Marine Le Pen hits back in EU funds misuse trial
French politician Marine Le Pen has hit back against charges of illegal party funding by European Parliament deputies from her far-right National Rally (RN) party. Le Pen and more than 20 other senior party figures are accused of hiring assistants who worked on party affairs rather than for the European Parliament which paid them. She told a court in Paris on Monday that parliamentary assistants paid for by the Brussels assembly were naturally involved in politics – because that was what drew them to the job in the first place.Read more
Spacecraft blasts off to hunt alien life on a distant moon
A spacecraft that will hunt for signs of alien life on one of Jupiter’s icy moons has blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida. Nasa launched the spacecraft at 12:06 local time (16:06 GMT) after hurricane Milton forced the mission to postpone plans last week. Europa Clipper will now travel 1.8 billion miles to reach Europa, a deeply mysterious moon orbiting Jupiter. It will not arrive until 2030 but what it finds could change what we know about life in our solar system. Trapped under the moon’s surface could be aRead more
Vince Carter played only a short time in Canada. His impact on Canadian basketball still goes strong
Even though Vince Carter played only a short time in Canada, his impact on Canadian basketball is still going strong. Those kids who watched him play in Toronto, who dreamed of wearing a jersey with a dinosaur on their chest, who maybe didn’t realize yet that no matter how hard they practised at school or in the park would never dunk like Carter, are all grown up now. They have made Canada’s national team one of the best in the world, the best it’s ever been, and many of themRead more
Trudeau accuses India of supporting violent crimes in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the Indian government has made a “fundamental error” as he accused it of supporting a campaign of violence against Canadians on Canadian soil. The prime minister spoke to reporters Monday, hours after the head of the RCMP laid out stunning allegations accusing agents of the Indian government of playing a role in “widespread violence” in Canada, including homicides, and warned that it poses “a serious threat to our public safety.” Earlier in the day, Canada announced it’s expelling six Indian diplomats. India has denied the allegationsRead more
For Pierre Poilievre, the conflict appears to be the point
Some amount of conflict is inherent to democracy — particularly so in a political system that prominently features His Majesty’s Loyal Opposition. And hyperbole has probably existed for as long as humans have been able to communicate. But has any Canadian politician in recent memory embraced rhetorical conflict as enthusiastically as Pierre Poilievre? For the Conservative leader, there seems to be no such thing as overstatement. And he seems to feel it’s almost always worth going on the attack. Speaking to reporters at a news conference on Parliament Hill inRead more
Who will end the debate? Political gridlock continues in the House of Commons
Federal political parties appear to be locked in a game of chicken in an increasingly precarious Parliament over a debate that has stalled almost all business in the House of Commons. The Conservatives have vowed the debate will continue until the Liberals hand over to the RCMP unredacted documents about a green-tech foundation that was found to have misspent government money. The debate has now stretched into its second week. “I could sit down right now and everything would be done, if they just gave the documents,” Conservative MP KyleRead more
Leaders condemn B.C. rally where ‘death to Canada’ cry went up
Political leaders are condemning what they describe as “hateful rhetoric” from a speaker at a pro-Palestinian rally in Vancouver who told the crowd that “we are Hezbollah and we are Hamas.” Both groups are listed by Public Safety Canada as terrorist entities. In videos circulated online, an unidentified masked woman led a crowd of hundreds at the Vancouver Art Gallery Monday night in chants of “death to Canada, death to the United States and death to Israel,” while some in the group burned Canadian flags. The protest was organized by theRead more
Why has Parliament’s work been paralyzed for more than a week?
The House of Commons has been at a standstill for more than a week as a dispute over releasing documents related to the government’s failed green technology fund continues to gum up the works. The Conservatives are trying to force the government to release all documents related to the now-defunct Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), a federally funded arm’s-length body that was launched in 2021 to hand out taxpayer money to promising clean tech firms. The Conservatives want the RCMP to investigate alleged wrongdoing at the SDTC and say policeRead more
Government business on pause as Conservatives demand documents on defunct green tech foundation
The government has been unable to put any of its own business before the House of Commons for a full week, and the Conservatives on Thursday said that’s the result of Liberal “corruption.” Conservative House leader Andrew Scheer said the governing party would rather see the House bogged down in debate than produce documents related to misspent government dollars in a program his party has dubbed the “green slush fund.” House Speaker Greg Fergus ruled last Thursday that the government “clearly did not fully comply” with an order from theRead more
3 former officers convicted of witness tampering in fatal beating of Tyre Nichols
Three former Memphis police officers were convicted Thursday in the 2023 fatal beating of Tyre Nichols, but were acquitted of the harshest charges they faced for a death that sparked national protests and calls for broad changes in policing. Jurors deliberated for about six hours before coming back with a mixed verdict for Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith. All were convicted of witness tampering related to the cover-up of the beating, but Bean and Smith were acquitted of civil rights charges. Haley was acquitted of violating Nichols’s civilRead more