Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:
British Police rushed to a scene of mayhem Friday afternoon near London Bridge where they shot and killed a knife-wielding man wearing a fake suicide vest who had stabbed a number of people. Late Friday, London’s police commissioner confirmed two civilians were killed and three others were being treated in hospital. Several bystanders wrestled the suspect to the ground and grabbed his knife. A video posted on Twitter shows police dragging one man off the suspect before an officer takes careful aim.
Meanwhile, another knife attack was reported in The Hague, Netherlands, where police said three people were injured. Dutch police are looking for a man, about 45 to 50 years old, in a grey jogging suit and said it was still too early to say whether a terror motive was to blame for the attack.
In London, the United Kingdom’s top counter-terrorism officer and assistant commissioner of the London Metropolitan Police, Neil Basu, informed cameras that several people had been injured during the London Bridge incident and declared the attack a "terrorist incident.” Basu confirmed the device strapped to the body of the suspect was a hoax explosive device.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson cancelled his evening campaign plans and praised members of the public who intervened to detain the man. “For me, they represent the very best of our country and I thank them on behalf of all of our country,” he said in a televised statement.
The scene of today’s incident is near the same place where two years ago, three Islamist militants drove a van into pedestrians and then attacked people in the surrounding area, killing eight and injuring at least 48.
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Malta PM Muscat to resign amid crisis over journalist’s murder: report
Prime Minister Joseph Muscat of Malta is set to resign as the case of murdered journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia inflicts more damage on the government’s top ranks, Eric Reguly reports from Valletta, Malta.
According to news reports, Mr. Muscat had told the president that he intended to step down immediately. His resignation, if confirmed, would come as a surprise because he had given every indication recently that he would dig in even as the police investigation focused on the Prime Minister’s office. But cabinet ministers broke ranks during a seven-hour cabinet meeting that did not end until early Friday morning. Fourteen of 22 cabinet ministers reportedly asked for his resignation. By Friday evening though, the government in a statement said that media reports of a split in Cabinet were a “total invention.”
Earlier in the week, his chief of staff, Keith Schembri, and two cabinet ministers stepped down. Mr. Schembri was arrested and detained by police, but was released on Thursday night without being charged.
In October, 2017, Ms. Caruana Galizia was murdered in a car-bomb explosion. The Prime Minister and several of his closest associates and cabinet members have faced accusations of corruption, conflict of interest and stalling the delivery of justice in the case of the slain journalist. Ms. Caruana Galizia had devoted her career to exposing wrongdoing at the highest levels of government, including using the Panama Papers leak to reveal that Mr. Schembri, one of Mr. Muscat’s closest friends, and then-energy minister Konrad Mizzi had become the beneficiaries of secret Panama-registered companies. Mr. Mizzi resigned as tourism minister early this week.
Report details how Huawei is providing surveillance tech to China’s Xinjiang authorities
Chinese technology giant Huawei has provided sophisticated computing and big data services to authorities in the country’s northwestern Xinjiang region, The Globe’s Nathan VanderKlippe reports from Beijing today. Officials in the region have ordered the construction of an extensive network of digital surveillance and control even as large numbers of Muslims remain locked inside prison-like centres for political indoctrination and skills training.
In June, Huawei’s global cybersecurity and privacy officer, John Suffolk, said the company does not directly do business with security services in Xinjiang, saying it works only with third-party contractors. “We stay in the commercial space,” he said.
But considerable evidence suggests otherwise, underscoring Huawei’s role as a provider of technology for a powerful state monitoring apparatus that authorities say is designed to stamp out radicalization.
The idea that Huawei is not working directly with local governments in Xinjiang is “just straight-up nonsense,” said Vicky Xu, a researcher with the Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s Cyber Policy Centre.
She documented her findings in a report, released this week, that relies in part on Huawei’s own publications to show the company has worked with the Karamay Police Department on cloud-computing projects; with the Public Security Bureau of Aksu Prefecture on a modular data centre; with the regional capital, Urumqi, on the establishment of an “intelligent security industry” innovation lab; and with the Xinjiang Broadcast and Television Network Co. Ltd. on a co-operative project whose goals include “creating good public opinion for achieving Xinjiang’s general goals of social stability and long-term stability.”
Canadian economy slows in the third quarter, growing at 1.3 per cent
Canada’s real gross domestic product ground out 1.3-per-cent annualized growth in the third quarter, as the weight of global trade wars dragged the economy back to earth after a high-flying second quarter, but strong demand at home gave economists cause for cautious optimism. Statistics Canada said weakening exports and falling inventories let the air out of growth, which had spiked to 3.5 per cent in the second quarter, the strongest in two years. The third quarter ended meekly, as September real GDP grew just 0.1 per cent month-over-month, at the low end of economists’ expectations.
But economists took solace in a rebound in domestic demand in the quarter – up 3.2 per cent annualized – as household consumption, residential construction and business investment all accelerated. And they suggested that some elements of the third-quarter slowdown were temporary, as oil production disruptions and the General Motors strike contributed to the weakness in inventories and exports.
Canada asked to help fund Mexican labour reforms in USMCA trade talks
Mexico’s chief negotiator for the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) on North American free trade visited Ottawa Friday and according to a source familiar with negotiations asked Canada to contribute funding to Mexican labour reforms, reports Steven Chase in Ottawa and Adrian Morrow in Washington. Jesus Seade, the Undersecretary for North America for the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told reporters that these additional talks are “very close to the end” but the most difficult issues remain on the table.
The late talks come amid several moves in the past week that saw Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland travel to Washington on Wednesday to negotiate a side deal to the main agreement. The negotiation on the side deal stems from talks in the U.S. between the Trump administration and Democrats in Congress.
