppertime rally in Calgary.

The Liberal and Conservative leaders both started the third week of the federal election campaign in British Columbia — a battleground province with 43 seats up for grabs when Canadians go to the polls in the April 28th vote.

Here’s what else we’re watching…

Pierre Poilievre faces 81 challengers on ballot

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre will seek re-election in his own riding against 81 other candidates — while Liberal Leader Mark Carney is running for the first time against just four challengers in Nepean.

A protest group called the Longest Ballot Committee has convinced dozens of candidates to register to run as Independents in Poilievre’s Ontario riding of Carleton, in addition to the usual main party candidates.

The protest group opposes the first-past-the-post voting system and is seeking to build support for electoral reform.

The group has fielded long lists of candidates in prominent federal byelections in recent years, inflating the physical size of ballots and delaying the counts.

A representative from the protest group pledged to field candidates against Liberal incumbent Chrystia Freeland in her University—Rosedale riding in Toronto — a threat that has not materialized as she only faces five challengers.

Day 2 of Quebec daycare killings trial

A second psychiatrist is expected to tell a trial today that the man accused of driving a city bus into a Montreal-area daycare should not be held criminally responsible for killing two children and injuring six others.

Dr. Sylvain Faucher is scheduled to take the stand for Day 2 of the trial of Pierre Ny St-Amand, 53, who is accused of ramming the bus into the Laval, Que., daycare on Feb. 8, 2023, killing a four-year-old boy and a five-year-old girl.

On Monday, psychiatrist Dr. Kim Bédard-Charette told the first day of the trial that the accused was likely experiencing psychosis at the time he drove the bus into the building.

Both Faucher and Bédard-Charette evaluated Ny St-Amand separately, and independently came to the conclusion that he should not be held criminally responsible for his actions.

In response, both the Crown and defence have told the Quebec Superior Court that they would present the facts of Ny St-Amand’s case jointly, and recommend that the judge find him not criminally responsible.

Sticking with financial plans during volatility

Three days of wild market volatility sparked by U.S. tariffs is enough to cause any investor stress, but for those in retirement, the plunge can be extra difficult.

Markets have taken a nosedive after U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of sweeping global tariffs last Wednesday.

While it can be worrisome to see markets drop around 10 per cent in a matter of days, experts emphasize the importance of not making any rash moves.

“First and foremost, absolutely avoid panic selling,” said Tony Maiorino, head of RBC’s Family Office Services team.

Portfolio rebalancing is important for everyone, but especially for retirees who might no longer be contributing to their investments and are relying especially on capital gains.

Legal group cancels ‘Peace by Chocolate’ speaker

A national legal group has apologized and begun an internal review after facing widespread criticism for cancelling a keynote speech by a prominent Syrian refugee.

The Advocates’ Society last month rescinded an invitation to Tareq Hadhad, owner of the Nova Scotia confectioner Peace by Chocolate to speak at an event in June after some members expressed concern with the refugee-turned-entrepreneur’s posts about the ongoing Middle East conflict.

A May 27, 2024, post by Hadhad on the social media platform X talks about the Israel-Hamas war, saying children should wake up to the sounds of birds not bombs and “this genocide must be stopped.”

In a statement, Hadhad said he believes peace comes from having honest, uncomfortable conversations and that grieving the “suffering of one group does not mean the exclusion of another.”

Several organizations including the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, the South Asian Bar Association, the Canadian Muslim Lawyers Association and over 50 legal scholars have voiced their concern about the nonprofit’s decision to cancel Hadhad’s invitation.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 8, 2025.

The Canadian Press