A source familiar with the discussions said four topics dominating these USMCA passage negotiations including stricter labour standards in Mexico, a stronger dispute settlement mechanism, measures to change patent protections that could rein in drug prices and environmental protection. The Globe and Mail is not identifying the source because they were not authorized to speak publicly on negotiations.
ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Bill Peters resigns from Calgary Flames: General manager Brad Treliving said at a press conference that coach Bill Peters voluntarily sent him a resignation letter earlier Friday morning. Peters was sidelined during investigations into allegations of racial slurs and physical abuse of players in previous jobs.
Ed Fast rejects offer of critic post: Veteran B.C. MP Ed Fast says he rejected an offer to be part of Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer’s team of opposition critics because the Leader deserves someone who “fully supports” his leadership.
Eaton Centre shooter sentenced to life in prison: Christopher Husbands who opened fire in the crowded food court of a popular mall in downtown Toronto seven years ago, killing two people, was sentenced to life in prison. The attack also left six people injured.
Court tosses federal bid to quash deadline on child welfare payments: The federal government has lost its bid to delay a deadline for compensating First Nations families torn apart by an underfunded child welfare system, as part of a Federal Court decision that looks to ensure children affected receive payments promptly.
B.C. tour company fined for using bait to attract bears: A judge in Clearwater, B.C. imposed a $35,000 fine this week on Russell and Debra Critchlow, a brother-and-sister team that operates Blue River Safari. The fine is the highest imposed by a B.C. court for using bait to attract bears.
Alberta planning to cut 500 full-time nursing positions: Alberta’s nurses union says the province communicated in a letter and in a meeting on Friday between the nurses and their employer, Alberta Health Services, the cuts will come over the next three years. The two sides will be in collective bargaining next year, and the health agency said in the letter it wanted to give nurses advanced warning on finances and staffing.
MARKET WATCH
Oil prices slumped, gold prices rose and stocks on Wall Street slipped after China warned it would take “firm counter measures” against U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to ratify a bill backing protesters in Hong Kong. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 112.59 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 28,051.41, the S&P 500 lost 12.65 points, or 0.40 per cent, to 3,140.98 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 39.70 points, or 0.46 per cent, to 8,665.47.
Canada’s main stock index also retreated from a record high on Friday. The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index was unofficially down 74.32 points, or 0.43 per cent, at 17,040.20.
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TALKING POINTS
Bloomberg won’t win the nomination, but he can make Biden lose it
“The Biden camp’s fears are not based on the likelihood that Mr. Bloomberg might win. Hardly anyone believes that. But the worry is that the New Yorker could capture 10 to 15 per cent of the vote in some major primaries, making things much more difficult for the Biden candidacy.” – Lawrence Martin
When Korea becomes one country, will it avoid Germany’s mistakes?
“Most Korean scholars and politicians I’ve talked to believe that North and South Korea will become a single unified state again at some point in the coming decade, one way or another. When it happens, they want to be ready – but nobody really knows what will happen. History has few examples of countries that have split and then reunited.” – Doug Saunders
The problem with bears in our backyards isn’t a bear problem at all; it’s a human one
“When we start to see bears coming into towns and backyards it is helpful to avoid knee-jerk reactions and to instead ask: why? Finding out what is actually driving the pattern will inform effective solutions.” – Kyle Artelle, adjunct assistant professor at the University of Victoria and biologist with the Raincoast Conservation Foundation
LIVING BETTER
Two Popes, one lawyer and Shia LaBeouf walk into a theatre...
Our film critics had rave reviews for this week’s crop of new films in theatres, including four stars for the intense and gripping The Two Popes (which arrives on Netflix Dec. 20); 3.5 stars for Shia LaBeouf’s Honey Boy, inspired by the actor’s own life and featuring what might be the finest acting of his career (he portrays a version of his own father); and three stars for Dark Waters, which stars Mark Ruffalo as Cincinnati lawyer Robert Bilott, who uncovers the misdeeds of chemical giant DuPont, which got away with poisoning a West Virginia town for decades.
The Globe 100: Books that shaped 2019
Globe and Mail editors and reviewers offer up our annual guide to the most notable books of the year. Whether you’re a fan of fiction, non-fiction, thrillers or graphic novels, or are looking for the year’s highlights in picture books, young adult books and cookbooks to help inform your holiday gift shopping, we have you covered.
LONG READ FOR A LONG COMMUTE
Cineplex’s bold plan to battle streaming giants like Netflix
The air resounds with the bleep-bloop of arcade game soundtracks, animatronic chatter and clanging Wheel of Fortune chimes. But all of this discordant racket is music to Ellis Jacob’s ears. “This is part of our whole diversification strategy,” the Cineplex CEO says, gesturing around the company’s new Playdium amusement complex.
Jacob is showing off a 41,000-square-foot glass and concrete box in suburban Brampton, northwest of Toronto, a former movie multiplex that has been gutted and revamped over the past year. Out went the 10 screens and 2,021 seats. In came well over 100 new attractions.
For a long time, Cineplex’s dominance of the movie exhibition sector was a strength. With 76% market share, it is by far the biggest chain in Canada. But that business is past its peak, and investors are alarmed at the astonishing rise of the new competition: Netflix Inc. and other huge online content providers that deliver movies and more right into consumers’ homes.
Jacob’s coping strategy is twofold: make more money off the people who still go to the movies (and there are a lot of them) and offer up additional forms of entertainment to give Cineplex a buffer against the ups and downs of the Hollywood production slate. Read Susan Krashinsky Robertson’s full story from the December 2019 edition of Report on Business magazine here.
Evening Update was produced by Michael Snider and Lori Fazari. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.
Michael Snider